Mark Newton, Daily Forty-Niner May 1.1997
The 16th annual Long Beach Beach-Fest returns this weekend with music, activities and a chili cook-off. The event will be at Shoreline Marina Green and Rainbow Lagoon and takes place Saturday and Sunday from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.
More than 50 bands will perform a mix of reggae, rock and blues over both days. Activities include paddle boat rides and races, a flower and garden expo and a pelican painting contest.
The Beach Baked-Off is a contest for the best pies, cakes and cookies. There will also be games, rides and arts, crafts and food booths.
Saturday begins with the flower and garden contest followed by the Beach Baked-Off contest at 11 a.m. The Little Miss Long Beach and Little Mr. Long Beach contests will be at 12:30 and 1:30 p.m. respectively.
They are non-professional, community events for two to 5-year-old children in which they answer questions about their favorite ice cream, toys and cartoon characters.
Sunday's highlight is the Coors Chili Cook-Off, which starts at 11:30 a.m. Claimed to be one of the oldest and largest chili contests, it will have 50 teams competing for more than $8,000 in cash prizes. All the chili must be made at the event.
"They have to do everything from scratch," Assistant Event Coordinator Evelyn Levine said. "They can't even cut one onion until they hear the fire-engine siren."
Mr. and Miss Beach Contests for the adult contestants will be at 11:30 a.m. and 12:30 p.m., and Radio station KLOS will host a blues concert on Sunday featuring Storyville at 1 p.m. and Corey Stevens at 3:15 p.m.
The newest addition to the event is the Cyber Dog Contest. Pictures of local dogs are on Beach Charities' World Wide Web site at http://www.beachfest.org/bf in a worldwide contest.
Winners will be announced on Sunday. The Ugly and Top Dog Contests will feature the best and the ugliest dogs from the Long Beach community.
The festival, expected to draw 60,000 visitors over both days, is sponsored by Beach Charities, which produces events to raise money for local organizations including Project Future for low-income or at-risk families, the Long Beach Special Olympics and Meals on wheels. It has also contributed more than $83,000 toward Cal State Long Beach scholarships.
Admission is $10 on Saturday and $15 on Sunday. Children under 12 are admitted free.
Information and details are available by calling Rachel Barnes or Evelyn Levine at (310) 436-7727 or visiting theWeb site at http://www.beachfest.org.