Engines roar as 38th annual Cruise Nite event kicks off in Kearney

KEARNEY, Neb. - Car lovers, start your engines- one of Central Nebraska’s most popular summer events is kicking off Tuesday.

What began 38 years ago as a simple car show and dance has transformed into a six-day community celebration.

The 38th annual Cruise Night event is underway in Kearney, marking the start of six fuel-filled days featuring various activities. 

Attendees packed the BluePrint Engine parking lot Tuesday night with vehicles of all different shapes and sizes for the first Show and Shine event...

"I grew up around cars and pickups and that kind of thing and it's just grown and evolved. I think there are a lot of people that feel the same way," said Kearney Cruise Nite Organizer Brad Kernick. "There's just a lot of people that have memories in cars, whether that's a high schooler or a senior citizen," said Kernick

Officials say that Kearney has built a strong car culture over the years, and continues to add to the annual event.

One of the most popular additions is Wednesday night’s classic car tour which is a parade dedicated to showing off antique or restored older cars to seniors at local nursing and assisted living homes.

Organizers say it was in high demand for years...

"It was brought to my attention by some of the activities directors at the homes saying 'we've got some people here that just love cars, but we can't get them all downtown. Is there any way you could come by?' We looked at our schedule, our schedule was full. And we said, 'guess what? We're gonna give you your own night.' And it's just exploded- last year we had between 250 and 300 vehicles," said Kernick.

Cruise Nite events continue throughout the week and wraps up on Sunday night.