For the third time in the past 7 years, a car show will be held alongside the traditional Cinco de Mayo event at Bessemer “Ray Aguilera” Park. Many of the cars are Lowriders, but there are also viclas (motorcycles), paleta carts, and pedal bikes. The car owners put their heart and soul into their vehicles and are very proud to show off their works of art.
The car show organizers, Denise and Macario “Mackey” Torrez, are longtime lowrider enthusiasts who thoroughly enjoy adding another beautiful part of our culture to the day’s landscape. Although not a large scale car show in comparison to others, the participants bring out some exquisitely stunning rides that are sure to impress event goers.
Judging of the cars takes place early in the day. The judges are local community members and represent youth, elders, males, females, car buffs, and novices. Each car is rated on its paint job, interior, and overall appearance. The top scorers will receive a custom made, one-off trophy created by Mackey. He repurposes car and engine parts and welds them into metal works of art. This year, he is collaborating with his daughter, Vanessa, who is adding a candy paint job to each one. There are a total of 6 trophies: 1st, 2nd, 3rd place cars, 1st place motorcycle, 1st place pedal bike, and People’s Choice which is voted on by event attendees throughout the day.
This year, two of the trophies will be given in memory of two longtime Pueblo Lowriders. The 1st place car trophy is in memory of George Montoya. George began lowriding back in the early 80’s. He was a member of the Luv N Low Car Club and later helped found the Latinos Car Club. George proudly drove his red ‘57 Chevy pick up around town for decades. George was also a very humble, generous man who spent countless hours feeding the homeless.
2023 winners were:
- Best Bike – Jacob Robinson (paleta cart)
- Best Motorcycle – Marcus Aguirre (1992 Harley Davidson)
- 3rd Place Car – Arnold Perez (1962 Chevy Impala)
- 2nd Place Car – Chris Martinez (1981 Chevy Monte Carlo)
- 1st Place Car – Mike Madrid (1980 Chevy Monte Carlo)
- People’s Choice – Anthony Bencomo (Chrysler 300)
The People’s Choice trophy will be honoring Kenny Fuentes, who passed away last year after a brave battle with cancer. Kenny owned several lowriders in his life, mainly Chevy Impalas. For the past 4 years, Kenny participated in our Cinco de Mayo cruises and car shows. His pride and joy was a red ‘64 Chevy Impala convertible. He was a quiet, gentle man who worked hard to build and cruise his rides. Kenny also invested in our youth as a boxing coach.
This year there will not be a community cruise. However, car show participants and others are encouraged to cruise “old school” style up and down Northern Ave. after the event ends at 6:00. All traffic laws and rules should be obeyed to ensure community safety.
