The distinctive parade that heads up one side of the road then comes down the other returns Saturday at 10 a.m. A procession of floats, bands and horses will once again run along Highway 22 through the Village of Longview. It’s one of the feature attractions of the three days of activities and rodeo events that comprise Little New York Daze, aka the Longview Stampede, Friday though Sunday, July 15-17.
Event organizer, Joy McLaren, said the parade, which is preceded by a pancake breakfast from 7 a.m. to 9:30 a.m., is popular with most spectators.
“They think it’s really cool because you get to see the parade twice,” she explained. “But it’s almost getting to the point where we’re having to talk about maybe changing the parade route in a few years because it’s getting so big.”
After the parade Saturday people can take part in an unusual local shopping opportunity.
“We are having a huge market this year that I’ve put together at the village hall,” McLaren said. “I have got 45 vendors coming out for it at the Longview Community Centre. There will be a hot pink sign advertising it.”
The unusual colour choice is part of Longview’s commitment to go pink in 2011 in support of breast cancer research. Besides the changes to the village’s colour scheme, the other thing different about this edition of Little New York Daze is its abundance of live music.
A Sunday Jam in Centennial Park will feature a Calgary music act that performs under the name of its female lead singer Netty Mac. She explained the band has carved out its own distinctive sound.
“The band is country music infused with ‘50s rock and roll,” she said. “There’s really not a lot out there like it. Our marketing is if you throw Terri Clark, Elvis Presley, The Judds and Buddy Holly into a blender, pretty much what you’d get is Netty Mac.”
A self-taught singer-songwriter and performer, Mac admitted she has been influenced and inspired by an array of big name music stars.
“I was a rocker until I heard The Judds in the ‘80s,” she said. “I was blown away by their sound. I’m a big fan of The Judds, Shania Twain and Garth Brooks. Mainly it’s because of their talent. They’re all the full meal deal in being writers, producers and entertainers but I am interested in them as well because they’re trendsetters.”
The jam beginning at noon Sunday will also feature Eva and Company with vocalist Eva Levesque of the Travelling Mabels, Nunay who play the music of the South American Andes, folk singer Joel Kamp and foothills band Rollin’ Thunder.
As usual Little New York Daze will have many kid friendly activities like face painting and mutton busting. They will be taking place Saturday at Longview School and Sunday in Centennial Park. For a list of people who can provide more information on the different aspects of Little New York Daze go to www.village.longview.ab.ca
