RetroFest™ 2022
RetroFest™ 2022 is coming back live and in-person!
We are so excited!
Save the dates: May 27th and 28th, 2022!
5th Street Bridge must remain open this year due to the third street bridge is closed.
The Vendor applications are now available. You will need to be approved. We are not exclusive however if too many of the same item is asked to be involved, we may have to limit the number.
The Car Registrations for the Kent Historic Auto Club Car Show Saturday, is now out online: https://forms.gle/4HpDGMay87nFrGgV7. Vehicles must be 25 years or older to participate in both the Car Cruise and the Car Show. No registration is required for the cruise but you will only be staged if you are 1997 or older.
Friday Night: Maple Mutual Insurance Classic Car Cruise will start staging at 4:30pm at the John D. Bradley Centre on Richmond Street. The cars will take off at 6pm under the guidance of the Kent Historic Auto Club.
The Homebuilt Soapbox Racing Association – Derby is positioned to run on Saturday on William Street, thanks to a large part from the Optimist Club of Chatham.
Waste Connections of Canada are helping to taking care of our volunteers and sanitation.
This form is the official registration for the Ms. RetroFest™ pageant for ages 18+. Ms. RetroFest™ will be taking place on Saturday May 28th 2022. Delegates must be available during RetroFest 2022 weekend in order to compete. The Ms. RetroFest Pageant will accept a total of 20 applications for the final competition. A non-refundable entry fee of $45 will be required with your application submission to msretrofest@gmail.com.
Ms. RetroFest™ is a retro-themed pageant traditionally recognizing fashion styles of the 1940’s through 1960’s. This style can be commonly referred to as pin-up, a form of modeling within that era. This pageant welcomes retro-fashions from decades outside of this style period so you don’t have to feel confined to 1940s-1960’s fashion. Ms. RetroFest™ Pageant wouldn’t be possible without Melanie. Thanks, Mel for your help!
Raiders of the Lost Temple Slide – 22 foot slide where two people can race against each other to the bottom. Adults and children may use this slide.
A colourful Rescue Heroes Playland. It’s an interactive unit that includes a slide, interactive popups, and crawling activities for the little guests. Adults can easily see the toddlers through the mesh walls. Slide down the firetruck slide, or chase the bad guys with a police car. This is for children ages 6 years old and under.
How about the Boot Camp? This inflatable can hold six people at a time. You can blast through the obstacles, hurdles and slides. Up and down, over and under, the race will be on! Complete the race with a double lane 19 foot slide, the first one to the bottom wins! Adults and children can use this inflatable.
This 7 in 1 bouncy is an interactive combo. This features a large jumping area, basketball hoops, pop-up obstacles, climb and slide. This is for children ages 12 and under.
Don’t forget the Beverage Garden sponsored by Summit Shows Canada which will be offering: Sons of Kent Brewery, Wolfhead Distillery and Bangarang products.
Colouring contest can be submitted by children 12 years old and under.
JMHI Insurance Group is presenting a COLOURING CONTEST. with awesome local prizes. Gift cards from Sweet & Salty Crepe Bar , Sweet C’s Cookie Creations , Turns and Tales. Winner will be determined by a random draw on May 27, 2022.
You can pick-up a hardcopy and return it coloured to either the HDTC-BIA office at 237 King St. W. Chatham, ON N7M 1E6 of JMHI Insurance office at 550 Richmond St. Chatham, ON N7M 1R3. Or you can print an 8×10 from your social media, scan it and email it back to: downtownchathambia@gmail.com
The Winners will be announced on the RetroFest Chatham FaceBook Page and the prize can be picked up at 10:00am at the JMHI Junior Judge tent on King Street on May 28, 2022.
JMHI Junior Judges: To be a Junior Judge, you must be between the ages of 6 and 12 years old and a parent or guardian must remain with your child. The first 12 children to email the HDTC-BIA will be selected to participate. On May 28, 2022, you will meet in front of the Scotia Bank (213 King Street West) for 10am. You will get a t-shirt and hat and instructions for judging cars. The group will judge the selected cars and the group will give a trophy for the 1st, 2nd and 3rd place winners. After judging, you will receive a ticket for lunch.
A Schedule for RetroFest™ 2022
Friday May 27, 2022:
3:00pm in Tecumseh Park, the family fun activities sponsored by the Lally Group, and the beverage garden will open. The Beverage garden is deemed family friendly so the whole family can go in. Only age appropriate persons will receive a stamp to be able to purchase tokens for alcoholic drinks but anyone may sit at the tables.
3:00pm all vendors and rides will be open to the public, and close at 6:00pm.
4:30pm staging at the John D Bradley Centre will begin. It will be first come first serve, until the parking lot is full. All vehicles must be 25 years or older to be staged.
5:30pm – 6:30pm, Big Shiny Toons will be on stage in the Tecumseh Park, powered by Teksavvy
6:00pm the Maple Mutual Insurance Classic Car Cruise will take off and cruise to downtown Chatham. Bring your lawn chairs and setup on the sidewalk all down King Street to watch the beautiful cars cruise by.
7:00pm – 8:00pm, Jeremys Rejects will be on stage in the Tecumseh Park, powered by Teksavvy
8:30pm – 9:30pm, & 10:00pm-11:00pm 80’s Gone Wild will be on stage in the Tecumseh Park, powered by Teksavvy
Park closes for the day.
Saturday May 28, 2022 partnered with Engie:
All of King Street and most side streets will be closed at 5:30am to start accepting classic cars onto the street. Vehicles must be 25 years and older to participate. Car Registration is required for the car show. Everyone who registers their car will receive a voucher for a free hamburger or hotdog (located behind the Sons of Kent Brewery), sponsored by RM Sothebys.
7:00am KHAC Registration table opens, and will close at 11:00am.
9:00am on William Street is the Soapbox Derby, sponsored by the Optimist Club of Chatham
10:00am the Tecumseh park with all the vendors and the family fun activities sponsored by the Lally Group, as well as the beverage garden will open with house music.
Note: all the rides will end at 6:00pm and most vendors will have completed the event at that time. We don’t want anyone to miss out. So, please be there before we need to shut the lines down. There will be no acceptations to the time the rides stop.
VIP Tent sponsored by the Lally Group.
Around 1:00pm, the Ms. RetroFest Pageant will begin on stage in the Tecumseh Park. While the judges are deliberating, Southwind Buoys will play for your enjoyment.
2:30pm – 3:30pm, Bill Nuvo will entertain the kids with his magic performance on stage in the Tecumseh Park.
3:00pm on the Corner of King Street West and 5th Street at the registration table will be the AWARDS for the KHAC Classic Car Cruise.
4:00pm – 5:00pm Jacklyn Wills will be on stage in the Tecumseh Park, powered by Teksavvy
5:30pm – 6:30pm the All Nighters will be on stage in the Tecumseh Park, powered by Teksavvy
7:00pm – 8:00pm Dust N Bones will be on stage in the Tecumseh Park, powered by Teksavvy
8:30pm – 9:30pm and 10:00pm to 11:00pm, the CRUED: Motley Crue Tribute band will be on stage in the Tecumseh Park, powered by Teksavvy and close-out the evening!
We are so happy to facilitate RetroFest™ 2022
Sincerely,
The Historic Downtown Chatham – BIA and all it’s partners for RetroFest 2022