South Bruce Peninsular - Kudos to Huron Feathers - Comments

Two Bands? Who'd know?

garym — Tue, 21 Aug 2007 10:41:00 -0400

Really? Good news, but I did check the Chamber website, the chamber's new google calendar and we were down on the beach right at the sign solid from 9:30 until nearly 2 and saw no tell-tale flatbed truck preparing, or any value-mart posters, or marquees or anything to suggest any kind of dance scene was brewing. Come to think of it, I didn't check the big beachfront marquee ...

And I did know Dead By Dawn (the tightest band in the Beach) had some sort of unauthorized summertime gig lined up to play on the slab of concrete in front of the new tattoo parlour, but I don't know if that was for the Fest, and I can't really see how a street dance would work right at the lights. Once upon a time there might have been something engaging in front of the lumber yard, too, and that bit of flatspace where the Flea Market is shaping up would have been a great place for some old-style Jump-up BBQ!

And yeah, Sam, Son, Mike, Will, Jack or Ted, whatever kind of linebacker it is, I saw nar'y a feather of him the whole morning. In fact, we feared the worst so I do hope the bin-pickings were just better farther up the coast and he just got distracted. Hopefully he made it for the presentations, where ever they'd be. Nonetheless, I loved the Chamber's new "Events Truck", nice bit of vintage de-troit farm iron there, but it seemed kinda all alone marginalled and deserted.

garym: ict evangelist - musician - whatever

look alike

mxyzptlk — Tue, 21 Aug 2007 07:12:16 -0400

hi mmockler ... all those seagulls look the same!
kltpzyxm

Who is Sammy? Is that a

mmockler — Tue, 21 Aug 2007 02:32:51 -0400

Who is Sammy? Is that a cousin to Sunny? :)

And while leaving work that night, I saw two bands playing at sunset on the Main Drag - mind you, neither one appealed to me; but, they were there nevertheless.

Be sure to come to the "last day of summer fest." Mark's band is playing - they really are quite awesome - should be a good time.

The No-Dunk Fest

garym — Mon, 20 Aug 2007 08:42:25 -0400

We came prepared, but there was no dunk-tank to spend money on! In fact, there was very little happening down by the sign outside of the Huron Feathers kids doing their best to run their show out the back of a hatchback off two folding tables in the sand. I was a little disappointed at Saugeen Nation too, as we looked forward to some real tacos for lunch; instead, one lone trailer entrepreneur vending cigarettes. No street dance either, which was something else our younger kids (ok, and KeeMay too) have always looked forward to having.

In fact, y'know, maybe I just missed it, and we only hung around from about 9:30 until 2pm, but seems to me if you subtracted the sand castle crews and the HF games, there was nothing visibly festive at all about this business-as-usual day on the beach.

We didn't even see Sammy.

garym: ict evangelist - musician - whatever

How much did you spend>

Dan O. — Sun, 19 Aug 2007 20:21:49 -0400

Gary; how much did you spend on the dunk tank? It was probably (as you said) money that you wanted to spend in the community interest.

Dan O.

Sandfest Debriefing

garym — Sat, 18 Aug 2007 09:13:42 -0400

Some follow-up news on the Sandfest, starting with the Sandcastle competition, and in a way, I'm happier with the way it turned out, as a community fun event, instead of it becoming yet another Extreme Sport Showdown the way it has out west. Maybe next year they can flip the prize process around, give everyone some prize, but be creative about the names of the awards!

After considering individuality, creativity, team effort, originality and attention to detail, the judges could not decide on a winner amongst the eight family category entrants, so all received a prize of beach toys and other goodies.

Finishing first in the individual category was Sharon Nesbitt of Listowel with her sculpture of a large dolphin and mermaid connected by a seashell-covered castle. It was her eighth year competing in Sandfest ... Nesbitt won $100 for her first-place finish ...

With only four entrants in the super sander category, Sandfest co-ordinators decided to pull the plug on the professional level competition that would have netted the winner $1,000.

Instead, entrants competed for a first place prize of $100, second prize of $50 and third prize of $25 ... First time Sandfest entrant Harry Farfan won the revamped super sander category with his tyrannosaurus rex and caveman creation.

[ sand castles a family affair ]

And it's a better direction, if you ask me -- I ranted for years on how Groundhog Day wasn't a world-attracting tourism magnet Vegas Spectacular event, it was in reality a community event, a homecoming and neighbourly self-check, and had we taken it down a local-think strategy, the humanity of the breakfast-together idea would become globally infectious and that would be our export.

Like many before me, I gave up on the willie.com crew -- here's hoping this idea becomes the new Sandfest strategy!

One can hope. But then again, that's not the message we got from Bayshore, where the fest-day soundbyte was still framing Sandfest as a last grab at the brass ring ...

South Bruce Peninsula Councilor Marck Wunderlich says the main event is the sandcastle competition which will take place on Saturday morning.

Wunderlich says this is typically the time of year when tourism business winds down in Sauble Beach, so this event is a great way to give local businesses one last boost.

[ Sandfest is ON ]

I'm tellin' ya, Mark, that's the wrong way down the wrong road; if everyone is happy and secure and feeling at home in their own home, trust me, it is elementary neuroscience, they will spend more money and thus it is a solid valid future-think strategy to focus on the community-building aspects of the festival and to especially avoid giving out any good for business vibes about it. "When you hold a bow, you don't hold two arrows." the proverb goes. Huron Feathers had exactly the right idea, everyone is welcome, everyone has fun, everyone wins, and much more more than that, everyone interacts with everyone in an atmosphere of Good Cheer. When that happens, community happens, and communities, well, they need basic goods, nearer the better because they are having fun and don't like to leave.

Sure it may be very true that Sandfest gives local business a boost, and it is true the local business are the ones asked to ante-up some dough and roll the dice on the gamble, but a gamble for cash vs a gamble for community spirit are two very different games, and even if you do actually just want the cash, I think we should stay mum about it, maybe even spend a bit more on the show to try and hide it ;)

And it was such a perfect day for a councilor dunk-tank, too.

garym: ict evangelist - musician - whatever

Kudos to Huron Feathers

garym — Sun, 12 Aug 2007 12:11:59 -0400

Another wild and crazy Sandfest, and thanks and praises to the kids of the Huron Feathers for keeping the tradition alive for another summer's day of beach fun.