The Viking Charities Classic Car Show (VCCCS), featuring more than 200 classic vehicles, will take place 10 a.m.-5 p.m. Saturday, Oct. 7 in Solvang. Proceeds will benefit those qualified individuals in Santa Barbara County with medical needs.

Colorful classic cars are parked in front shops and the iconic windmill in Solvang.
Viking Charities Classic Car Show will take place Oct. 6-8 in Solvang, Buellton and Santa Ynez. Credit: Courtesy photo

Downtown Solvang will be transformed into a classic car and motorcycle mecca as pre-1990 impeccably restored, stock and customized vehicles, including hot rods, sports cars, muscle cars, vans, pickups, trucks, motorcycles and other special interest vehicles.

The VCCCS, which is free to attend, is the successor to the popular 16-year, Wheels & Windmills Car Show that concluded last year.

The event will feature music throughout the day, a VCCCS beer and wine garden, and Viking burger bar, as well as the Vikings of Solvang parade longboat for inspection and tour.

A family Poker Walk, courtesy of the Solvang Chamber of Commerce will be offered and a 50/50 ticket raffle.

The awards ceremony for honors in more than two dozen car show classes including muscle, sport, motorcycle and truck will take place in Solvang Park late Saturday afternoon.

The car show is the centerpiece of three days of vehicle oriented special events taking place Friday, Oct. 6 through Sunday, Oct. 8 in Solvang, as well as in Buellton and Santa Ynez.

The car show weekend opens Friday evening with a gala fundraising dinner at Mendenhall’s Motor Museum of Gasoline Pumps and Petroliana in Buellton.

A Santa Maria-style BBQ N.Y. steak entrée with all the fixins’ will be prepared by the Vikings of Solvang BBQ team, and attendees can enjoy premium local beer and wine.

Silent and live auctions will offer one-of-a-kind items. A limited number of tickets are available at $100/person.

VCCCS activities conclude Sunday with free behind-the-scenes peel at the Santa Ynez Valley’s premier private and commercial garages.

Starting at Santa Ynez High School Pirate Auto Shop in Solvang-adjacent Santa Ynez, participants will pick up their list of participating local custom garages to tour and have the opportunity to participate in a Poker Run competition with cards offered at $10 each for a chance to win a prize.

Following the garage tour, the Vikings of Solvang BBQ team will offer lunch at the Pirate Garage at 2 p.m. Tickets are $10 each. Funds raised from the Sunday event benefit the Santa Ynez High School Pirate Garage program.

Proceeds from the VCCCS Friday and Saturday activities will go to the Endowment Fund of Vikings of Solvang, a 49-year-old social and philanthropic 501(c)(3) not-for-profit organization, which provides funding for the medically related needs of qualified individuals and health care organizations in the Santa Ynez Valley and throughout Santa Barbara County. Vikings has donated more than $3 million in medically related aid since its founding.

“The medical needs of our neighbors increase every year,” said Vikings chief Dan Cassara of Solvang. “The car show is an enormously complicated but fun way for us to raise the monies we need to continue taking care of our neighbors.

“All funds raised will go into our Vikings Charities Endowment Fund to assist in perpetuity future generations,” he said. “We budget 5% of our fund annually for medically related grants, this year $110,000.

“Since we have no overhead whatsoever and our investments yield more than what we grant, we know that monies raised will be saving lives forever.”

The VCCCS weekend is co-chaired by Dr. Roger Lane of Solvang and Gregg Weitzman of Santa Ynez, with support from more than 30 volunteers from throughout the Santa Ynez Valley and 40 show sponsors.

For more on Viking Charities and Viking Charities Classic Car Show, visit https://www.vikingsofsolvang.org.