It was when SpringFest director Robert Glass stepped on the stage to help judge the Show 'n' Glow competition that it really it him.
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Almost 300 cars, polished within an inch of their lives, were arrayed in front of him.
"There were cars from the War Memorial through to the Tramway Museum, wall-to-wall, reaching back to Gillies Street," he said.
This year's SpringFest is one of the biggest in years, with bright sunshine encouraging an estimated 35,000-plus people to explore around Lake Wendouree, and check out the stalls.
A good sign at community festivals is when food vendors begin completely selling out of everything, Mr Glass said, which was the case in the afternoon.
Ballarat's Strongest People were pulling trams, hometown Masterchef hero Tim Bone was slinging his famous toasties, and there were dozens of things for people to do along all six kilometres around the lake.
It's all for charity, as well, Mr Glass added, with stallholders paying for a spot.
"I couldn't give you an estimate on how much we've raised so far, but it's well-up from last year," he said.
"The crowds were just amazing up here."
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