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July 4, 2003
The Fourth takes many formsThis will mark my first Fourth of July in Pahrump; we'll see if claims about our great fireworks show are true. Usually, my Fourth of July holiday was spent at a family reunion somewhere in the upper Midwest, or cooling off somewhere above 7,000 feet. The Fourth of July boasting by hometown boosters everywhere reminds me of televised NFL games years ago, when the announcer would say, as the second quarter ticked down, "We have a great halftime show coming up." The great halftime shows usually turned out to be tinny sounding marching bands, although in hindsight that was probably better to watch than today's halftime shows featuring expert commentary by the likes of Terry Bradshaw and Howie Long. Promoters in my former hometown of South Padre Island, Texas - which started sponsoring fireworks shows every Friday night over the Laguna Madre as a tourist attraction during the summer tourist season - claimed they had the best Fourth of July fireworks show in Texas, even stating it was one of the top 10 in the nation. That claim was according to some obscure publication I never heard of before, but it probably sounded good for local chamber boosters. The island really didn't need many more tourists over the July Fourth weekend anyway; it seemed like it was on the verge of sinking into the Gulf of Mexico already. In Elko, Nev., the National Basque Festival was held the first weekend of July and often seemed to include the Fourth. It was an interesting festival for an ethnic group that settled in many northern Nevada communities, but it seemed a little out of place for the occasion. When most Americans were waving sparklers, eating hot dogs and American flags, spectators in Elko were watching dancers in ethnic costume while drinking wine out of a jota or traditional Basque contests to see who could chop wood the fastest, lift the heaviest iron ball. However unique that festival may have been on July Fourth, it's probably no more unusual than some other Independence Day events in remote Nevada communities. I had the unenviable job of calling towns all over Northeastern Nevada to describe the upcoming events over the big holiday for the Elko newspaper. The historic town of Midas, halfway between Winnemucca and Elko, had bull snake races. The North Ruby Valley Volunteer Fire Department was sponsoring a band named "Yahoos of the Desert Sky" on stage at Woodpecker Hall, leading my copy editor from the big city to wonder how far out in the sticks we really were. There was a flap in Battle Mountain one year when the Central Nevada Emigrant Trails Association, headed by local brothel owners Chuck and Ginger Barrett, took over the Fourth of July parade after a dismal parade the year before. CNETA put on a great show, complete with numerous people in period costume, including a busload arriving from Reno and western-style shootouts at a park. The wife of the former publisher of the Battle Mountain Bugle was disgusted the brothel owners were involved and declined to give them any publicity in the newspaper. Instead she used photos of a lightly attended alternate celebration at another town park. Residents of Eureka in Central Nevada close off U.S. Highway 50 to hold bed races. They also have an egg toss, with participants gradually backing up to toss the eggs across the whole width of the highway until no one could toss an unbroken one. I don't know who thought of those July Fourth events, but I guess it's the same ingenuity that led to other American success stories, like the guy who made a million dollars selling a hammer to break the Rubik's Cube. Over July Fourth this year, I'm sure Nevadans everywhere from Jarbidge to Laughlin will be celebrating. Posters in Tonopah were advertising the Belmont Fourth of July party, another historic town and former Nye County seat about 40 miles northeast of Tonopah. Owners of a local bed and breakfast are talking about offering stagecoach rides, a truly unique recreation of the Old West that is sure to be a big attraction. One unique Fourth of July, I was on a plane at dusk, sitting in the air looking down on numerous fireworks displays from surrounding towns. While driving through West Texas once, I happened to stop in Fort Davis, an historic town with an old, western fort by the same name. The townspeople were dressed in historical costumes for the event, while the town was all decked out in red, white and blue bunting. So I'm hoping to be duly impressed by the fireworks show in Pahrump tonight and the accompanying festivities at Petrack Park. People say that's one of the events where Pahrump people really pull together, like the Pahrump Harvest ... ahem ... Fall Festival, and the Christmas Coalition. While Fourth of July is celebrated in many different fashions in many different towns, one thing that's common is barbeques and fireworks. And even though I'm a 50-year-old man, I still like to go "oooo" and "aaaah" just like a kid again as I see those shells exploding in midair. Write to Mark Waite at mwaite@pvtimes.com. |
