By Staff
Parade of Pigs ,hot-air balloons coming downtown
By MIKE VOSS
Contributing Editor
Smoke on the Water turns 10 years old later this month.
To celebrate that anniversary, the Historic Downtown Washington Merchants Association, organizers of the event, are adding some frills to the fall festival. The night before Smoke on the Water, Music in the Streets will be held from 6 p.m. to 9 pm.
The Music in the Streets/Smoke on the Water weekend is Oct. 26-27 in downtown Washington.
For this year’s barbecue contest, the top 10 finishers in the pig-cooking event will receive monetary prizes, according to Gary Tomasulo, president of the Historic Downtown Washington Merchants Association. Vail Rumley developed the design that will be used on T-shirts and posters commemorating the event’s 10th anniversary.
Although inclement weather prevented hot-air balloons from taking to the skies during last year’s festival, Tomasulo said Monday, the hot-air balloons will try to lift off this year.
As part of the Music in the Streets-Smoke on the Water, a showmanship competition involving participants in the barbecue contest will be held Friday night. On Saturday morning, judging for the barbecue contest will be conducted, with awards presented later that day. The festival’s chili contest also takes place Saturday morning.
During Smoke on the Water, musical entertainment will be provided by musicians who have performed at Music in the Streets events this year and previous years, Tomasulo said.
The fifth-annual Parade of Pigs returns at 7 p.m. Oct. 26. As the parade makes its way along Main Street, it provides a break for entertainers who are part of that evening’s Music in the Streets lineup. Parade of Pig entries feature pig-related art and/or pig-related themes. The parade route begins at the intersection of Main and Gladden streets and concludes at the intersection of Main and Market streets.
Kristi Hardison, events and facilities supervisor for the city, is coordinating the Parade of Pigs. People with questions about parade entries or who would like to serve as volunteer workers for the parade should contact Hardison at (252) 975-9367, Ext. 223. Trophies will be awarded to winning entries in the parade. The deadline to submit an application to participate in the parade is Oct. 12, Hardison said Monday.
Barbecue contestants, who may begin setting up their cooking stations at noon Oct. 26, will receive their pigs at 10 p.m. that night. The public is invited to watch the cookers begin preparing and cooking their pigs.
The first-place cook in the barbecue contest will receive $1,200, with the second-place finisher picking up $900 and the third-place cook earning $700. Cooks who round out the remaining top 10 places will each receive $50. The cooks who finish first or second in the showmanship competition take home trophies and gifts.
In the chili contest, $150 goes to the first-place cook. The second-place finisher gets $100. The third-place cook receives $75.
Tomasulo said he’s looking for sponsors for barbecue contestants. A sponsorship costs $200. For their contributions, sponsors are mentioned in festival advertisements, receive two festival T-shirts and other considerations. He’s also seeking volunteers to work during Smoke on the Water. Prospective sponsors or volunteers are asked to call Tomasulo at (252) 974-2632.
Washington resident Patch Clark, an associate professor with East Carolina Universities School of Theatre and Dance, and several of her students will invite others to participate as they bring their storytelling skills to Smoke on the Water.
The Beaufort County Arts Council’s Fine Arts Show will be under way during the festival weekend. Also part of the weekend lineup are an artisans market, vendors and the LifeStyles 5K Run and Health Walk.
Music in the Streets is a joint production of the Beaufort County Arts Council and the Historic Downtown Washington Merchants Association.
Details of the barbecue contest, chili contest, hot-air balloons, entertainment and other activities associated with Smoke on the Water and Music in the Streets will be included in future editions of the Daily News.