Classic cars, hotrods, motorcycles, and off-road vehicles filled City Beach Park Saturday for the 19th annual presentation of the North Whidbey Lions Club Car Show.

With more than 200 vehicles to choose from, voters (those who entered their vehicles in the show) had a real challenge deciding which vehicle was best. But when the votes were finally tallied for the 4 p.m. awards presentations, the Best of Show honors went to a particularly distinct entry: a 1938 Ford delivery van owned by Laurie Morten. But the entry was more an ensemble than a single vehicle: the van was pulling a trailer, on which sat an ancient soda pop cooler and Harley-Davidson motorcycle, all painted deep red and emblazoned with classic Coca Cola symbols. For contest voters, Morten’s entry was indeed “the real thing.”

Dozens of other entries were deserving of awards, which explained why the Lions Club filled the bed of a flatbed truck with a huge display of trophies. Few car owners went home empty handed, and deservedly so — each vehicle represented hundreds of hours of sweat and tears — and who knows how much money — before they were ready for public perusal.

One appreciative show-goer was Christina Fitzgerald, who said she and her husband always attend the show and “go through three rolls of film every year.” At the time she was admiring a rare 1953 Triumph Mayflower, owned by Dan and Barb Brown. “It’s really pretty,” she said. “It caught my attention.”

The vehicle owners could usually be found directly behind their entries, sitting in folding camping chairs. Tom Harrison of Kent basked in the attention his 1966 Chevy Nova was receiving. “I wanted one of these when I graduated from high school,” said the 1967 grad. “But I couldn’t afford it.” He finally found the car he wanted it, restored it, and replaced the original 283 cubic inch motor with a 350 model, for more zip.

Another off-islander, Bob Keele of Sequim, brought over his pride and joy, a 1964 Plymouth Fury convertible he purchased new in 1965 for his bride on their first anniversary. It’s still the same car, with the original engine and push button transmission. He’s always painted it to match the original color, and kept up the interior with original-looking upholstery. This was his first time in Oak Harbor for the car show. He said he read about it in Cruzin’ Magazine.

The show represented hundreds of man-hours of labor by members of the North Whidbey Lions Club, who put on the show as a summer attraction for the city and as a way to raise money for worthwhile causes. According to Lion Bob Brown, a long-time car show volunteer, there’s usually about $5,000 left over after expenses to provide college scholarships for graduating seniors, support youth athletic programs, and help send handicapped children to Camp Horizon.

Brown started signing in entrants at 6 a.m. Saturday, which he did until noon before switching to vote counting and other activities. He spent 12 hours on the job. Ironically, he never had time to enjoy the show, but he said there were 209 entries. “That’s about typical with good weather, which we had,” he said. Entries came from as far away as British Columbia and California.

The show attracted a large crowd of car lovers who wandered through the park all day long, enjoying the cars as well as a variety of food booths. “I was quite impressed by the number of spectators,” Brown said.