Staff photo by Fritz Busch John Bendix of Sleepy Eye stands next to his 1967 Ford Mustang at the Summerfest Classic Car & Cycle Roll-in at the Dawg Haus Bar & Grill Friday.

SLEEPY EYE — Summerfest began Friday with coach pitched baseball games for kindergarten through second grade players at Sleepy Eye Ballpark.

Not long after that, John Bendix of Sleepy Eye parked his 1967 Mustang behind The Dawg Haus Bar & Grill for the Classic Car & Cycle Roll-In.

He found the Mustang a couple decades ago when he owned a 1931 Ford five-window street rod coupe but traded it for the Mustang hardtop and a 1968 Mustang convertible that needed a lot of work in 1997.

Bendix said the Mustang hardtop was stripped down when he got it and began restoring it himself.

“I put lots of new parts in it including the electrical wiring, a 302 V8 crate engine bored .60 over, solid aluminum heads and a four-speed transmission. Just about every nut and bolt in it is new,” he said. “It took me about 25 years to get it where it is, working on it in my free time.”

Bendix also owns a 1953 Ford pickup.

He said his main day job is welding and restoring vehicles, but Bendix and his wife own the Dawg Haus Bar & Grill. He also owns Main Street Welding and Auto Restoration on west Main Street in Sleepy Eye.

Allison Park events set for 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. Saturday including live music, food trucks, a crafts and vendor market, craft beer, bison burgers and pork chops on a stick.

A couple dozen vendors including vegetable stands are expected in Allison Park Saturday.

The Broken Oak, a Southwest Minnesota-based, contemporary, folk/rock band will perform in the park from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m.

Kinda Fonda Wanda performs 1-3 p.m. Saturday. The Twin Cities band featuring female rockabilly music, will pay tribute to legendary rock, country and gospel singer Wanda Jackson. The band will also perform the music of Patsy Cline, Barbara Mandrell, LaVern Baker and Johnny Cash., Jackson who fronted for Elvis Presley and dated him, was among the first women with a rock music career in the 1950s.

The grand parade begins at 6 p.m. Azby will perform live rock music, 8-11 p.m. at Sleepy Eye Brewing. The Sleepy Eye Baseball Association will cook burgers, hot dogs, cheese curds and fries outside the Servicemen’s Club downtown after the parade.

The Sleepy Eye Servicemen’s Club Street Dance features the Nate Frederickson polka band 6-8 p.m. Buffalo Alice follows with classic rock and country in three-part harmony, 8 p.m. to midnight. A DJ patio party is set for 7-11 p.m. at the Dawg Haus.

Due to the waxing and waning presence of blue-green algae in Sleepy Eye Lake, there will be no ski show. The group hopes to perform here in 2026.

Sunday events include a breakfast buffet at 7 a.m. and boozy brunch, 9 a.m. to 1p.m. at the Dawg Haus.

For more information, visit https://www.sleepyeyesummerfest.com/