Yinzers compete in the 2026 Parallel Parking Championship

Dan Leber remembers a time when his mom would comment on drivers’ parking techniques when he and his brother were younger. Leber says, “we grew up being playfully judgmental of my mom parking, because she was into it, and that carried through to adulthood.” This memory sparked the idea for the Pittsburgh Parallel Parking Championship. Matt Wilson measures the distance between a competitor’s tire and the curb after parallel parking. Back in 2021, Leber enlisted a group of friends after developing a system to test drivers based on an equation of time, distance from the curb, and the total length of their vehicle. Their time starts when the vehicle is put into reverse and their turn is over when the driver says stop. Drivers are disqualified if their tire touches the curb or if they hit either vehicle while parking. Leber says, “To win the competition you have to play to the competition, which means you have to whip the car in and basically stop. You have to forfeit some space to the curb in favor for a super quick time.” Organizer, Dan Leber Justin Tillotson and his dog, Chipper EJ Schuck greets the crowd after being disqualified for bumping into one of the cars while parking. A tire touching the curb results in a disqualification Rachel Mehl cheers on drivers while holding a custom sign. On Sat. Sept. 19, a record number of 193 people tested their skills in the Strip District, 45 of them were disqualified. Emalee Mountain received second place honors with a total score of 21.5, while Clay Hartley took home the golden parking chair with a final score of 15.06. Hartley parked 15 cm away from the curb in only six seconds to become the winner of the 2026 Pittsburgh Parallel Parking Championship. The post Yinzers compete in the 2026 Parallel Parking Championship appeared first on Pittsburgh City Paper | News, Dining, Music, Best Of, Arts, Film .