June 26-28, 2009 ~ The annual Five Star Dealership's Sand & Sawdust Festival was held over the weekend and it was a great success. All three days enjoyed sunshine with temperatures in the 60's. A consistent theme for this year's competition was pirates....."Parrots of the Caribbean," "Pirates of the Crab-I-Bean," a "Skull," and others. There were some very detailed and awesome works of sand art. The winner of the Master's Division was "Some Assembly Required," which was a view of a workshop of a toy man being put together. The other entrants were the "The Alligator Pit," "A Fool's Castle" and "Bear-It Art." The Beginner’s Division included a children's creation of "Sea Urchins"....check out the picture below of the child working on this sand sculpture. My personal favorites were "Some Assembly Required," the "Race Track," "The Castle & the Lockness Monster," and the "Skull" with its red bandana and silver covered tooth (see picture below).
The crisp cedar smell lit-up the air at the Woodcarving Competitions in front of the Convention Center, which always produces many pieces of art. Master Chainsaw Carvers from Europe, Japan, Australia, and throughout the United States compete for thousands of dollars in prizes. Competition took place from 9-4 on Friday and Saturday and 8-1 on Sunday. The Awards Ceremony was held on Sunday at 4pm. Internationally known auctioneer, Boaz Backus, conducted the Auctions at the end of each day’s competition. You will have to wait until next year to have a chance to take home a piece of original art! Additional activities at the Convention Center included approximately 100 Food and Craft Vendors.
This is a must see event of the year (next to 4th of July)!