2nd annual Parallel Parking Competition draws hundreds to a small street in Southeast Portland

Last year, Daniel Lyman and his friend Stefanie Lynch had a harebrained idea to stage a parallel parking competition in front of Lyman’s home in Southeast Portland.

The quintessentially suburban street in the city’s Kerns neighborhood was well-suited for the 40 or so people who showed up to the duo’s first official competition.

But this year — after a spin on “Good Morning America,” several media previews and plenty of social media coverage — one might’ve hoped for a bigger street.

On Sunday, what started as a joke became a hit. About 94 people competed in the second annual parallel parking competition, with everyone from passing motorists to planned-and-ready contestants signing up to show off their adept knowledge of turning angles and depth perception.

“I’m glad that weirdos putting on events for other weirdos really gains traction in this city,” Lyman said. Lynch said she hopes no one takes her bumper off.

Portlander Debby Deryck arrived nearly two hours before the event started, securing a spot across the street with a lawn chair before at least another 200 spectators showed up — with standing room only. She said the quirky event is a reminder of why she chose to retire in Portland.

“I am a terrible parker, and so that’s part of the reason why I’m attracted to this, too,” she said. “I’m in awe of people who are good at this.”

Rob Meyer saw a Reddit post about the competition and decided to drive from his home in Corvallis to see it for himself.

“I just think that it’s keeping Portland weird — weird and fun,” Meyer said.

From the balcony of Lyman’s home, local drag queen Nicole Onoscopi, a meteorologist from KOIN and a PBOT parking enforcement officer served as commentators and judges, making the competition feel like a proper game show, with ironic commentary blaring through a PA system.

Being good at parallel parking was not a requirement.

“You’ve heard of passenger princesses. I consider myself the passenger queen,” Onoscopi said.

Judges assigned scores based on several factors, including time, distance from the curb and the length of the contestant’s vehicle.

PBOT also sponsored one-day parking vouchers as prizes given at the judges’ discretion. The judges also gave consolation prizes, like Las Vegas keychains and facial masks, to those who scored low or were disqualified for bumping into Lyman’s and Lynch’s vehicles, which had pool noodles strapped to their bumpers for protection.

Staying true to last year’s tradition, the grand prize was a gold spray-painted miniature Subaru-turned-trophy.

Contestants decided to join this year for seemingly countless reasons. Many wanted an opportunity to reemphasize how weird Portland can be. Others wanted to show off how good they are at parallel parking.

Tim Blake pulled onto the street in a colorful Volkswagen Bug painted decades ago by local artist Tom Cramer. Blake said he was confident in his abilities, but also simply wanted to show off his car.

“I’d like to see anybody else try it with a clutch,” he joked.

For contestant Kelby Beyer, the event brought special attention to the Kerns neighborhood. It was also a chance to see whether she’s as good at parallel thinking as she thinks.

“I am an experienced parallel parker trying to stay humble out here,” Beyer said.

The highest-scoring participants duked it out (in their cars) for the grand prize in a winners’ tournament after the main event.

Portlander Kyle Kaufman, who won the grand prize for his ultra-swift parking job, said he walked away feeling surreal.

“I was very excited to do this because I love Portland. I love my beautiful city,” he said. “I feel great… I think I got lucky, to be honest.”