Festival excitement continues

By Bill Archer
Bluefield Daily Telegraph

May 24, 2008 08:05 pm

— BLUEFIELD — Hordes of people swamped the group of eight carvers during day-two of the Echo Cole Chevy 2008 Mountain Festival Carving Invitational as the hot sun baked the world-class competitors as they labored on their masterpiece sculptures.
“This is an incredible display of talent,” Fred Dodson of Bluefield said after walking through the steady din of Echo chain saws. “It is just amazing what they can do with a chain saw. This competition has done a lot for the Mountain Festival.”
All eight competitors are vying for two slots in the 2008 Echo Carving Series Championship that will be held at Albuquerque, N.M., in October. “There is always a lot of excitement at these qualifying events,” Lori White of Outdoor Equipment Distributors Inc., said. “The excitement really builds if there is a lot of local participation in the auctions. These pieces are beautiful. One of Bob King’s quick carve pieces brought $750 in a recent auction. He said he would have sold it for $900 if he sold it at a shop.”
The auction for the 16 quick carve pieces that the carvers’ created in two 75-minute timed carves on Friday and Saturday afternoon, were sold at auction Saturday night after press time. Look in Monday’s Bluefield Daily Telegraph for the total raised in Saturday night’s auction as well as the auction total for each of the masterpiece sculptures set to be sold at auction at 7 p.m., tonight.
“It’s amazing what these carvers can do,” Brad Sharp said as the carvers shut down their saws for an hour-long lunch break. Sharp works for Echo and is serving as a judge for the Bluefield Invitational. “They’ll continue working on their masterpiece sculptures until 3:45 p.m., today when they will do their quick carves. The masterpiece sculptures will go up for auction at 7 p.m. (today),” he said. Other judges include Dr. Sheila Chipley of Concord University, Greg Carter, news director of WVVA-TV and local artist Brian Aliff.
When the carvers took their lunch break Saturday, they feasted on a gourmet meal courtesy of Key Ingredients and delivered personally by Chris Disibbio. “Special food for some really special guys,” Marc Meachum, president and chief executive officer of the Greater Bluefield Chamber of Commerce said.
The chamber sponsors the Mountain Festival. Meachum had some high level support in his efforts to set the carver’s dinner table including Lisa Huff, vice president of the chamber’s special projects division and Kyle Hurt, Mountain Festival general chairman. Debbie Maynard, chamber vice president as well as Karen DeHaan and Beth Nelson, both administrative assistants, kept things flowing on other venues throughout the festival complex.
Ed Gilger served as impresario for both the Fun Dog Show sponsored by Veterinary Associates and WJLS and the Hot Pepper Eating Contest sponsored by El Mariachi Mexican Restaurant. “I think we had more entries in the Fun Dog Show this year than we did last year and the hot pepper contest is always a lot of fun.”
Isaac Meadows, 27, of Bluefield — a pressman with the Bluefield Daily Telegraph — consumed 17 hot peppers to claim the Hot Pepper Eating title for the 2008 Cole Chevy Mountain Festival. “I did it last year and came in second,” Meadows said. “I like hot peppers and I plan to do it again next year.”
George Wright, 39 of Bluefield and Dakota Jackson, 16, of Tazewell, Va., tied for second in the contest by consuming 13 hot peppers in regulation. Wright earned sole possession of second place by eating four more hot peppers in the one-minute overtime period, but Jackson faltered.
“Oh boy! It’s not pretty,” Gilger said as Jackson conceded victory to Wright.
“Oh man! I’m burning up!” Wright said of his second place accomplishment.
The Echo Carving Series Qualifying Event resumes at 9 a.m., this morning, Eudora Farms re-opens at 10 a.m., the Mountain Festival Tennis Tournament resumes at 10 a.m., to 8 p.m., at the Sarver Tennis Club in Sedgewood, the Men’s Softball Tournament and Doubles Bowling Tournament both resume at 10 a.m., and the Karaoke Contest starts at 2 p.m. The final Echo Masterpiece Sculpture auction starts at 7 p.m., and Mike and Susan Plumley will light up the sky with an American fireworks display at 11 p.m.
– Contact Bill Archer at barcher@bdtonline.com