Kansas University put itself on display Saturday and turned its campus into a festival.

Students showed their parents around the campus while other visitors to the annual KU Open House just showed up to have a look. KU officials estimated about 25,000 people took part.

“We’re just enjoying the beautiful day and wanted to look around,” said Lawrence resident Steve Ramirez, as he and his wife, Carla, and their children, Victor, 11, and Olivia, 7, walked in front of the Kansas Union.

There was a lot to look at.

Outside and inside Learned Hall mechanical engineering students were attracting attention with their Society of Automotive Engineers formula cars. The low-slung, open cockpit vehicles can exceed 100 mph. Seniors build the racing machines each year as a class project.

“People are impressed that we can do this in a year,” said Matthew Donovan, the SAE formula car team captain.

The KU cars, which undergo test runs at the Kansas Speedway in Wyandotte County, compete annually against 130 other universities in Detroit and have consistently finished in the top 25.

But motor sports aren’t for everyone.

Two graduate students, Ulrike Spiegl and Ami Sommariva, took advantage of University Theatre’s costume sale at Murphy Hall.

Kirsten Vogel, 11, right, models a costume she found at University Theatre's costume sale. Saturday's sale at Murphy Hall was part of Kansas University's open house. Vogel and Carrie Klemencic, also 11, were looking for costumes for an upcoming school play.

“It’s for Halloween and I’m going to be the ‘candy man,'” said Spiegl, from Erlangen, Germany, as she held up a straw hat and red-striped jacket.

Sommariva, from Rochester, Mich., purchased a long pink nightgown for her Halloween outfit. “I’m the child victim who eats the poison candy,” she said.

Outside Murphy Hall theater students conducted their own version of a garage sale with items such as clothing, desks, cabinets, chairs and even pianos once used as stage props.

On Jayhawk Boulevard students and visitors enjoyed performances at Wescoe Beach by the KU Spirit Squad and a gymnastic hip-hop performance by the Break-Fast Crew.

At the Kansas Union, visitors could take stock of their health by getting their blood-sugar levels and blood pressure checked.

Mark Bieber, Kansas City, Mo., accompanied by his girlfriend, Twyla Bayless, toured campus with his daughter, Ashley Bieber, a freshman.

“We’re going to check out the new student rec center and we’re going to the game tonight,” she said, referring to KU’s football game against Jacksonville State University.