ROBERT PIERCE
• Leader & Times
Mid-May is here, and the calendar is seeing graduations galore taking place across the High Plains, along with many other springtime activities.
For nearly two decades, one of those activities has been Liberal’s Yellow Brick Road Car Show, and now in its 18th year, the show will again be happening this Friday night at Billy’s Ayr Lanes and Saturday at Light Park.
YBRCS organizer Bill Hill said this year’s show’s theme, “Tri Five & All,” primarily focuses cars from the years 1955, 1956 and 1957.
“Chevy’s come up with this deal,” he said. “They have the Tri Five Nationals. The Tri Five means ’55, ’56 and ’57 Chevys, and all means everybody else. Some of the famous cars in that collection are the ’55, ’56 and ’57 Chevys.”
In those years, Hill said car manufacturers changed from a fat fendered, square body design to making vehicles bigger and wider, and he said with many people being unfamiliar with Tri Fives, this made the 2025 theme perfect.
“We got quite a few of them coming in, some really nice stuff,” he said.
Also from the mid-50s, the Ford Thunderbird will be a part of this weekend’s show, and Hill particularly pointed to the 1957 model made famous in the movie “American Graffiti.”
“They had the ’55, ’56 and ’57 Thunderbirds,” he said. “We’ve got some of them coming, but the main theme is Tri Five Chevys. It’s going to be cool to see all of that.”
Following the 1957 models, Hill said Chevy made its 1958 models about another foot or two longer.
“Some of the cars back in the late ’50s and early ’60s were 19 and a half foot long,” he said. “That’s almost double the length of a minivan. It’s going to be fun to see these cars.”
As car show officials do every year, Hill said this year’s theme was picked out of the blue, and he hopes for a good show this weekend.
“Everybody will come out in the area and enjoy the whole thing,” he said. “It’s free to the public. It’s free to everybody. Hopefully, they’ll come see everybody display their cars and visit with everybody and have a good time.”
Friday’s portion of the YBRCS will feature live bands at Billy’s.
“People are all welcome,” Hill said. “The bands are paid for. You don’t have to pay admission to get into the bands. This year, we’ve got Jimmy Dale Richardson coming out of the Oklahoma City area. He’s rock and roll. He’s got ladies dancing with poodle skirts on. They’re really good.”
A favorite fixture, Lendon James, will be on hand for this year’s car show as well.
“He’s a great kid, and he’s going to be coming in,” Hill said. “That kicks off the barbecue. That’ll be inside.”
Most of Friday’s fun, weather permitting, will take place outside, and Saturday’s portion of the show moves to Light Park and is free thanks to some sponsors. Hill said many volunteers likewise make the YBRCS possible.
“You can’t believe how many days the ladies sit out there, and it’s a little windy and cold,” he said. “The ladies sit out there and register the guys. It’s going to be a great show.”
One particular group of Tri Five owners will be coming from Colorado Springs.
“They got pickups and cars,” Hill said. “He called and asked if their whole group could come. There’s already 10 of them registered in and got their motel rooms. The show helps fill the motel rooms on a weekend that sometimes are empty.”
Food vendors will be on hand at Light Park, but Hill said these are limited because he wants to see those who come to the show visit local restaurants offered in Liberal.
“It’s not so much coming to Billy’s,” he said. “We have great restaurants around us right there at the park, and they fill them up all day long.”
For Saturday’s younger visitors, bouncy houses will be found in Light Park.
“We hope everybody enjoys it, and if you need any help with handicapped people, let us know,” Hill said. “We’ll try to do our best.”
Bringing community members together with those coming from other parts of the country, Hill said, play a large part in what makes the YBRCS a success year after year.
“When people see the townspeople are involved, the community gets together, and that’s the reason we started it so many years ago,” he said. “That’s the reason we still go through it. If you can get local people shaking hands with these people they don’t know, it’s unbelievable what could happen with our community if somebody somewhere says ‘I was in a town called Liberal, Kansas. Those guys are pretty nice guys.’ If you’re going to do something, you might ought to look at that shop. We do it to have a fun weekend in our hometown of Liberal, Kansas.”
States represented by car owners in the show include Illinois, Arizona, Colorado, Wyoming, Oklahoma, Kansas, Texas, Nebraska and Missouri.
“It’s neat to see people come to our community, and you get to shake their hands,” he said. “This is for the community, and if we can help the community in any way, let us know what you’re organization is, and we’ll more than glad to help you.”
Friday’s and Saturday’s forecast thus far calls for little in the way of precipitation in Liberal, but Hill said rain or shine, the show will go on.
“Cars were made to be rained on, so you can still have a car show in the rain,” he said.
Hill said unlike many car shows that charge a fee for visitors, with some as high as $45, this weekend’s YBRCS is absolutely free of charge, and many of the cars seen at bigger shows can be seen at Billy’s and Light Park.
“You’re seeing a lot of the same cars right here in Liberal, Kansas, that win awards at their shows, that win awards at our show,” he said.
Friday’s portion of the car show starts with registration from 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. at Billy’s, with a free barbecue at 5 p.m. for registrants and sponsors. Live music starts at 6:30 p.m.
Saturday starts at 8 a.m. with registration at Light Park and awards at 3 p.m. For more information, e-mail
