STATEWIDE–When the state of North Carolina announced a new online reservation system for its state park campgrounds late last year, there was uncertainty about how the system would be received, and about how well it would work.
The Raleigh News and Observer reports that all is well. In fact, all is very well.
Over 1,300 reservations have been made for 2,000 available campsites for 2010, the paper reports.
An excerpt:
The new system was launched in July, making it easier for people to reserve spots up to 11 months in advance at any park. Reservations can be made for stays as short as one night or as long as two weeks.
The new system should eliminate what used to be long lines starting New Year’s Day at popular parks such as Kerr, Jordan and Falls lakes. Under the old system, about 2,000 campsites could only be reserved by paying in person at the park or taking the chance on the U.S. Postal Service. Visitors were permitted to reserve spots only up to a week in duration.
It’s hard to think of much that would bring more life to a quiet building than a dance academy, and that’s just what’s coming to Sylva’s old post office, located on Landis St., and closed since spring.
Triple Threat Performing Arts Academy is moving from its current location adjacent NAPA Auto Parts on the Asheville Highway into the old post office. Renovations there are ongoing, and owner Valerie Tissue hopes to crank up in March. Downtown merchants will take note; the academy has over 230 students, whose parents and assorted caretakers have a lot of time on their hands between drop-off and pick-up.
Spring St. Cafe to reopen
Spring St. Cafe would celebrate its ten-year anniversary in March — if it were open. And apparently it might be, as owner Faye Holliday and space-owners Joyce and Allen Moore are close to reaching terms with an interested party …
Downtown wayfinding system
Downtown merchants — particularly the ones who aren’t directly on Main St. — have long complained about the lack of a standardized signage system for the downtown area. Many have resorted to various sandwich boards placed here and there, bringing about the occasional visit from the sign ordinance folks. Town Manager Adrienne Isenhour has been working this year to implement the needed system, and her efforts got a boost this week with a $9,000 municipal grant from county government.
Downtown Sylva Association; another successful parade
From the DSA: Downtown Sylva celebrated its annual Christmas parade Saturday with a great turn out and amazing floats that showed the time, effort, and talent that went into making such a special presentation. Wilmot Baptist Church won “Best in Show” and $200. Honorable mention was a tie and goes to Yesterday’s Tree and Heritage Christian Academy.
Downtown windows and businesses were judged during the Holiday Open House this year. Judges walked around downtown to view the numerous beautifully decorated windows. First place went to Annie’s Naturally Bakery and $100. The Nichols House came in second and Jackson General in third. Thank you to all the merchants for participating in this contest and we look forward to seeing more beautiful windows next year!
SYLVA–One of the most harrowing crimes committed in western North Carolina during the first half of the 20th century is the alleged murder in 1913 of two-year-old Roberta Putnam by her grandmother, Nancy Kerley, known as Nance Dude. Released from prison after 15 years hard labor, Nance Dude lived out her life rejected by her family. But as she never admitted her guilt or testified in court, her side of the story was never heard. In his acclaimed play, Gary Carden imagines what she might have said, combining folklore, some compelling historical evidence, and a playwright’s storytelling art.The much-performed play is now available as a DVD, featuring a performance by Elizabeth Westall.
Friday, December 4, City Lights Bookstore in Sylva will host a reception and discussion to celebrate the release.
The evening at City Lights will feature copies of the DVD for sale as well as refreshments and conversation with the playwright. The focus of the discussion will be not only on the play but also more generally on the subject of preserving and celebrating the folklore and heritage of the region. Pam Duncan, Rob Neufeld, and Michael Beadle will join in the discussion, as well.
These folk art houses are from the collection of Steven Burke and Randy Campbell, the largest such collection in the country. According to the exhibit attendant this is the first (and probably only) time this collection will be exhibited.
NANTAHALA–Nantahala Outdoor Center has announced its title sponsorship of the 2010 Outdoor Industry Association Rendezvous in Asheville, NC. OIA’s Rendezvous is an annual leadership conference for the outdoor industry, and NOC along with the Asheville Chamber of Commerce welcome these leaders October 5-7, 2010.
“In a way, we’re welcoming home a group whose industry is a fundamental part of why the Asheville area is such a compelling destination,” said Tim Lampkin, Director of Convention Sales & Group Services at the Asheville Convention & Visitors Bureau. “This is a region that celebrates its natural treasures, so we heartily welcome the businesses and associations that help us make our natural assets economic ones.”
Rendezvous will bring together leaders from across the country for a week of keynote speakers, breakout sessions, networking opportunities, recreation and entertainment, capped off with a volunteer service project to give back to the host community.
“We are excited to partner with NOC for Rendezvous 2010 and look forward to bringing the industry to Asheville next fall to showcase their efforts, as well as all the density of outdoor recreation and retailers in the area,” said Ann Obenchain, vice president of marketing and member services for OIA. “NOC’s leadership as a business in the Southeast and as a retailer in the outdoor industry is paramount and we are looking forward adding more paddlesports and retail influences to the event with their help.”
On the final day of Rendezvous, OIA attendees will give back to the community by working together to cleanup recreation areas in and around Asheville. This event will prove to be a special opportunity for leaders in the outdoor industry to make an impact on Asheville’s outdoor and paddling communities.
DILLSBORO–Dillsboro invites folks to experience Christmas spirit in early December as this walkabout mountain town glows in holiday splendor for the 26th annual Dillsboro Festival of Lights & Luminaries.
The four-night festival, which takes place Dec. 4-5 and Dec. 11-12, begins each evening at dusk when merchant “elves” illuminate the streets with 2,500 white paper bag luminaries. The merchants also flip the switches on strands of tiny white lights trimming the town’s buildings, many of which date to the 1800s.
Once the town is aglow, carolers fill the streets with music, musicians stroll the sidewalks playing Christmas favorites, and Santa visits with children in the town hall.
Shopkeepers add to the festivities by staying open late and serving holiday treats with hot cider and cocoa.
“If you’re having trouble getting into the holiday spirit, this festival will do wonders,” says Julie Spiro of the Jackson County Tourism Authority. “We’re often told that visiting the luminaries festival is like stepping into a Christmas painting.”
There’s no admission charge for the Festival of Lights & Luminaries, and lodging is plentiful with more than half of Jackson’s County guest rooms located in Dillsboro or within 15 minutes.
For information, go to www.visitdillsboro.org, or call the Jackson County Visitors Center at (800) 962-1911.
CULLOWHEE–Dorothy Allison, a major literary voice from the South, talks about her work in an audience participation program, 7:30 p.m., November 19, in the UC Theatre at Western Carolina University. Allison’s novel, “Bastard out of Carolina” is the focus of the show, which will be simulcast with interaction on http://www.Citizen-Times.com. The event is free and open to the public.
The program, called a WNC Read-for-All, begins with a twenty-minute author feature and continues with forty minutes of discussion, emceed by Rob Neufeld. (Several WCU students have read Allison’s book in preparation for the event). See the website, “The Read on WNC” for more details and a Reader’s Guide. Representatives from REACH and The Jackson County Community Table will attend the event, and books will be available for signing courtesy of City Lights Books. The event is funded by the Parris Distinguished Professorship in Appalachian Cultural Studies.
The first member of her family to graduate from high school, Allison attended Florida Presbyterian college on a National Merit Scholarship and studied anthropology at the New School for Social Research.
Bastard out of Carolina contains many remarkable features: the story of a girl who forges a positive identity in the teeth of her stepfather’s abuse; the depiction of a poor, Southern extended family; and great storytelling. Allison received mainstream recognition with this novel, a finalist for the 1992 National Book Award. The novel won the Ferro Grumley prize and became a best seller and award- winning movie. It has been translated into more than a dozen languages.
The expanded edition of Allison’s short-story collection Trash (2002) included the prize winning short story, “Compassion,” selected for both Best American Short Stories 2003 and Best New Stories from the South 2003. Allison’s chapbook of poetry, The Women Who Hate Me, was published with Long Haul Press in 1983. A novel, She Who, is forthcoming.
Dorothy Allison was Emory University Center for Humanistic Inquiry’s Distinguished Visiting Professor, Spring, 2008. In 2006, she was writer in residence at Columbia College in Chicago. This fall, Allison is the McGee Professor and writer in residence at Davidson College in North Carolina.
CULLOWHEE–It’s probably been a quarter-century since basketball tickets were as hot in Cullowhee as they’re going to be this year, and folks at the Ramsey Center are making sure everybody who wants them gets them.
The Western Carolina athletics department has announced broad discounts on season ticket packages, including a $125 family pack (2 adults, 2 kids) that’ll get your entire brood into any men’s or women’s game all season long.
A single adult season ticket for all games is $75.
Western’s men’s team is as deep and talented as it has been in the Ramsey Center era, and has been picked to win the Southern Conference’s north division and compete for a league championship. Western shared the north division crown with Chattanooga last year.
The Catamount women went 21-12 and won their second league tourney crown in five years last year. They went on to a 13th seed appearance in the NCAA tournament, where they fell to Vanderbilt.
Western lost three starters who combined for some 29 points and 15 rebounds a game to graduation, and coach Kellie Harper moved on to become head coach at NC State. But Western landed a strong recruiting class and a quality coach in Karen Middleton, formerly an assistant at Illinois.
After opening with St. Catherine’s (KY) in mid November, the WCU men travel to Texas and then host Arkansas-Monticello, Binghamton and Duquesne as part of the O’Reilly Auto Parts CBE Classic.
REGIONAL–Author Barbara Kingsolver spoke to 800 or so folks at Asheville High School last night, and the Mountain Xpress pulled together a tableau of tweets to honor the occasion.
An excerpt:
kingsolver says she loves criticism from her braintrust during revision process. Revision is my favorite part of writing. It’s where the art happens. The best thing is that nobody sees first drafts. For me, writing fiction feels like being in love, kingsolver tells asheville audience.
More:
kingsolver on who she reads: doris lessing… steinbeck, dickens, jane austen, george elliot.
FRANKLIN–On Saturday, November 7, come celebrate ten years of stewardship on the Land Trust for the Little Tennessee’s Tessentee property in Otto. The Celebration begins at 11:00 and continues until 4:00 and includes music by the Frog Town 5, tours of the property, annual conservation award presentation, and demonstrations by Cherokee artisans and others. All activities are FREE for the entire
Tessentee Bottomland Preserve. Ralph Preston photo.
family, and food may be purchased on-site from Big Mountain BB-Q. In November of 1999 LTLT purchased 60 acres at the confluence of Tessentee Creek and the Little Tennessee River. This was the first land protected on the free-flowing Little Tennessee, and now a decade later – with 30 land protection projects – more than 5200 acres and 35 miles of river frontage have been conserved.
LTLT’s purchase of the Tessentee Bottomland Preserve not only launched an extraordinary river corridor conservation initiative, it also created a laboratory for land restoration and stewardship in the valley. At Tessentee LTLT purchased an old dairy farm with diverse soils, abundant water, and an historic farmstead. LTLT conducted a detailed inventory and sought expert advice in developing a management plan to restore the rich and diverse natural and cultural heritage resources found here in the heart of the upper Little Tennessee River Valley.
The riverbanks have been stabilized and reforested, and a wetland area has been partially restored. LTLT began their invasive exotic plant control program at Tessentee and initiated the long process of converting fescue pastures to more diverse grassland habitats and open woodlands.
At Tessentee LTLT first began its collaboration with Cherokee artisans in the management and harvest of rivercane. This collaboration has expanded to the establishment of experimental plantations of butternut and white oak for production of other traditional artisan materials. The Tessentee Preserve is stop #53 on the NC Birding Trail with the preserve’s bird list at 115 species and butterfly list at 42 species and counting. Here one can hike the most extensive trail system found on any LTLT property. Volunteers have also helped to restore the historic farmstead – by restoring the apple house, smoke house, and in recent months the foundation of the historic farmhouse.
Now a decade later, the Tessentee Preserve is a rich mosaic of wildlife and plant habitats, and it serves as a microcosm of LTLT’s stewardship and restoration work in this historic valley. It is a wonderful place to walk and to appreciate the extraordinary richness and diversity of the upper Little Tennessee.
CULLOWHEE – Care for a serving of Shakespeare, hold the Elizabethan English and add fiddle and a soft Southern drawl? The department of stage and screen at Western Carolina University will present “A Midsummer Night’s Dream” – a commentary on the absurdity of love – at 7:30 p.m. Thursday through Saturday, Oct. 29-31, and 3 p.m. Sunday, Nov. 1, at the Fine and Performing Arts Center on the WCU campus.
WCU’s Mainstage theater series presents Shakespeare’s “A Midsummer Night’s Dream,” set in Depression-era Appalachia, at 7:30 p.m. Thursday through Saturday, Oct. 29-31, and 3 p.m. Sunday, Nov. 1, at the Fine and Performing Arts Center on the WCU campus.
One of the most often performed of Shakespeare’s comedies, “A Midsummer Night’s Dream” weaves multiple storylines: A royal wedding, a group of amateur actors planning the wedding entertainment, the confused affections of four young lovers and a feuding fairy king and queen whose magical spells cause mayhem. The characters ultimately decide they must have dreamed the chaotic series of events, yet all find themselves changed by the experience.
“Shakespeare has purposely made this all a jumble,” said director Claire Eye, a faculty member in the department of stage and screen. “Shakespeare’s point is that you can’t put logic into who you fall in love with.”
Eye set the play in Depression-era Appalachia because it was a time when people craved laughter, and the play reminds her of qualities of this region. “There’s such a beauty to the music and the people here,” Eye said.
The play’s music, dance, costumes and set will evoke Appalachia, and while the language will be Shakespeare’s original, the pronunciation will be in a Southern dialect – a natural fit because “Shakespeare’s writing is very musical,” Eye said.
The cast includes:
• Titania, queen of the fairies – senior Dayna Damron of Valdosta, Ga.
• Oberon, king of the fairies – junior Jack Watson of Asheville
• Demetrius – senior Jon Coward of Titusville, Fla.
• Lysander – senior Nathanial Mason of Bryson City
• Hermia – junior Christina DeSoto of Charlotte
• Helena – senior Amanda Pisano of Candler
• Puck – freshman Peter O’Neal of Raleigh
• Bottom the Weaver – Peter Savage of Asheville, a faculty member in the department of stage and screen
The play is part of the College of Fine and Performing Arts’ Mainstage theater series and recommended for ages 12 and older. Sunday’s showing also is part of the 2009-10 Galaxy of Stars Series. Tickets cost $20 for the general public, $5 for students and $15 for WCU faculty and staff and people older than 60. To purchase tickets, visit the FAPAC box office or call the box office at (828) 227-2479 for Visa and MasterCard orders. To order online, go to www.ticketreturn.com and select “need tickets” on the left-hand side. Under the “Western Carolina University” heading, select “arts & entertainment.” For Sunday’s show, choose “FAPAC,” and for all other shows choose “Mainstage.”
The Western North Carolina Pottery Festival returns for its fifth year on Saturday, Nov. 7, with an expanded lineup and a special clay “Olympics” competition.
Event organizers continue to be surprised by the popularity achieved by the festival in a short period of time. With dozens of well-known applicants from across the nation, the number of juried potters has been expanded to 42 this year. Last year’s show had 36 exhibitors.
Dillsboro, NC
The 2009 festival includes potters from 13 states, including Wisconsin, Indiana, Illinois, Ohio, New York and New Jersey, as well as North Carolina and surrounding states. The featured potter is Trent Berning of California.
“There are name potters in the show we never expected to have, and we had to turn away 30 potters, so there is competition to get in,” said organizer Joe Frank McKee of Dillsboro’s Tree House Pottery. “It’s become a premier event. We have potters from every type of clay medium.”
Berning, of Berning Clay Gallery in Fallbrook, Calif., has a master’s degree in ceramics from the University of Tennessee and is an instructor at two colleges. He is known for creating large pots featuring slip decoration, which uses fine clay in a variety of colors blended into liquid form and applied to pots.
Another artist of note is Richard Aerni of Rochester, NY. Aerni, a potter for 30 years, specializes in single-fired, wood-ash glazed functional stoneware. His work is sold in galleries across the country and is on display at the Smithsonian Institute.
New this year is the clay Olympics challenge from 1-3 p.m. Friday at Tree House Pottery. The competition is sponsored by Shimpo, a pottery equipment company, and includes 20 potters attempting to create the tallest cylinder and widest bowl in 10 minutes.
Saturday’s festival hours are 10 a.m. to 4 p.m., rain or shine. Admission is $2 per person and includes a ticket for a day-long raffle. Children under 12 are admitted free.
“All the smiling faces in Jackson County and the people supporting the WNC Pottery Festival make this a special event,” said McKee. “Our potters like interacting with people and are willing to share information. They’re not just here for money, they’re here to share their craft.”
SYLVA-Horace Kephart is well known for his explorations in what is now the Great Smoky Mountains National Park and for his writings about the area and its people. The new Ken Burns documentary on our National Parks features Kephart’s significant role in the creation of Park.
Now, a long-lost novel by Kephart has been found and just been published by the Great Smoky Mountains Association, 80 years after Kephart completed the manuscript in 1929.
Video from the Great Smoky Mountains Association:
City Lights will host a reading from the novel by Kephart’s great-granddaughter, Libby Kephart Hargrave, on Tuesday, October 20th at 7:00 p.m.
Hargrave wrote a foreword for the book, detailing how it came to be published after having laid so long only in manuscript form. George Ellison wrote the introduction, which gives further background and places the novel in the full context of Kephart’s legacy. Elizabeth Ellison’s watercolor is featured on the book’s cover, and Ron Rash’s praise also appears on the cover: he calls the book “a remarkable and illuminating read.”
As Ellison points out in his introduction, Kephart was an excellent listener, and in his time in the Hazel Creek community, he listened to residents tell about their lives. Both his ear for dialogue and his appreciation for a good story are revealed in the novel, which is set in Deep Creek, near Bryson City.
The story features Cherokee lore, as well, and some fantastical elements. too. According to Ellison, “Creating a dreamscape is not the sort of stylistic device a reader familiar with Camping and Woodcraft and Our Southern Highlanders would have expected from Kephart, not even in a novel.”
But at its heart, Smoky Mountain Magic is a story of both romance and adventure.
At the City Lights program devoted to the book, Hargrave will talk about bringing the manuscript to publication and will read selections from it. She will also take questions from the audience.
Bryson City Book Premiere and Signing to be Hosted by Kephart Family
In honor of the recently rediscovered and published novel Smoky Mountain Magic, the Kephart family and the Swain County Chamber of Commerce
invites the public to a premiere party that will feature readings from the novel as well as an opportunity to have your copy signed by a relative of the famed author.The event, which will be held at the historic Calhoun House Hotel located indowntown Bryson City, is scheduled for Sunday, October 18, 1 – 5pm. After a short program that will include naturalist George Ellison, GSMNP Superintendant Dale Ditmanson, representatives of the Great Smoky Mountains Association which is responsible for the publication of the novel, and great-granddaughter Libby Kephart Hargrave, family members will be available for signing and conversation. Music will be provided by the talented Lee Knight, and refreshments will be provided.
DILLSBORO–Vietnam veterans and those who lost a loved one in the war will have an opportunity to remember their fallen heroes when the Vietnam Veterans Moving Wall comes to Dillsboro’s Monteith Park, Oct. 15-19.
The wall is a half-size replica of the Vietnam Veterans Memorial in Washington, D.C. It has traveled to hundreds of sites across the county since 1984, and will be on display 24 hours a day while in Dillsboro.
On the Vietnam Veterans Moving Wall are the names of 58,253 soldiers who gave their lives, including about 1,300 unaccounted for and considered missing in action. Thousands visit the moving wall each year to see the names and pay tribute to those who served.
Veteran John Devitt conceived the idea of a traveling wall upon visiting the memorial in Washington, D.C., in 1982. He teamed with veterans Norris Shears and Gerry Hayer to create this moving tribute to their fellow soldiers.
It was first displayed in Tyler, Texas, in October of 1984. Now there are two replicas which travel throughout the country each year from April through November.
Dillsboro’s effort to host the wall was spearheaded by local veteran Allen Fields, who owns a small music gift shop and recording studio called A House Beside the Road.
For more information, call the Jackson County Visitors Center at (800) 962-1911, or visit www.MountainLovers.com.
HIGHLANDS–California actor Lee Stetson will take on the likeness of John Muir in a performance Friday at the Highlands Playhouse. The show, called “An Evening With John Muir”, is sponsored by the WNC Alliance and the Jackson-Macon Conservation Alliance.
Tuckasegee writer Thomas Crowe previewed the performance in the most recent issue of the Cashiers Crossroads Chronicle; here’s an excerpt:
While the Sierras were [Muir's] preferred stomping grounds, he did travel, throughout his lifetime to many areas of the country, including the western N.C., mountains.
As if by some kind of time-warp or reincarnation intervention, Muir will be returning to the mountains of western N.C., for the first time since his visit in 1867 as part of his now-famous 1,000-Mile Walk.
As a walk (in to the body of California-based actor Lee Stetson) Muir will be giving talks in Asheville and Highlands that relate some of his most remarkable adventures in the wild, including a remarkable “tree ride” in a windstorm, a “sleigh ride” on a snow avalanche, his “interview” with a bear, and a face-to-fang encounter with a rattlesnake. Muir’s true wilderness tales are liberally salted with his wilderness philosophy–all around the theme of the health and invigoration one acquires when one fully and joyfully engages wildness.
But even more important to us, here in the Smoky Mountains, he will be talking about his time spent here in the western Carolina mountains.
CULLOWHEE – A new exhibit focusing on the legendary Plott hound hunting dogs of Haywood County will open Friday, Oct. 9, at Western Carolina University’s Mountain Heritage Center.
“Our State Dog: North Carolina’s Plott Hound” explains the history and origins of the dog breed with a combination of artifacts and photographs. The exhibit covers breed characteristics and describes how Plotts are used to hunt bears, boars and raccoons. Museum visitors also will have an opportunity to view bear and boar skins, rare hunting weapons and other artifacts.
The original breeding stock of hunting dogs was imported to America by Johannes Plott around 1750, said Mountain Heritage Center Curator Trevor Jones. The Plott family and their dogs settled in Haywood County around 1800, and both the family and the dogs prospered in the New World, Jones said.
As time passed, the Plott hound’s legendary ability to chase bears and boars grew, and Plotts are now raised across the country and around the world.
The Mountain Heritage Center staff worked with the National Plott Hound Association, the Jackson County Coon Hunter’s Club, members of the Plott family, and local bear and boar hunters in developing the exhibit, Jones said.
Many aspects of the exhibit are based on the research of Plott hound experts Bob Plott and John Jackson. Bob Plott is a descendant of Johannes Plott. Many artifacts were supplied by local hunters.
The exhibit will be on display through April 8 of next year.
The Mountain Heritage Center is located on the ground floor of WCU’s H.F. Robinson Administration Building. The museum is open from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday and Friday, and from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. on Thursday. The center also is open from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Saturday, June through October.
REGIONAL–The Macon News’s David Tell takes a look at both sides of Duke Energy’s current effort to institute rate hikes.
The rate hikes, which must be approved by the NC Utilities Commission after a series of hearings, are controversial both because they are sizable, and because critics say the money will be used to help fund construction of Duke’s Cliffside power plant, near Charlotte.
Cliffside is a coal-burning plant. Critics say that it will pollute the air and encourage mountaintop-removal mining.
A hearing on the matter is scheduled Tuesday in Franklin.
An excerpt from Tell’s story:
Last week, the Jackson-Macon Conservation Alliance and the Western North Carolina Alliance both issued releases detailing their opposition to the rate increase, which would total about 18 percent for Duke’s residential customers in North Carolina. Duke released a piece by Duke Carolinas President Brett Carter that touts the hike as paying for past and future improvements to its power system that offer environmental benefits.
Opponents of the hike continue to label it the “Cliffside rate hike,” claiming it is being asked largely to pay for the construction of a new, coalfired boiler in Cliffside, N.C., west of Charlotte. Duke Energy’s public relations effort on behalf of the hike is toiling to de-link the two issues.
CULLOWHEE – Twenty-two top high school marching bands from four states will assemble for Western Carolina University’s ninth annual Tournament of Champions, an invitational competition hosted by WCU’s award-winning Pride of the Mountains Marching Band at E.J. Whitmire Stadium on Saturday, Oct. 10.
Tuscola High School Band, from the 2008 competition
The high school musicians will be competing for various awards, including the prestigious Chancellor’s Award Trophy, a large glass traveling trophy that is presented to the grand champion band, and the North Carolina Roll of Honor, awarded to the highest scoring band from North Carolina.
“The Tournament of Champions has become one of the major marching band events in the entire Southeast,” said Bob Buckner, Pride of the Mountains Marching Band director. “Its tradition has become one of attracting bands that are very serious about competition. The show is so competitive that ‘making the night show’ now is recognized as a major accomplishment. The day is marked by drama, music and the excitement of seeing and hearing young people work together toward a single goal.”
The tournament-hosting Pride of the Mountains Marching Band is the 2009 recipient of the prestigious Sudler Trophy, the nation’s highest and most-coveted award for college and university marching bands. Western Carolina is the first institution in the state of North Carolina and the first member of the Southern Conference selected for the award, which has been called the “Heisman Trophy” of the collegiate marching band world. Past recipients of the honor include the universities of Texas, Michigan, Illinois, Nebraska, Kansas, Oklahoma and Alabama, and Ohio State, Louisiana State, Penn State and Auburn universities.
The Oct. 10 competition will consist of two sessions. Preliminaries will begin at 8 a.m. and continue through the day. The three class champions will be announced at 3:45 p.m., and the three class champs and the next seven highest scoring bands will advance to the finals. The finals competition will begin at 7 p.m.
The Pride of the Mountains Marching Band will perform its halftime show “Born to Be Alive” at 3 p.m., signifying the end of the preliminaries. The band will then play the national anthem at 6:45 p.m., and again perform “Born to Be Alive” at the end of the finals competition.
Participating North Carolina bands (and towns where located) are Brevard, Pisgah (Canton), South Rowan (China Grove), East Lincoln (Denver), Chase (Forest City), Franklin, North Lincoln (Lincolnton), Marvin Ridge (Waxhaw), Tuscola (Waynesville) and North Buncombe (Weaverville).
Georgia high schools participating are Harrison (Kennesaw) and Peachtree Ridge (Suwanee).
South Carolina high schools participating are Boiling Springs, Clover, Nation Ford (Fort Mill), White Knoll (Lexington), North Augusta, Northwestern (Rock Hill) and Eastside (Taylors).
The Tennessee high schools participating are Volunteer (Church Hill), Science Hill (Johnson City) and Dobyns-Bennett (Kingsport).
Tickets are $10 for the preliminary competition. Tickets for the finals are $8 if purchased in advance or at the gate before 5 p.m., and are $10 if purchased after 5 p.m. Children under the age of 12 will be admitted free when accompanied by an adult.
NANTAHALA-Western North Carolina’s largest outdoor gear fair will feature an unprecedented number of events, when NOC’s Guest Appreciation Festvial (GAF) kicks off September 25-27, at NOC’s headquarters on the Nantahala River.
This is the 26th year for the end-of-season sale and swap. A destination event, visitors can expect games, giveaways, video premieres, rafting, live music, restaurant specials and much more throughout the weekend.
The event begins on Friday, when NOC opens its Used Gear Marketplace. At the same time, the Outfitter’s Store opens its doors to blowout brand new bikes, boats, apparel, tents and more. NOC’s famous Outfitter’s Store is the biggest specialty retailer of whitewater gear in the country and also features a wide selection of general outdoor apparel, so expect to find a variety of sale items.
This installment of GAF features more live music than ever before, with Woody Pines, The HumBuckers, The Steve Wohlrab Jazz Trio and additional musicians performing throughout the entire weekend.
In addition to sales, live music and regularly-scheduled rafting trips, Saturday features a packed line-up of events, including The Subaru Sumo Thunder Challenge, the ShredReady/IR Pumpkin Pursuit, a Crowded Canoe Competition, the Jackson Kayak Big Trick Competition, Foamy Boat Building, free fishing and kayaking clinics, restaurant specials, games, video premieres, kids contests and more.
Also during GAF weekend, the International Whitewater Hall of Fame will hold its 2009 induction ceremony on Saturday evening at Relia’s Garden Restaurant. There are meetand-greet events with the honorees, open to the public on Saturday afternoon.
NOC’s Guest Appreciation Festival usually sees visitation around 2,000 people. Visitors should be prepared to use marked satellite parking lots east of NOC on Highway 19, and ride the NOC-provided, free shuttles to the event.
