The Family Treehouse frog waves to the crowd as it rides the Family Treehouse train during the Fair Parade in Imperial on Saturday. |
IMPERIAL — It was a picture perfect day for a parade here as Thomas Crumdy could attest.
Crumdy, an Imperial resident, enjoyed the parade Saturday, as well as the festivities at Eager Park that kicked off the upcoming 2012 California Mid-Winter Fair & Fiesta.
But the event that featured 35 entries along Imperial Avenue lasted roughly an hour.
“I got there about mid-way,” said Crumdy, who sat alongside his brother-in-law Jeff Brown at the park. “But it was nice. It was real nice.”
Crumdy was among a host of people who watched the short parade before heading to the park where live music, vendors and the inaugural tri-tip cook-off competition got under way.
There were performers on stilts, classic cars on display and other sights at the park for patrons to enjoy.
Ember Haller, a program coordinator with the Parks and Recreation Department, said the tri-tip cook-off by itself was a crowd-pleaser. By the end of the day, 5,228 $1 tickets had been sold for the tri-tip cook-off, Haller said.
“We are definitely going to have an annual tri-tip cook-off,” Haller said of the barbecue competition that featured nine competitors. “Everyone seemed really, really happy with the community response.”
Monica Crain, of Imperial, seemed happy enough with what the events at the park had to offer.
While she’d heard of the parade, Crain said she was not there to see it but was at Eager Park long enough to enjoy a funnel cake as patrons walked in the sunshine.
“It can get just as hot as it wants,” said Crain, a former Arkansas resident, of the weather. “It doesn’t bother me.”
Staff Writer Silvio J. Panta can be reached at 760-337-3442 or at spanta@ivpressonline.com
Crumdy, an Imperial resident, enjoyed the parade Saturday, as well as the festivities at Eager Park that kicked off the upcoming 2012 California Mid-Winter Fair & Fiesta.
But the event that featured 35 entries along Imperial Avenue lasted roughly an hour.
“I got there about mid-way,” said Crumdy, who sat alongside his brother-in-law Jeff Brown at the park. “But it was nice. It was real nice.”
Crumdy was among a host of people who watched the short parade before heading to the park where live music, vendors and the inaugural tri-tip cook-off competition got under way.
There were performers on stilts, classic cars on display and other sights at the park for patrons to enjoy.
Ember Haller, a program coordinator with the Parks and Recreation Department, said the tri-tip cook-off by itself was a crowd-pleaser. By the end of the day, 5,228 $1 tickets had been sold for the tri-tip cook-off, Haller said.
“We are definitely going to have an annual tri-tip cook-off,” Haller said of the barbecue competition that featured nine competitors. “Everyone seemed really, really happy with the community response.”
Monica Crain, of Imperial, seemed happy enough with what the events at the park had to offer.
While she’d heard of the parade, Crain said she was not there to see it but was at Eager Park long enough to enjoy a funnel cake as patrons walked in the sunshine.
“It can get just as hot as it wants,” said Crain, a former Arkansas resident, of the weather. “It doesn’t bother me.”
Staff Writer Silvio J. Panta can be reached at 760-337-3442 or at spanta@ivpressonline.com
