Hot rods, lowriders and vintage Schwinn bicycles will roll into Redlands' Sylvan Park on Saturday, Oct. 10, for the 23rd Annual Cruise for Sight Car Show, paired once again with the 52nd Annual California State Championship ICS Chili Cook-Off. The daylong event runs from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. at the park, located at Colton Avenue and University Street, with all proceeds benefiting the Inland Empire Lighthouse for the Blind.
According to the San Bernardino Sun, the event will feature vendors, food, music, a 50/50 drawing and raffles, along with silent and live auctions the Lighthouse described in an email to the paper. Spectators get in free. Car owners looking to enter their vehicles can register online at ielighthousefortheblind.org, where registration is listed at $25 before Oct. 1 and $30 after that date.
What's Rolling Into Sylvan Park
The car show is open to American hot rods, customs, antiques, lowriders, foreign cars, motorcycles and classic Schwinn bicycles, per the event flyer cited by the Sun. Entrants will compete for sponsor picks and best-of-show plaques, with car awards handed out at 2:30 p.m. Anyone needing vehicle-entry details can call the Lighthouse at 909-884-3121.
Each car entry comes with a $5 discount on a chili-tasting kit, a nod to the event's dual identity as both a car show and one of the region's longest-running chili competitions. Chili tasting begins at 11 a.m., with $10 tasting kits that let attendees vote for the People's Choice award ahead of the 5 p.m. chili awards.
A Chili Contest With Strict Rules
All chili cook-off contestants and cooks must be members of the International Chili Society, the organizing body behind the California State Championship title on the line in Redlands. Cooks seeking information on entering the cook-off can reach Mike “Ughlee” Austin at 909-806-5902 or by email at [email protected], while broader chili cook-off details are posted at chilicookoff.com.
The historical count of just how many years the chili competition has run has shifted in past coverage. The official 2026 event listing from the Inland Empire Lighthouse for the Blind labels it the 52nd annual California State Championship ICS Chili Cook-Off, while earlier announcements from Redlands Daily Facts in both 2024 and 2025 described it as the 50th annual International Chili Society chili cook-off.
Supporting a Local Mission
The Inland Empire Lighthouse for the Blind, based at 359 E. Parkcenter Circle South in San Bernardino, offers training to people who are totally blind or legally blind, and the organization relies on fundraisers like Cruise for Sight to support that work. The nonprofit can be reached at 909-884-3121, with additional information available through its website.
The car show and chili cook-off have become an annual fall fixture in Redlands. Past editions were billed as the 21st annual car show in 2024 and the 22nd annual car show in 2025, both previously held in Sylvan Park, continuing a tradition that now stretches into its third decade.
