The sound of music spanning five decades filled the 90 degree air, and citizens filled Main Street to travel through time at Saturday’s 10th annual Classics on Main Car Show.

An estimated 3,000 guests flocked to Main Street to view the 306 registered cars for the largest judged car show in Northwest Ohio, said Barbara Ruland, executive director of the Downtown Bowling Green Organization.

While 306 is not the largest number of cars ever registered for the show, Ruland said registration consistently stays around that number as the owners annually compete for 54 trophies, 11 of which are people’s choice awards. The best of show award went to a 1955 Cadillac Coupe DeVille, Ruland said.

“People look forward to it and the whole community pulls together to put it on,” Ruland said. “It brings people to the downtown, so they get to see what the downtown has to offer. It sort of puts Bowling Green on people’s radar who might not otherwise know about our town.”

The event draws people from the Northwest Ohio region, and head judge Jeff Snook said people come from many places, including Michigan, to show off their cars.

“They get to see Bowling Green and see what a nice little downtown we have, which is still pretty vibrant compared to a lot of small towns,” Snook said.

Brandon Bower, a student at the University, said there was 50 years worth of cars in the show. He came to view his father’s own entry in the show.

“It’s like a good piece of America,” Bower said. “[It’s] a good place to socialize and meet other people [and] brings a lot of car advocates together.”

One of the car aficionados, Louie Wueller from Toledo, has been competing in car shows for 21 years. The Classics on Main show was his sixth show of the year and the first time he competed in this show, which he found to be “nice” and “very organized.”

Wueller’s entry was a 1930 Model A Ford Town Sedan with a 40 horse power engine. It took him 15 years of off and on work to restore it to its current condition.

“This car is 100 percent original,” Wueller said. “If somebody takes care of this car, it will be here for another 100 years.”

Wueller’s hobby of car collecting began around 1950, but his collection did not begin in earnest until 1978 when his children were out of college. He emphasized his love for the pre-World War II models of Ford, Chrysler and General Motors, and how the process of restoring his cars, which are 95 percent finished when he buys them, needs to fueled by a love of the cars.

“You get peace of mind, you have a hobby … you just make the most of it, you hope for the best and the best comes to you,” Wueller said.

While Wueller’s car did not win any awards on Saturday (he was registered in the 1930s car category), he said that he still had a good day.

“Just to get up and go at my age, it’s wonderful … it just makes me feel younger,” Wueller said. “I just enjoy it, it’s my life. I just enjoy these cars.”

Ruland said she admires the care people put into restoring the cars, and said the downtown’s historic design “fits hand in glove” with the cars.

“The styling is so evocative of the era they’re from,” Ruland said. “Car design is just another reflection of where we are as a society.”