Hundreds of cars expected for show

Steve Henre, Kansas City, Kan., polishes the decorative monkeys that served as a hood ornament for his 1922 T-bucket roadster at the 2001 show.

The Lawrence Street Rod Assn.’s sixth annual Wizard Run car show is expected to draw more than 250 autos Saturday to the Douglas County 4-H Fairgrounds.

The free show has been downsized from two days to one, and organizers hope the compressed schedule will attract more entries.

Entrants should arrive between 8 a.m. and noon Saturday. Slots are still open, said Bryan Sorenson, Rod Run chairman. The show will last until 4 p.m. at the fairgrounds.

At 6 p.m., entrants will move the cars from the fairgrounds to South Park, where side streets will be blocked off to normal traffic.

The cars will leave the park area periodically throughout the evening to cruise down Massachusetts Street.

A disc jockey will be at the fairgrounds in the early afternoon and will move to South Park, where he will stay until 10 p.m., Sorenson said.

Law enforcement

10 new police officers to join Lawrence force

Police Chief Ron Olin will personally interview job candidates next week as the department prepares to hire 10 new officers.

The department is down seven officers from its full authorized strength of 138. But it’s hiring an extra three people to cover vacancies expected to arise during the nearly yearlong training period.

A June 19 application test at Lawrence High School attracted 228 people. Of those, 174, or 76 percent, passed the test. Olin will interview the top candidates Monday through Wednesday, and the recruits will be selected Friday.

From mid-July through the end of August, the chosen recruits will undergo medical and psychological evaluations. They’ll start recruit academy in September and finish in late February. Then they’ll train in the field until June 19, 2005.

Surplus

County dumping trucks through eBay auction

Douglas County officials are turning to Internet auctions in hopes of unloading two surplus dump trucks.

An online auction on eBay lasts through 3 p.m. Wednesday for two Fords — a 1998 single-axle L8000 and a 1993 tandem-axle L9000 — that are being replaced by the Public Works Department. Each truck comes equipped with a snowplow and spreader.

Bids on each truck start at $1,000, with “buy it now” prices set at $8,995 for the single-axle truck and $13,995 for the tandem-axle model.

The sale is an encore for the county’s first foray into online auctions. In May the county sold seven aging sheriff’s vehicles on eBay for a total of $39,860, an increase of $12,360 — or $1,766 per car — from what the county would have expected to receive through its traditional auction service in Kansas City, Mo.

For more information about the truck auction, click on www.douglas-county.com and follow the link to eBay’s auction site.

Gasoline prices

Pump Patrol seeks deals

The Journal-World has found gasoline as low as $1.74 at several locations in Lawrence. If you find a lower price, please call Pump Patrol at 832-7154.