CAR SHOW TO ROLL INTO CAPAHA PARK

For 25 years, Danny Essner has seen southeast Missourians from all walks of life come together for a common cause: hot rods.

Essner is a charter member of the River City Rodders car club, which is having its 23rd annual car show Sunday at Capaha Park.

"We've just got a real cross section of people blue-collar people, mechanics, bankers, professional people," said Essner, a Cape Girardeau banker who restored a 1955 Chevy two-door hard-top.

"The common denominator is that everybody is a car enthusiast. People join the club because we all enjoy cars and enjoy being with other people who enjoy cars."

Sunday's show, which has free admission for the general public, is expected to feature about 200 automobiles from within at least a 100-mile radius of Cape Girardeau.

Essner said the cars will be representative of the 1920s right up to the 1990s.

"You're going to have a broad selection of cars and trucks original cars and trucks plus modified and customized cars and trucks," he said. "There will be cars there that are worth $30,000 or $40,000."

Car owners can enter any of 32 classes. Entry fee is $10, and organizers will award three trophies in each class.

Special awards also will be presented for club choice, best paint, best engine, longest distance and the car club that has the most members registered in Sunday's show.

Gates open at 9 a.m. Registration will take place from 9 a.m. until noon, and the awards presentation will be at 3 p.m. Concessions will be sold on the grounds, and the show will take place rain or shine.

Essner said the show, which is the only one in Cape Girardeau, is a great family event.

"If you're a car enthusiast or if your kids enjoy cars, it's a great opportunity to bring your family out to the park and see a bunch of really nice cars that they wouldn't be able to see otherwise in the area," Essner said.

"We like the fact that there is no admission so people can bring their kids out and see the cars. They're not roped off, so it's a neat opportunity to look at the cars and talk to the people who own them or build them."

For more information about the show, call Essner at 335-1704.