Festival Forecast

Iron skillets are a heirloom in many families and can fry golden delicious apples to perfection with a little bit of butter; but, have you ever tried to throw one just to see how far it will go? That’s the idea behind the Ladies Skillet Flinging Contest. Ladies, you’ll have to get in line to try your hand at tossing the heavy skillet to see who can toss it the longest distance. It’s always stunning to see where those skillets land and who will take away the prize money at the festival’s Saturday afternoon event.
Birthday parties are always shared with family and friends and the festival opening night 100th Birthday Bash promises to be loaded with fun. The cake decorator (Deb’s Creative Cakes) promises the 100th birthday cake will be a work of art covered with golden delicious apples. Free birthday cake will be sliced and handed out while supplies last. Crazy party hats are a favorite party favor. Enter your special hand decorated party hat into the “Crazy Hat Contest” where the selected winner will receive $40.00 in prize money for the craziest hat at the party (extra points for the use of apples). The T&T music show has promised to “rock the town” as they prepare to “bring down the house” at the birthday bash. Put on your dancing shoes and step up to the dance floor with music by Tom Pringle, Tiffany Cadle-Farmer, Rebecca Jarvis, April Fitzwater-Ferrebee, John Workman and Jeanna Dozer. The T&T show’s leaders, Tom and Tiff, promise to open the festival with music you can dance to.
Grab a GPS unit and see if you can locate the buried treasure. Families around the country have latched on to the fun of geocaching. How does it work? First the participant must find the GPS coordinate location, look are the area for a cache box, look inside to see who has been there, sign the visitor sheet, and leave a memento, and look around at the area for scenic views or historical markers which may be significant to the area. Geocaching sites have been logged throughout the festival area in the Town of Clay. Take the family on an adventure when you put on your hiking shoes, collect a list of GPS coordinates and information from the Clay County Library and take off on a “Quest for the Gold”.
Facebook networking brings comments from all over the United States and from places around the world. Many of those from Clay who are in the armed forces visit the site to enjoy photos from home or sometimes to chat, just to pass the time. Recently a Canadian posted that the golden delicious apple was their favorite and, of course, we shared that sentiment. An antique business in Florida sent us a message that they had a cup from one of our first festivals and mailed it to us to use as a fundraiser for the festival. With the 150th birthday of the State of West Virginia this year, our golden delicious history has been included in many newspapers and web postings including the Charleston Gazette and Daily Mail, Fairmont News, Wheeling News, The State Journal and in a digital display at the WV Division of Culture and History. The Clay County golden delicious apple history is Clay County’s biggest claim for fame and that pride is shared by all of Clay County’s citizens.
The festival website is bursting with information about the festival. Forms and information can be found on nearly every page including Quilt Show Registration forms, Parade Applications, Children’s Pageant Information and Applications and Vendor Rules and Applications. All forms are provided in Word and PDF formats. To obtain copies please visit the Clay County Library for assistance in printing ($0.25/copy). Visit www.claygoldendeliciousfestival.com and make plans to attend the festival September 19 through September 22.