10 things you should know about the Starbird-Devlin car show (+video)

The Starbird-Devlin Rods & Customs Charity Car Show, which kicks off Friday at Century II, started 59 years ago in Wichita. Even so, there are things you might not know about this long-running event. For the inside story, we turned to Tom Devlin, one of eight “car guys” who organize the event.

1. It’s for a good cause — two, actually: The show benefits the Arc of Sedgwick County and Starkey Inc., nonprofits which serve people with developmental disabilities. Last year’s event raised about $135,000; this year’s goal is $150,000. The organizers and virtually everyone connected with the show donate their time.

2. We’re No. 3: “Car owners tell us, in their view, we are the third-best indoor car show in America,” Devlin said. “We think that’s pretty good.” The top two: Oakland’s Grand National Roadster Show (the nation’s oldest) and Detroit Automobilia (which has a head start for obvious reasons).

3. It’s a family show: There’s a kid’s zone where children can make and take home a model car, get their faces painted and participate in a customized bike show. Kids 11 and younger get into the show free; tickets for ages 12 to 17 are $6.

4. It’s like Black Friday for gearheads: The show features over 60 vendors selling items related to automobiles.

5. It’s a legacy thing: “The show was founded in 1957,” Devlin said. “Very few things are going on in Wichita that were being done in Wichita in 1957. We grew up going to the Starbird car show years and years ago. We went to it in the old Forum” — predecessor of Century II — “before it was torn down. We know how much fun it was for our parents and older brothers and sisters. We decided it’s our job to keep this thing going for future generations.”

6. You won’t get lonely: Over 25,000 people are expected to attend this year’s show, with half of them coming from out of town.

7. It’s a teaching moment: The show hosts a college career day in auto restoration, inviting high school students in auto mechanics classes to come for a seminar taught by instructors from community colleges. “We have schools that drive their kids by school bus from other towns,” Devlin said. “We’ll have about 200 this year. Our goal is to eventually have 500. It’s a really neat deal.”

8. Everyone’s a winner: Well, not quite, but the show does give away over 120 awards. The top prizes are in the “Magnificent Seven” best of show competition, whose winners split $17,000 in prize money. “Usually half of them donate the money back to the charities, which I think is pretty great,” Devlin said.

9. It’s an honor: The VA Medical Center and Kansas Honor Flight program bring veterans to the show for free on Friday, and every morning the event starts with the Star-Spangled Banner. “We want the children and everyone to see that America’s great and all of us ought to give back,” Devlin said.

10. The cars — of course: Most of the car owners have spent $500,000 or more transforming their beloved vehicles. “We’ve had some winners that’ve spent $2 million,” Devlin said. “These are cars that people in Wichita never get to see unless they go to the west coast or back east.”

This story was originally published January 13, 2016 at 6:28 PM with the headline "10 things you should know about the Starbird-Devlin car show (+video)."