Sean C. Morgan
08/29/11
A group of about 20 people representing various community interests started divvying up responsibility for 2013 Sportsman’s Holiday activities and discussed the basics for forming a Sportsman’s Holiday Committee during a meeting held Thursday night in the City Council Chamber at City Hall.
Sue Olson of the Sportsman’s Holiday Parade committee called the meeting in an attempt to revive old events and organize new ones.
Current activities include the Chips ’n’ Splinters talent show, Sportsman’s Holiday queen coronation, bazaars, the parade, the Logger Olympics, fireworks and the mile run.
The group discussed past activities, including the rodeo, a “kiddie karnival,” a real carnival, boat races, a kiddie parade, a junior Sportsman’s Holiday Court, stick horse rodeo, a free movie for kids, bingo and circuses.
Ideas for new events included dance walking, pool activities, track events, an art show, a lighted boat regatta, concessions, live entertainment and street performers, some type of poker walk, dragon boat races and bicycling.
“We’re tossing around the idea of a food cookoff of some sort,” said Brandi Hawkins of Periwinkle Provisions and Chamber of Commerce president.
“A lot of us were really disappointed the rodeo didn’t happen,” Olson said, and they’re wondering whether some other type of horse event could be organized or perhaps a bull ride.
Bringing back the hydroplane boat races is unlikely due to the high risk and liability associated with the event, said City Manager Craig Martin. A driver’s death ended the highly popular races in the early 1980s.
Ideas like the stick horse rodeo, handled in 2011 by the Sweet Home Rodeo, and the Kiddie Karnival are likely to be a part of next year’s event, while others at the meeting were planning to contact potential volunteers to handle organizing a junior court and bingo.
Karyn Hartsook of Farmer’s Insurance suggested that the community needs to figure out what the purpose of the event is and take it that direction.
Andrew Allen said Sweet Home is a logging, recreation and music town, and its activities should emphasize those themes.
In addition to the boat races, past events have included PeeWee Rodeos, chili cook-offs, endurance horseback rides, fun runs of various lengths, canoe races, Tube-A-Thons (in which contestants ran two miles carrying an inner tube, floated three miles on the inner tube, and finished by biking six miles, still wearing the tube), flea markets, the Fun Jail (in which participants paid to bail themselves out), carnivals, a truck rodeo, gold panning contests, frog jumping contests, Ferdinand the Bull raffles, draft horse competitions, the Buckaroo Breakfast in Sankey Park, teen dances, street dances for adults, square dances, softball tournaments and racquetball tournaments.
There isn’t much on Friday and Sunday without the rodeo, Martin said, and the suggested activities could be opportunities for further activities.
Sportsman’s Holiday currently kicks off with the Chips ’n’ Splinters and coronation on Thursday.
Without the rodeo, said Court Coordinator Wendy Smith, it might make more sense to move Chips ’n’ Splinters and the coronation to Friday.
“I still think we need something big to be a draw,” said Mike Hall, owner of The Point Restaurant and a city councilor. “Whatever it is is, it needs to be done well.”
For management and insurance purposes, Hartsook said, activities should be coordinated through a committee under the umbrella of the Chamber of Commerce.
The chamber could sponsor the events for insurance and tax purposes, Hawkins said, but all of the activities would need to be self-supporting and cost-neutral to the chamber.
It looks like this year’s events will happen again next year, Olson said, and volunteers will look into new ones. They’ll also talk to area nonprofit groups that can provide resources, such as insurance.