Street Rods to roll into York this week

By now, the annual invasion of the street rods to York has become old hat. After all, this is the 36th time the National Street Rod Association has held the national event in town.

You're familiar with the annual street rod parade, staged at noon Friday; the show at the York Expo Center itself, the vendors, the entertainment, the activities for kids; the phenomena of people lining Route 30, setting up lawn chairs and bringing out the coolers, to watch the unofficial parade of street rods.

You're familiar with all of that.

Yet, this year, the show will have a slightly different look.

The association has long defined street rods and a modernized vintage vehicle built before 1949. This year, classic cars of the '50s and muscle cars from the '60s and '70s will be among the 3,500 vehicles on display, meaning that alongside the T-buckets and Deuce coupes could be Boss 302 Mustangs or Dodge Challengers.

Some quick numbers about the street rod meet:

• The cars range in value from $8,000 to $100,000
• All of the cars and trucks on display combine for a total worth of more than $98 million.
• There are more than $72,000 in prize giveaways at the event.
• More than 125 manufacturers and dealers will set up shop to sell parts and accessories.
• Some 150 street rods will participate in the parade, which begins at the Market Street gate of the expo center and ends in downtown York.

If you go

What: Street Rods Nationals East

Where: The York Expo Center

When: 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. June 3 and 4, and 8:30 a.m. to 2 p.m. June 5

Admission: $15 for adults, $6 for children 6 to 12 and free for children under 6. Discount tickets are available for senior citizens and military personnel. For more information, visit www.nsra-usa.com.

Anyone with a car older than 30 years old who wishes to participate in the event can still register. Registration opens at 9 a.m. at the Wyndham Garden Hotel at 2000 Loucks Road in West Manchester Township. For more information, visit www.nsra-usa.com.

For the non-car people

The cars themselves can be works of art, but there are other activities for those not infected with car fever.

There is an arts and crafts show in Memorial Hall, featuring a variety of vendors. Also, the Brush Brigade will be airbrushing and pinstriping items to be auctioned off to benefit the Make-A-Wish Foundation.

For kids, there will be games from 10:30 a.m. to noon Saturday.