Mega Cruise will celebrate 20th year
PENN TWP — Those looking for a fun day out on Saturday can help a local fire department while perusing unique vehicles, noshing on delicious fare, bidding on valuable raffle baskets or even trying out their pipes at karaoke.
All of these activities and more will be available from 2 to 10 p.m. at the Penn Township Volunteer Fire Department Mega Cruise at the Pittsburgh-Butler Regional Airport in Penn Township.
Ken Shoemaker, vice president at the fire department and cruise coordinator, said all involved are excited to offer the Mega Cruise for the 20th year.
The cruise was canceled last year due to the coronavirus pandemic, so Shoemaker expects a good turnout this year, weather permitting.
“I think everyone is feeling like they've got to get out,” he said. “It feels good because so many people have reached out to us and asked us if we are going to have it, so we know it's something the community really enjoys.”
He said the event is free, but a $2 donation is requested to cover the fire department's expenses in putting on the cruise.
Any funds received that exceed the cost of expenses will go toward training and equipment at the fire department.
“Most of the people have no problem with (the $2 donation), and I have to say many people give a little more,” Shoemaker said. “It's for a good cause.”
The raffle baskets at the event are of many themes, including aviation, ladies' and children's baskets, a Pittsburgh Steelers basket that includes a team jacket, and a Harley-Davidson basket that includes a helmet.
The 50/50 raffle has seen the winner's share go as high as $800, Shoemaker said.
Winners need not be present when the raffle basket and 50/50 tickets are drawn around 9 p.m.
The cruise's karaoke is so popular that singers from Ohio have traveled to the cruise to demonstrate their prowess, he said.
A professional fireworks display will cap off the day's events.
Shoemaker said the first Mega Cruise, which was at Kelly Chevrolet for two years before moving to the larger venue at the airport, drew a few hundred vehicles.
In 2019, Shoemaker and his volunteers registered 1,100 vehicles, which were parked on the tarmac and grass strip from the airport building almost to the end of the runway.
He said every type of vehicle has been on display over the years, including airplanes, vintage 18-wheelers, rat rods, tractors, motorcycles, Model Ts, muscle cars and everything in between.
“You never know what you're going to get,” Shoemaker said.
The 2021 Mega Cruise coincides this year with the Penn Township Volunteer Fire Department's 75th anniversary.
