Vettes in the Park set for Saturday, July 31
Lake Street will hold a beautiful sight for car lovers on Saturday, July 31.
The street will be lined with Corvettes both new and old.
Starting at 8 a.m. and running until 2:30 p.m. the University of Okoboji Corvette Club will be hosting the annual Vettes in the Park event. The cars will line Lake Street down to the State Pier and on Preservation Plaza.
It’s an event that draws Corvette enthusiasts and car lovers to one spot with around 100 Corvettes to look at.
“It’s a great opportunity for us to show off our toys,” said Kevin Pernick with a laugh. Pernick is the chairman of the Vettes in the Park Committee of the University of Okoboji Corvette Club. “It’s a chance for Corvette enthusiasts to come together and share it with other people. We have people from all over who come to the event and bring their cars.”
The weekend event kicks off at Sampson Corvettes in Sanborn.
The business is sponsoring the event so that car enthusiasts can participate in the event for free. There is no cost to register a Corvette for Vettes in the Park and the event is free for those who want to come check out the cars.
At noon Friday, July 30, registration begins at Sampson Corvettes and will continue until the group heads out at 4 p.m. to caravan to The Toy Shed in Spirit Lake, IA, where there will be food and refreshments.
The next day all the cars will be on display for car enthusiasts and visitors to Arnolds Park Amusement Park.
There will be four trophies awarded at the event including a raffle trophy, president’s choice, park’s choice and chairperson’s choice.
This will be Pernick’s third year showing a car during Vettes in the Park and his 10th year attending the event. He will be bringing his 2006 Corvette with a Lingenfelter conversion.
While he enjoys most aspects of Vettes in the Park, he does have one thing that stands out as his favorite part of the day.
“I love it when the kids come, and it happens every year. We let them sit in the car and it sparks that passion,” Pernick said. “We are able to give them what we needed when we were kids — that experience. All the kids with wide eyes — that was us. We loved it when they would let us sit in their cars and experience what it’s like. Now we get to do that for those kids.”