GULFPORT, Miss. (WLOX) — Cruisin’ the Coast is gearing up for its 30th anniversary event in early October with pre-registration numbers running ahead of last year’s pace, according to Executive Director Woody Bailey.
The event began with just 374 registered vintage vehicles. It now spans 12 cities across three counties. In 2025, there were 10,334 registered vehicles from 41 states, along with participants from Australia, Canada, England, and Germany.
“We’ve got a lot of growth. We’re on a lot of people’s bucket lists,” Bailey said.
As of early August, more than 7,400 vehicles from 40 states were registered for 2026. Participants from Australia, Canada, England, and New Zealand are also registered.
“We’ve got quite an international group coming as well. So it should be a really great year,” Bailey said.
ADVERTISEMENT
0 of 11
This year’s schedule includes new additions alongside returning events.
A drifting exhibition will take place Wednesday, October 7, at Scarlet Pearl in D’Iberville following the autocross competition. The flame-throwing competition will move to a new venue this year, the IP Casino in Biloxi.
“We’re excited about having the event there. That’ll be our first time,” Bailey said.
An economic impact study will also be conducted this year. The study is performed every five years; the last one was completed in 2021.
“We’ve grown a lot,” Bailey said. “So I’m anxious to see how we measure up from the last time we did the study, which was in 2021.”
ADVERTISEMENT
Bailey also encouraged those interested in volunteering to join the Cruisin’ Krewe.
“We’d love to have people come join us and help us put this thing on. It takes quite an effort with all 12 cities, all three counties involved in the event,” Bailey said.
More information for interested volunteers is available online. The event runs Oct. 4–11.
See a spelling or grammar error in this story? Report it to our team HERE.
Copyright 2026 WLOX. All rights reserved.