The Bellefonte Cruise is back. Here’s what to know about the Father’s Day weekend event

Each year, the annual Bellefonte Cruise delights automobile enthusiasts — and those in search of a good time in general — over Father’s Day weekend, with vintage vehicles, live music and an array of vendors spread out all across downtown Bellefonte.

It’s an event that many Centre Countians, including event chairman Pat McCool, look forward to all year long. Last year, as was the case with so many favorited Centre County summer events, the Bellefonte Cruise was canceled. But this year, the event is back, with safety precautions in place.

McCool said that the planning process for the event is typically an all-year affair, making last year’s cancellation a heavy blow.

“Things really start to pick up for us in January and February. We’d already made a lot of contact for sponsors and a lot of the preliminary work was already done, when everything hit. That changed a lot of things,” he said. “The borough appointed a safety committee. I spoke with them via teleconference and some of the restrictions they wanted to impose were not things we could (do). ... With an event of this size, you can’t make promises. ... For the better of everything, we thought it would be best just to cancel.”

Now, this year, the Bellefonte borough’s safety committee is still in place, but McCool said, following another meeting with the committee, he feels confident that he and his team can “run a very safe event and be an example of how to deal with a large crowd.”

All vendors and anyone setting up a display at the event will be required to wear face masks and provide hand sanitizer for the public, with additional hand sanitation stations spread throughout the event. Organizers will be on-site handing out masks and signage and regular announcements will encourage attendees to social distance.

Additionally, normally crowded areas, such as the event’s food court and live music spaces, will be expanded to allow for greater social distancing. McCool said he and his team have also been forgoing some of their normal advertising, so as not to draw overly large crowds. Still, he expects to see a larger-than-average crowd at the event.

“It seems like at every car show that’s going on right now, attendance is way up,” he said. In past years, the event has attracted as many as 10,000 to 15,000 people per day.

The event kicks off at 6 p.m. Friday with an open cruise, with the favorited Friday night sock hop taking place at 7:30 p.m., featuring live music from Deuce Coupe. Car show registration for the main event begins bright and early Saturday morning, at 7 a.m., welcoming more than 30 classes of cars, trucks and motorcycles until noon or until the event meets its registration limit — which McCool says he expects. The 97.1 WOWY Crew will be on-site all day Saturday, with car show awards announced at 5 p.m.

For those who want to avoid the largest crowds, McCool said that Saturday morning is your best bet for attendance, as Friday night’s sock hop draws the largest crowds, followed by Saturday afternoon.

Parking is available at Bellefonte Area High School, with complimentary shuttle service to three locations downtown. For those who want to register a vehicle for participation in the cruise, they can do so online ahead of time; on-site registration will also be available Saturday morning. To register or for more information regarding the event, visit bellefontecruise.org.