Cruise Night returns to downtown
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Hey there, time traveller!
This article was published 03/09/2021 (1671 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.
Filling the Wheat City with the sounds of revving engines and camaraderie, Cruise Night in Downtown Brandon was back for the first time in two years on Thursday evening.
The Brandon and Area Car Enthusiasts (BACE) Cruise Night was a welcomed return to a beloved tradition for car enthusiasts, said Road Rebels president Dave Burba.
“Two years we’ve been off Rosser Avenue, and this has just been wonderful [to be back], it was smiles from ear-to-ear from everybody,” Burba said.
He estimates the newly paved downtown core saw more than 300 cars by the end of the evening, filling up Rosser Avenue and the side streets along the thoroughfare.
Rosser Avenue played host to muscle cars, classics, trucks, modified rides, antique autos, motorcycles and other carefully crafted wheels on display for passersby.
Being back on the road was an awesome experience, Burba said, describing the cruise as a reunion for gear heads in Brandon. It was exciting reconnecting with familiar rides and faces, as well as new vehicles and visitors.
“The evening has been beautiful,” Burba said. “It’s a big old block party.”
The cruise was somewhat bittersweet, he added, as it marked the first and last cruise of the 2021 season.
BACE and Road Rebels members have been eagerly waiting for a cruise and it was a relief to be able to host one to mark the end of summer. Volunteers were unable to host any Cruise Nights in Downtown Brandon in 2020 or early 2021 due to COVID-19 restrictions in the province.
Burba said the community staple not only brought together torque masters from the Westman area but supported the community with a raffle fundraiser held by the Super Thrift Store Teen Challenge for a 1970 AMC Javelin and collected food donations for Tin for the Bin for Elspeth Reid Resource Centre to help families in need.
Supporting non-profits made the cruise night especially meaningful, Burba said.
“We figured it would be nice to have that downtown here to promote their organization,” he said. “That’s what we’re about — everybody loves cars and if you get people involved that way, then they’re willing to give.”
Super Thrift Store Teen Challenge development director Aaron Murray appreciated being able to showcase the non-profit’s ride raffle at the cruise night.
The 1970 AMC Javelin was anonymously donated to the Manitoba Teen Challenge Men’s Centre in Winnipeg. The ride was restored at the Men’s Centre Teen Challenge shop and is now up for grabs to whoever buys the winning ticket.
Tickets are available for $20 and can be purchased at Super Thrift Store locations in Brandon, Winnipeg and Winkler. A total of 3,000 are available and the raffle will be drawn on April 22, 2022.
Teen Challenge is a faith-based program that helps men and women find freedom from addictions, Murray said.
The program is funded through different fundraisers and Super Thrift Stores located across the province.
“We always have different, cool events like this going on,” Murray said. “If anyone of any age is struggling with addiction, we want to help and we want to be there for support.”
Visit teenchallenge.tc for more information.
» ckemp@brandonsun.com
» Twitter: @The_ChelseaKemp