Car d’Lane cruise draws thousands to downtown Coeur d’Alene

Sherman Avenue filled with chrome, paint and engine noise Friday night as the 35th Car d’Lane cruise pulled thousands of spectators downtown and sent more than 400 classic vehicles through the heart of Coeur d’Alene. For downtown merchants, the draw was more than nostalgia. It was one of the biggest foot traffic nights of the summer, with visitors crowding the sidewalks, candy flying from windows and flames shooting from tailpipes as the parade of cars rolled past.

The Coeur d’Alene Downtown Association, a 501(c)(6) nonprofit established in 1990 to support the downtown Business Improvement District, calls Car d’Lane the largest classic car cruise in North Idaho. The 2026 weekend ran June 19-20, with the cruise set for Friday from 6 p.m. to 8:30 p.m. and the Show and Shine on Saturday from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. Spectators were admitted free, and day-of registration was first-come, first-served at 12th and Sherman Avenue. Cars followed a route that looped west on Lakeside from Eighth Street, north on Fourth Street, west on Wallace, south on Second Street, east on Sherman, south on Ninth Street, east on Mullan and north on 11th Street.

The event also carried a personal edge for drivers who brought family history with them. Justin Petersen of Coeur d’Alene brought out a 1967 Mustang with its original golden-brown paint, a car owned by his grandmother, and said he had talked her into letting him take it for his first Car d’Lane cruise. Chet Parker drove a red 1957 Chevy Cameo pickup he inherited from his father about four years ago, after the truck had sat unused for years before he restored it to the road. Mack Valentine rode with him for her first cruise and said the old cars brought her back to childhood.

Along the sidewalks, Margaret Band cruised with her husband, Ted, as children waved and collected candy from passing cars. Band said the event was terrific because it delighted little kids and could help push younger people toward classic cars of their own. That family appeal showed up in the extras built into the weekend, including Poker Walk, People’s Choice voting, Young Builders Alley and a Special Interest Lane for newer performance cars and race cars.

Car d’Lane also arrived in a crowded summer calendar that once again required coordination with Ironman. In January, city and event officials were still working through a scheduling conflict after both events were set for the same weekend, and the city moved the 2026 Ironman finish line to City Park so the two could proceed with minimal disruption. Coeur d’Alene hosted its first full Ironman in 2003, and the race’s economic footprint has become part of the conversation around downtown’s biggest events, just as Car d’Lane continues to fill Sherman Avenue after 35 years.