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Small town Americans love their harvest festivals. My town just finished one, so I’ve satisfied my jones for Polish sausage and funnel cake for another year. Here are eight more you may want to check out in the weeks ahead.
Great Outhouse Blowout
The Great Outhouse Blowout and Race 2008 at Penn’s Store in Gravel Switch, Kentucky will be September 6th. The event began as a dedication of the first outhouse at the store in 1992. The outhouse race draws entrants from all over the country. A racing outhouse must be a certain size and have a seat with a hole. Up to five people can push or pull the outhouse, but one person must be seated inside. The Outhouse Blowout also has musical performances and a car show.
International Goat Days Festival
International Goat Days in Millington, Tennessee runs September 12th through the 14th. Bring your goat for the chariot races, the goat milking competition, and the best-dressed goat contest!
World Chicken Festival
The World Chicken Festival in London, Kentucky was named in honor of Kentucky Fried Chicken, which was founded in the same county (but not the same town). This year’s festival is scheduled for September 25-28. Fried chicken is served from the World’s Largest Skillet, which is over ten feet in diameter and required 300 gallons of cooking oil. It can fry 150 chickens at once!
Obetz Zucchinifest
The Obetz Zucchinifest begins today and runs through Sunday, August 24th in Obetz, Ohio. On the menu are zucchini burgers, zucchini fudge, zucchini chili, zucchini bread in many flavors, zucchini cookies, and deep fried beer battered zucchini chips. Enter your zucchini in any of several contests, including the best dressed zucchini. (image: cwalker71)
Kentucky Bourbon Festival
The Kentucky Bourbon Festival will run September 16-21 in Bardstown, Kentucky. The premiere competition at the festival is the World Championship Bourbon Barrel Relay, in which a 500 pound barrel must be pushed with speed and accuracy. There are divisions for men, woman, and teams. You’ll also see barrel dancing during the race intermission.
FireAnt Festival
This year’s FireAnt Festival in Marshall, Texas will take place on October 11th. Events include a parade and the “Tour De Ant” bicycle race and foot race. There may well be fire ants there, too.
Woolly Worm Festival
The 31st Annual Woolly Worm Festival in Banner Elk, North Carolina will be October 18-19. People have tried to predict winter weather by studying the stripes on woolly bear caterpillars, but the stripes are different on each woolly worm. The festival takes care of that with a Woolly Worm Race, in which the race winner is the definitive caterpillar used to predict the severity of winter weather.
Chitlin Strut
The Chitlin Strut 2008 in Salley, South Carolina is always the Saturday after Thanksgiving; this year on November 29th. Maybe people are more willing to eat chitlins when they are tired of Thanksgiving leftovers! Chitlins are boiled or fried pig intestines, a southern delicacy. The Chitlin Strut was born in 1966 as a civic fundraiser when Salley, a town of 450, needed new Christmas lights. Enjoy a parade, hog calling contest, pancake breakfast, and a beauty contest where a new Chitlin Queen will be crowned.
If you go to any of these festivals, be sure to tell us about it!
There’s also an Okra Strut in Irmo, SC. For some reason I guess South Carolians like to name their festivals “Strut”. I haven’t been to either one of them but I live in Irmo and the Okra Strut gets bigger every year.
posted by kani on 8-21-2008 at 8:38 am
Falmouth, PA, holds an annual goat race as well. The Falmouth goat races include a contest where people and goats dress in costume (imagine Peter Pan and Tinkerbell as goat and owner, or was that owner and goat?). The ugliest goat also wins a prize.
Like many places in PA, Falmouth has a New Year’s celebration with the dropping of something at midnight (in the tradition of New York City). Naturally, Falmouth’s item is a goat, in contrast to other local celebrations with a pickle, a huckleberry, bologna and chocolate.
posted by Eric on 8-21-2008 at 8:51 am
I love how so many of the ones listed here are from the American South! Particularly Kentucky. Those Kentuckians sure know how to let loose.
posted by Dan on 8-21-2008 at 9:17 am
Uranium Festival in Elliot Lake, Ontario.
posted by Jennifer on 8-21-2008 at 9:30 am
I have to take some of the blame for that, Dan. Oh, not about Kentuckians knowing how to let loose, because we do, but I am in Kentucky and I know these festivals and how to get the info on them.
Research tells me that small town festival organizers have a tendency to ignore their official websites until just a few days before their annual festival begins, or this list would be much longer.
posted by Miss Cellania on 8-21-2008 at 9:32 am
Although I live in Kentucky, I had no idea there were so many neat fairs (all I knew about was the Bourbon Festival because I work in Bardstown during the summers). I’m almost ashamed to admit that I had no idea we housed the world’s largest skillet… meaning I’ll need to try and pay London, KY a visit sometime soon and make amends to myself.
posted by Stephanie on 8-21-2008 at 10:41 am
What about the glow-stick competition in Chernobyl
posted by Adam on 8-21-2008 at 10:41 am
The Garlic Festival in Gilroy CA is awesome too!
posted by ArtF on 8-21-2008 at 11:20 am
I respectfully submit the Punkin’ Chunkin’ festival which takes place in October in Delaware.
posted by cgg on 8-21-2008 at 11:44 am
The Asparagus Festival in Stockton, CA, replete with asparagus margaritas. Or the Wine and Chocolate Festival in Lodi, CA, where you go from winery to winery sampling their wares along with delicious chocolates. Better have a designated driver for that one.
posted by Judy on 8-21-2008 at 12:03 pm
How about the Infamous Mullet Festival in Niceville, FL?
posted by JoeT on 8-21-2008 at 12:06 pm
Tennessee isn’t alone in the Goat Fest category. Brady, Texas hosts the World Championship Barbecue Goat Cookoff every Labor Day weekend.
posted by Cabrito Carl on 8-21-2008 at 1:10 pm
It’s not in the fall, but Benton, Ky hosts the annual Tater Day (more than 100 years old) the weekend before the first Monday in April.
posted by Lisa on 8-21-2008 at 1:59 pm
There is an annual fishhouse parade in Aitkin Minnesota every year on the Friday after Thanksgiving. Everyone dresses up their icehouse and drives it through town dressed in ridiculous costumes. What a hoot!
posted by vixenb32 on 8-21-2008 at 2:07 pm
Well isn’t that zucchini fest interesting. I had zucchini for lunch just an hour ago!
posted by Saskboy on 8-21-2008 at 2:50 pm
Near Reno, NV we have the following events in the coming weeks:
Cantaloupe Festival
Outhouse Race
Camel races
We also have some more normal events:
Hot August Nights (Classic cars)
Balloon Races
Air Races
Rib Cook-off
Street Vibrations (Loud bikes)
posted by n2y2 on 8-21-2008 at 2:53 pm
Brooklet Ga had their Peanut Festival last weekend. I never knew that you could fry peanuts.
posted by Vickey on 8-21-2008 at 3:20 pm
Don’t forget Mule Day in Winfield, AL
posted by Holly on 8-21-2008 at 4:25 pm
Or the Butterbean Festival in Pinson, AL.
posted by kirstin on 8-21-2008 at 7:46 pm
Here in Texas we have a Harvest Festival that includes a contest to see who can fling a dried cow turd the farthest like a frisbe.
posted by Timothy on 8-21-2008 at 8:13 pm
Clute, Texas has the Great Texas Mosquito Festival. I would think that one would deserve to be on the list.
posted by Don on 8-21-2008 at 8:24 pm
A friend who lives near the outhouse festival, in fact he usta live just up the next holler, informs me that Chet Atkins was the first person to use the first outhouse at Penn’s Store. The store has been there for, like, centuries, but never had an outhouse until 1992. I thought that America needed to know that. The store itself has been in existence since sometime before 1845. rb
posted by arby on 8-21-2008 at 8:59 pm
It’s pronounced chitlin, but it’s spelled chitterling
posted by PartiallyDeflected on 8-21-2008 at 10:41 pm
You ought to check out “the turkey testicle festival” held not once,but twice each year in Byron,IL. Go ahead google it. I couldn’t possibly make this one up!
posted by john on 8-22-2008 at 7:46 pm
John, I tried to get information on that, but I can’t find out if or when the next one is scheduled.
posted by Miss Cellania on 8-22-2008 at 8:48 pm