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Everything Scottish celebrated at Kincardine's 11th annual festival By Liz Dadson |
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 Norman MacKenzie (L) senior drum major of the Canadian Massed Pipes and Drums, and Scott Telford, drum major of the Kincardine Scottish Pipe Band, lead about 50 pipers and 25 drummers in the massed pipe band parade Saturday night  The drummers in the mass pipe band parade  The Paris-Port Dover Pipe Band competes in the circle  The Grade 5 band Celtic Blue Highlands of Goderich compete  The Grand Celtic Pipe Band of Fergus marches toward the competition circle  Neil Lowry of Almonte tosses the caber  Alex Stanat of St. Thomas competes in the caber toss  The Irish Cheap Seats were so dubbed last year because the people in behind this banner were sitting in their backyard watching the heavy events for free. The athletes have all signed the banner.  The Puppet Tamer (L) entertains the crowd by using a balloon bow-and-arrow to shoot an apple off the head of volunteer Mikaela Hackett, 7, of Kincardine  Serving the hungry crowd at the Kincardine United Church Tea Room are Diane Clubb (L), Fran Gannett, Lynda Harry, Jessie Doupe, Marion Boyd, Vera Orr, Jessie Clark, Debbie Michielson, Leslie Ray, Joyce Bowker and Marian Smith  Meghan Visco (L), 11, of Brampton and Karleigh Phipps, 11, of Orangeville, practise their Jig | ||||
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If you didn't already know, it was a good time to be Scottish in Kincardine on the weekend. In fact, by the end of Saturday (July 3), most in the crowd were aware of a couple of facts: there are two kinds of people in the world - those who are Scottish and those who wish they were; and the attire worn by men is a kilt, not a skirt. The festivities continued on the second day of the Kincardine Scottish Festival, with the major events including competitions in solo piping and drumming; highland dancing; and the pipe bands.
The skirl of the pipes and the staccato of the snare drums could be heard all morning during the individual competitions. Then, in the afternoon, the sound of pipes, drums and the bass drums filled the air as the pipe bands took to the competition circle in Victoria Park. The parade of the clans was held in the morning, with festival chieftain Duncan Hawthorne riding along in a convertible. Several clans took part, as did the competition pipe bands. Meanwhile, in the field behind St. Anthony's School, the heavy events were being held, sponsored by Ontario Power Generation (OPG). There were categories for amateurs, women, and men's professional and masters in the caber toss, hammer throw, weight-over-bar, stone throw, and sheaf toss.  Lilaya Longhurst of Bracebridge competes in the sheaf toss Most of the excitement came as the pros started tossing the 23-foot caber across the field. Beside the school, The Puppet Tamer entertained children and adults with is comical routine, involving a little magic, a parrot puppet, and a psychic turtle puppet. Children were also able to play with a Thomas the Tank engine and other toys in a play area. Back at Victoria Park, there was afternoon entertainment by The Thogs and some Celtic dancers. The day wrapped up with the about 50 pipers and 25 drummers marching down Queen Street in the regular Saturday night parade, followed by a huge crowd. They marched to the Quinn Plaza and then returned to the pipe band circle in Victoria Park. The evening Celtic Concert featured Needfire, Poor Angus and The Glengarry Bhoys. Sunday's line-up includes the Kirkin' o' the Tartan at Knox Presbyterian Church in the morning, and Celtic Music in the Park at Victoria Park in the afternoon, featuring The Kincardine Scottish Fiddle Orchestra, Scottish dancers, The Thogs, Poor Angus, Needfire, and The Glengarry Bhoys.
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 Cameron Harper, 19, of Bolton, a member of the Kincardine Penetangore Band, practises before his solo competition  Alexandra Chapleau of Ripley wins the Beginner 12 and over division in highland dancing  Eva Rennie of Regina, Saskatchewan, and living in Waterloo for the summer, is part of the Paris-Port Dover Pipe Band  Cameron Bolley of Detroit, a member of the Detroit Caledonia Pipe Band, practices for the drumming competition  Bruce Burt of Detroit, a member of the Detroit Caledonia Pipe Band, gets ready to compete in solo piping  Marie Wilson (L) of NWMO and Heather Convay of OPG talk to the public about the Deep Geologic Repository slated or the Bruce site  Dave Alexander of Kincardine carves some walking sticks with a distinctive Scottish flair  Bronwyn Garden-Smith, 10, of Stratford warms up for the "Sailor's Hornpipe"
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