Reporter – Leigh Hester – Numbers from the “Show, Shine, Shag & Dine and the East Coast Drag Times Hall of Fame Weekend” held on October 14th are in. In a report Monday night by Tourism Director Nancy Wilson, the event was billed as “the largest event we’ve had” in the ten years the event has been held in Henderson.
With a staff of two as well as fifty-two volunteers, Wilson estimated that between 42,000 and 45,000 people attended the event from at least thirty-two states. According to Wilson, between 1,200 and 1,400 classic cars, from 1976 or older, attended the event. At the first event ten years ago, 150 cars were registered at the event.
Her numbers, as reported to the Commissioners, showed that between $2.5 and $3 million dollars were generated within Vance County as a result of the show, much of it from outside the local area. “Our motels, restaurants, gas stations and retail stores are very happy,” she said.
The event was held on Friday, October 14 at Satterwhite Point Park, Saturday, October 15 at 300 S. Garnett St, and Sunday, October 16 at the VGCC Civic Center.