THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Thursday, November 23, 1995 TAG: 9511180589
SECTION: NORFOLK COMPASS PAGE: 05 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: BY SCOTT MCCASKEY, STAFF WRITER
LENGTH: Medium: 74 lines
Norfolk's Holidays in the City celebration will hold its second light show in a week with the 10th annual Lighted Boat Parade at 6 p.m. Saturday.
The Elizabeth River will take on a holiday glow as some 60 decorated vessels sail between the Norfolk and Portsmouth shorelines. More than 40,000 spectators are expected along both sides of the water.
``We have a beautiful harbor front, and this is another opportunity to celebrate it,'' said Cathy Coleman, executive director of the Downtown Norfolk Council, a non-profit group that produces Holidays in the City and promotes the downtown area.
The fleet will parade in a loop from the Omni Hotel to Nauticus, across the river to Crawford Bay, past the Portsmouth Seawall and back to the Omni. The display is a regatta of sorts. Boaters compete for trophies, bragging rights and fun. Past shows have produced some elaborate decorations and wild performances. One boat boasted more than 5,000 colored lights. Another had an Elvis imitator belting out ``White Christmas'' from the bow. Many look like department store window scenes.
Judges along the Norfolk and Portsmouth waterfronts will select the top vessels according to best use of lights, most creative design and most crew spirit. Parade officials will announce each boat and explain its decorations to the crowd.
``There is a lot of inventive use of lights,'' said Dave Barron, a past judge. ``One boat had a profile of Norfolk's Grand Illumination.''
The registration deadline was Nov. 10. Entrants have been busy getting ready, keen on making their vessels look festive and many not seeming to mind lightening their wallets to do it.
``It's not cheap,'' said Marty Strait, a Virginia Beach resident who won the 30-foot-and-under power class last year and who will compete this year in his 27-foot cabin cruiser, Strait Aweigh. ``We'll spend several hundred dollars again this year, but some people spend several thousand.''
Categories of competition are divided according to size, power or sail, and military or commercial. Vessels range from 21 feet to more than 100. Competitors come from around the region and a cross-section of society.
``The neat thing about the boating community is that everyone shares the common bond of loving the water,'' said Coleman, a boating enthusiast.
New for this year is the Mayor's Cup. Norfolk Mayor Paul D. Fraim has challenged his colleagues in neighboring cities to enter boats to compete for a perpetual mayor's trophy to be awarded each year. Mayors from Portsmouth, Suffolk, Hampton and Hopewell have accepted the challenge. An area yacht club competition offering a perpetual trophy also has been added.
Following the parade, many vessels will dock at Waterside for closer inspection. Around 7:15 p.m. there will be a fireworks display choreographed to holiday music. Immediately after that will be a dockside party at the Waterside amphitheater, featuring live music by Two Can Jam, plenty of holiday food and cheer, and a fire-eater. The trophy presentation will begin at 9 p.m. at the All-Star Bar and Grill in Waterside.
A fresh element in this season's celebration is the cooperation and involvement of Portsmouth. David Culpepper, a Portsmouth resident, is the 1995 Lighted Boat Parade chairman and a parade entrant. The city will have several boats in the show in addition to the mayor's vessel. Winterfest along the Seawall will be Portsmouth's post-parade party.
``We didn't do much last year, but it's all go this year,'' Culpepper said. ``This is like Norfolk reaching over and shaking Portsmouth's hand. ILLUSTRATION: BOAT PARADE INFO
The parade will take place rain or shine and is open and free to
the public.
There will be no street closures or special parking provisions.
For more information, call the Downtown Norfolk Council at
623-1757.
by CNB