North Bend’s annual Festival at Mount Si just won’t be stopped. The organizers of this annual summer festival, Friday through Sunday at Si View Park, just leap over obstacles and shrug off challenges as if they didn’t exist. It was true a handful of years ago when massive renovations to Si View Park forced some big changes to the event schedule, and it’s true this year, despite two downtown North Bend construction projects throwing a wrench in the parade planning.
“The parade is going to be shortened,” said Festival chairperson Jill Massengill. “We’re going to turn right at Ballarat instead of Main, then right at Second, then left on Downing, and it officially ends at North Bend Elementary.”
People will have to get creative about their parade-viewing spots this year, Massengill added, and “get there early.”
The parade start is the same, with a 9:30 a.m. lineup at Torguson Park and a kiddie parade leading the way at 10:15 a.m. The Grand Parade, with Grand Marshall Pat Cokewell, starts at 10:30 a.m.
“She represented the kind of thing that we like to honor,” Massengill said about Cokewell.
The Festival kicks off Friday evening at Si View Park, with a stage full of live music, a beer garden and a bunch of “Twin Peaks” themed activities at the stage, including a hands-free contest to tie a cherry stem fastest, a Twin Peaks costume contest and Twin Peaks trivia.
The Twin Peaks theme will be carried throughout the weekend as participants can join a Twin Peaks scavenger hunt, returning from last year’s festival, every day of the event. Get the details at the festival information booth.
There will also be a free hoop shoot competition, a free co-ed volleyball tournament (sign up at www.siviewpark.org).
On Saturday, activities begin at the park at 10 a.m., but get into full swing around noon when the parade ends.
There will be two stages of live music and performances featuring Snoqualmie Valley Strings, Snoqualmie Winds, Cascade Dance Academy, Mount Si Karate on the Community Stage, and Longstride, Richard Allen and the Louisiana experience and Austin Jenckes among the musicians to take the Main Stage.
The annual Twede’s Cafe Cherry Pie Eating Contest (also hands-free, register at the information booth) and the traditional fireworks set off at Torguson Park are also on the Saturday schedule.
The Amazing Pet Contest, with prizes for best costume and best trick, has been moved to Sunday Massengill said.
“Not that many people enter, but I wish they did,” she added. “There are some pretty substantial prizes that they round up.”
Also on Sunday, the chili cookoff returns and welcomes visitors to sample the batches of made-on-site chili for a tasting fee of $8. The Burstin’ with Blueberries Dessert Contest is also on the schedule, with registration, at the Information Booth, by 11:45 a.m., judging at 12:20 p.m. and the winner announcements at 1:15 p.m.
Field games will be going on each day, as well, including lawn bowling and lawn twister. Also, Massengill said, “We’re going to have Jumbo Jenga, and we’re having a version of beer pong with garbage cans and beach balls that we’re calling Beach Pong. Obviously it’s not a drinking game.”
Bounce houses and laser tag, sponsored by the Snoqualmie Tribe, will also be back for children, but there’s a new addition that might attract some of the older kids.
“After the wife-carrying contest, the kids end up running the obstacle course,” each year, Massengill said, “and we thought that would be fun,” so this year, after the traditional wife-carrying, the Festival will put on its first sibling-carrying contest, for participants 21 and under.
The rules will be the same as in the adult race — carry your partner over, under, and through a variety of obstacles, including a water hazard, to win a prize.
The grownups will win the wife’s weight in beer from Snoqualmie Brewery, while the younger set will take home the partner’s weight in Snoqualmie Brewery root beer.
For the full schedule of events, see the insert in this week’s issue, or visit www.festivalatmtsi.org.
A 2016 cherry pie contestant can’t stop laughing. (Evan Pappas/File Photo)
Mount Si Gymnastics performs in the 2016 parade. (Evan Pappas/File Photo)
The winner of the 2015 Pet Contest, Sandy Kangas’ dog, rolls on his back in celebration. This year’s Amazing Pet Contest is Sunday, starting at 12:30 p.m. at the Community Stage. (Carol Ladwig/File Photo)
Ben Cockman serves up a sample of chili in the 2015 cookoff. Cockman is the coordinator of this year’s contest, which starts at 8:30 a.m. Sunday. Tasting for the People’s Choice Awards is at 1 p.m. (Evan Pappas/File Photo)
