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Nelson Road Kings returns in September

It’s the first big event in Nelson since the pandemic began
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The Nelson Road Kings car show will return to downtown Nelson in September. The event, seen here in 2018, was forced to skip last year due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Photo: Tyler Harper

Nelson Road Kings will roll back into the city in September, making it the first major event held in Nelson since the COVID-19 pandemic began.

The car show and parade, which had run annually since 2003 until last year, is set to be held Sept. 10 and 11 in downtown Nelson.

Nelson Road Kings president Marcello Piro said the city has given its tentative approval, and only a change in the provincial restart plan, which as of Sept. 7 will once again allow for normal social contact and large gatherings, would alter the event’s schedule.

Piro said he believes the car show will provide a much-needed economic boost to Nelson’s downtown.

“The downtown business community as a whole has been amazing. They’ve opened up their arms to us,” said Piro. “We’ve been going around [and] we thought at first that it was going to be hard to get them to help out, but they’ve been fantastic, and everyone we’ve talked to has been on board with us.”

Piro also expects the event to draw in plenty of American visitors. The Canada border will reopen to fully vaccinated Americans as of Aug. 9. Piro said some have already booked spots for their vehicles.

“We find that people want to come back here,” said Piro. “They say that this is one of the best car shows or one of the best events that they’ve ever gone to. So that speaks volumes of our community and the people putting on the event.”

There aren’t quite enough people putting on Road Kings this year, though.

Piro said the event is in need of more volunteers. Anyone interested in helping out is asked to contact info@nelsonroadkings.com.

@tyler_harper | tyler.harper@nelsonstar.com
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Tyler Harper

About the Author: Tyler Harper

I’m editor-reporter at the Nelson Star, where I’ve worked since 2015.
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