Carnival Report: There Was More Of Everything
Brett Bain gives his best shot, or seed, in the seed spitting contest during Watermelon games Saturday morning. The games were part of the exciting two-day lineup that brought thousands to town in what many are calling the biggest carnival in recent history. – Photo by Leslie Brooks
By David Howell
Editor
WATER VALLEY – Another carnival is in the books and by all accounts it was bigger and better than previous years, a familiar trend that continues to raise the bar for the city’s signature event.
“There were more booths, more vendors, more barbecue teams, even the fireworks were longer and better,” reported Mayor Donald Gray after the impressive weekend. Friday night’s crowd, the peak time during the carnival, was deemed the biggest yet by the city’s informal crowd counters. And on Saturday morning there were 266 participants in the Mechanic’s Bank 3K Run/Walk and 152 entries at the car show at Shuffield park, records for both events.
“That’s up from our previous record of 220,” longtime race director Keith River reported of Saturday’s run. “It was amazing, I’m glad we had enough shirts.”
Over at the Train Tracks Pork Attack, coordinator Tonya Eubanks reported she had 27 teams and a very successful competition.
“Several teams and judges have text and emailed after the weekend about how much they enjoy Water Valley,” Eubanks added.
And that is what it is all about, according to the mayor.
“People will come back, and not just for the Watermelon Carnival,” Gray noted. “The biggest thing that I appreciate, in addition to the hard work from the Chamber, is the fact that people came downtown. Some of the restaurants had lines. Promoting our downtown is as big as promoting our park area.”
Gray added that folks were well behaved and the police chief reported there were no major incidents. He chalked up weekend’s success to the hard work the Chamber of Commerce invents in planning for the weekend, a task that encompasses the entire year between carnivals.
“The city crews also did a fantastic job getting ready,” he added, citing examples that ranged from spraying fire ants at City Park to ensuring the city cemeteries are pristine for out-of-town visitors who visit the graves of loved ones long gone.
“I have not heard one negative comment,” Gray added.
