Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: SUNDAY, May 27, 1990 TAG: 9005270174
SECTION: VIRGINIA PAGE: C1 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: GREG EDWARDS STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: LENGTH: Long
Along Wiley Drive and the Roanoke River, the aroma of fried sausage, peppers and onions mingled with the smells of spring foliage and the rain-swollen river. It was a mystical perfume, almost guaranteed to put visitors in a festive mood.
In Smith Park, near a stage where Bluegrass musicians picked feverishly, two lovers embraced in the shade of the trees. Oblivious to the thousands who walked around them, they talked quietly.
This is Festival in the Park, Roanoke's annual tribute to good food, good friends, good times and the good life. The weather gods were smiling: The rain that was predicted Saturday morning failed to materialize by nightfall.
Despite the festive mood, not everyone on the river was relaxed. Jerry Sublett, the captain of one of the boats in the River Race, fretted.
For the past three years, Sublett had the fastest boat in the small-crew category, and he had won his semifinal heat again this year. The hull of Sublett's red outrigger is shaped like a stiletto, designed to cut through the water and the competition.
But some other fast-looking boats were in the water and Sublett was worried. "We have never lost a race so far but we'll probably lose today," he mused.
Wasted worry. Sublett easily won his fourth in a row. Halfway through the race, he was so far ahead that his guys eased up on the paddles, he said.
A favorite of the folks who came to watch the boat races was the entry from B&M Sheet Metal. It was a long, green Viking-style craft with big, molded Ninja Turtle character on its prow. The smoke that appeared to spew from the turtle's arms was really carbon-dioxide, supplied by Greer Supply, B&M's neighbor on Salem Avenue.
"We were a dragon last year," said a dripping-wet Lee Martin, the `M' in B&M. Martin said he was hoping to win the race's creativity award, which he said his crew lost in 1989 because the judges decided they looked too serious while paddling the river.
Near a small trailer back from the river, the walkie-talkie and portable phone of Festival Executive Director Wendi Turner were smoking with messages. Turner was thrilled with the day, despite wearing long pants in anticipation of rain and cool weather.
The crowd filled Wiley Drive from Wasena Park to the Rivers Edge Sports Complex. It had been steady, Turner said, but she declined to estimate its size.
Childrens' activities at Smith Park - such as the petting zoo, face painting and scarecrow making - were increased by about a third this year and were spread out to provide them more room, officials said.
At the shoe-box float booth, Mike Barnhill, a city Parks and Recreation Department worker, helped 7-year-old Amanda Donald glue a piece of cloth with bears and rainbows to her shoebox. Amanda will be eligible to pull or carry her float in this afternoon's children's parade downtown.
Down the river across from Victory Stadium, feet were flying and whistles shrieking as play got under way in the Crestar Festival Soccer Tournament at the sports complex.
About 10 a.m., Linda Fairchild of Hampton stretched out on a deck chair next to the soccer fields and worked on a cross-stitch image of a cat. Fairchild had time to kill. Her son, Jeffrey, had played his first match at 7:30 a.m. and wasn't scheduled to play again until 3 p.m.
Jeffrey's father, Frank, said the family goes to a lot of soccer tournaments, and Linda Fairchild said the Roanoke tournament is well run.
The tournament, started by the Roanoke Valley Youth Soccer Club, is in its fifth year. "This thing is great for the valley," said Cary Mangus of CMT Sporting Goods, who was selling items from a tent at the soccer fields.
Mangus said he had ordered some special merchandise for the festival. Soccer followers know what they're looking for; they're dedicated people, he said.
A coach and friend from Big Stone Gap asked Mangus if Mangus could help him find a room in Roanoke this weekend; the visitor ended up staying in Christiansburg. Tournament director Danny Beamer said there were 1,700 motel rooms booked for the tournament.
The 2,500 soccer players were taking part in 288 games at 20 fields Saturday and today. The players and their families come from 11 states.
"We probably bring more people to Roanoke than the [Roanoke Valley] horse show," said Mark Feldmann, a Roanoke lawyer and president of the youth soccer club.
"The light kind of gets hidden under the bushel a little bit," he said, referring to that event being one of many held during the festival.
Downtown around Elmwood Park and the city library, the arts and crafts show and sale drew a steady crowd. Some craftsmen said sales were brisk; others said they had been slow.
Margaret Owens of Greensboro, N.C., said sales of her painted aluminum flowers were going much better than two years ago.
by CNB