Classic car lovers share passion

My aunt and uncle restore old cars – Model A’s, I think. I went with them to a vintage car rally or some such happening in Post Falls once.

There, grown men negotiated an obstacle course that involved, among other things, putting on vintage ladies’ nightgowns and throwing car parts through a hole in a thematically painted piece of plywood.

These particular relatives are accomplished, sophisticated folks. But apparently my uncle chose – of his own free will — to gad about in a nightie.

I didn’t get it.

And that’s pretty much my take on car enthusiasm in any form.

It’s not a popular opinion, I know.

So I won’t be inflicting it upon the devotees present at the Third Annual Concours d’Elegance at Carillon Point in Kirkland, Wash., on Sept. 10.

That fancy term means, more or less, “car show.” And acccording to Judi Meek, operations and member services manager at the Greater Kirkland Chamber of Commerce, this one features “about 75 of the most spectacular, rare, prewar and postwar classics. It’s a rolling art museum.”

The cars compete in seven classes: Fabulous ‘50s, Rolls-Royce, Classic Car Club of America Foreign Classics, CCCA American Classics, Antiques, Woodies and the Blackhawk Collection. The latter comes from a California-based company specializing in American and European classic, coach-built and one-of-a-kind automobiles.

Clark Gable’s Duesenberg and Al Jolson’s Mercedes SSK will make the scene, along with some vintage motorcycles and wooden boats.

Your brush with fame could very well extend into the present, as well. Actor Edward Herrmann, most recently seen in “Gilmore Girls,” serves as the event’s honorary chairman, and you may get a glimpse of him judging the entries.

Organizers expect around 2,500 car lovers to attend at $20 a pop. The take at the gate, along with sponsorships and money raised at the opening night gala, goes to Evergreen Hospital’s services for women and children and the uncompensated care fund at Children’s Hospital and Regional Medical Center in Seattle.

They anticipate the total will reach $250,000, an impressive increase over the first year’s $60,000.

There’s more information about the car show and $100-per-person gala at The Woodmark Hotel and Spa at www.kirklandconcours.com. Or you can call the Greater Kirkland Chamber of Commerce at (425) 822-7066.

To find out if rooms are available at the hotel, call (800) 822-3700 or visit www.thewoodmark.com.

Take flight

If you prefer your transportation aloft, you’ll have to wait a bit for any concours-style folderol. But it’s coming.

Construction of the new Future of Flight Aviation Center and Boeing Tour in Everett is under way. By Oct. 28 you’ll have 73,000 square feet of interactive exhibits and displays, observation deck space, conference facilities and more at your disposal.

Ringing in at a cool $21.7 million, the center aims to provide visitors with an understanding and appreciation of the technology applied to the science of flight. You’ll have a chance to design your own jet, test drive the latest in-flight entertainment systems and lay your hands on the high-tech skin of the new Boeing 787.

The Boeing tour – a shuttle bus away from the aviation center – represents the only such access to a commercial jet assembly plant in North America. While the tour is currently available on weekdays, when the new facility opens it will run daily.

Track the center’s progress on their Web site at www.futureofflight.org. Or call (425) 349-3200.

Regional events

•32nd Annual Barnes Steam and Power Show, Aug. 26-28, Belgrade, Mont. The largest steam engine show in the Northwest presents operating steam engines, threshing machines, sawmills, old gas tractors, a 10-stamp gold mill, miniature trains and more. (www.visitmt.com/406-388-4433)

•Sagebrush Arts Festival, Sept. 9-10, Pocatello, Idaho. Artists display and sell their paintings, glasswork, jewelry, pottery and other works at the Pocatello Art Center. Learn to tie-dye, block paint, throw pots and paint murals in the hands-on Children’s Art Yard, free to all ages. (www.visitidaho.org/208-232-0970.)

•Jazz at Newport Festival, Sept. 9-11, Newport, Ore. The town’s bookstores, bistros and galleries welcome jazz artists Jenna Mammina, Cami Thompson and Swing Shift, Marlena Shaw with the Mel Brown Quartet, Barbara Blair with the David Hutson Quartet, Marilyn Keller with Tall Jazz, Eleven Eyes and the Mario Flores Latin Jazz Band. (www.jazzatnewport.org /888-701-7123)

•Grandparents’ Day at Maryhill, Sept. 11, Goldendale, Wash. Grandparents and grandchildren are invited to create a memory book with artist Roberta Lavadour at Maryhill Museum of Art. The activity is free with admission, and passes for children under 17 are also free with one paid adult. (www.maryhillmuseum.org /509-773-3733)