Beach kicks off summer season

Friday, May 9, 2008

Click here to enlarge this photo Staff photos by DARWIN WEIGEL Mikayla Evans, 3, of North Beach plays around a sand castleSaturday at the town’s annual Beach Festival, which included the North Beach Car and Cycle Show, games on the beach for children and live music. E-Mail This Article | Print This Story Click here to enlarge this photo Ashley Fischer, 2, and her dad Doug Fischer of Lusby get a miniature soccer ball from Capt. Buck of the Beach Buccaneers at the North Beach Festival on Saturday.   Upcoming events The Twin Beach Players perform Shakespeare on the Boardwalk on May 9, 10, 16 and 17. A Farmer’s Market begins on June 13, 6 to 9 p.m., every Friday. Classic Cruise IN every Friday night. A national night out is planned Aug. 5. There are trolley runs for 25 cents Friday through Sunday nights, all along the boardwalk. For more information, contact the Town of North Beach at 301-855-6681.

The normally quiet sound of the beach was interrupted by engines revving and the sound of the Washington, D.C., band Redstone

To start the event, an envoy of cars drove down 8 Street and Chesapeake Avenue, heading towards the end of the beach where they participated in a ribbon cutting. Although the parade didn’t start until 2 p.m., cars started to arrive at 10 a.m.

‘‘We have a classic car show and cycle show at the same time,” said Dianne Burr, chair of the Town of North Beach special events committee. ‘‘We have a lot of trophies to give away.”

Then the cars lined up along the side of the street so festival goers could see the restored and classic cars.

‘‘I heard there was going to be a car show and I love cars,” Billy Scott, 15, of North Beach said. ‘‘So I came down to the beach and I saw a couple of Chevelles, which are my favorite kind of cars. I also like the Corvettes too.”

If cars were not of interest, people could walk the boardwalk, meet strange and exotic animals including llamas, a miniature horse, birds and Velveteen bunnies.

‘‘The petting zoo has been featured on national television,” Burr said. ‘‘They have more than two dozen exotic animals. We have pony rides because we are doing old-fashioned, family-oriented events, because we thought that might be a special memory for kids.”

The parade involved many members of the community, including Del. Sue Kullen (D-Calvert), several commissioners, the North Beach Garden Club, members of the Red Hat Society, who had their own car with clowns driving and a dozen or so antique cars, including one from 1931. The North Beach Volunteer Fire Department and Rescue Squad also participated in the parade. Capt. Buck of the Beach Buccaneers walked in the parade along with cheerleaders who were raising money to participate in the Pro Bowl in Hawaii.

The cars were the main part of the show. There were a variety of cars from the 1920s to hot rods to cars of unique style and taste. Many of the owners fielded questions from the attendees.

‘‘I brought my ’71 Road Runner down here,” said Joe Collins of Charlotte Hall. ‘‘I maintain it and most of the work was already done when I bought it. A lot of people came over to talk to me and talking about cars is really great.” Collins explained that a Road Runner is a Plymouth Chrysler product. He said exactly 440 cars of this model were produced.

Jim Brown of Sunderland had a 1939 Oldsmobile.‘‘It has a 455 Old engine with a great paint job. Everyone loves the paint job and the murals in the trunk,” he said.

One car that received a lot of attention was one that drives on land and is also seaworthy. Fred Monger of Lusby brought his 1967 amphicar, imported from Germany in the 1960s. Of the 4,000 produced, he said there are 600 left.

‘‘I can’t take the car out in Maryland because of the saltwater. It’s freshwater only,” Monger said.

The cars were judged by several members of the North Beach Town Council, according to Lyn Striegel of North Beach.

‘‘This is one of the fun things we get to do as council members,” Striegel said. ‘‘We get to judge the cars in three categories; antique cars, newer cars and cycles. After we are done we tally up the score to see who wins.”

There were many things to keep the kids occupied. There were old fashioned games including a three legged race, a tug of war with a length of rope and others. If sports weren’t enough to keep the kids’ attention, then there were scavenger hunts, fossil hunts, an egg toss, a pie eating contest, kite making and a professional sand castle builder from Delaware.

‘‘We have a vision for this town to make it cool and alive. There are a lot of great summer events coming up, especially family oriented,” Burr added. ‘‘This is a great town and we love it here.”