East Main Street was filled with a stench Saturday, as many
people enjoyed various leek cuisine during the sixth annual
Stinkfest.
“All I can say is that a lot of people showed up to see what all
the stink was about,” Stinkfest coordinator Kathy Colman said
Sunday. “Thousands wandered through to seek out the spring tonic.
We had such an overflow; there were so many people. It was a
perfect weather day (for Stinkfest). Everybody seemed to have a
great time. We had no problems whatsoever.”
The annual Stinkfest pays tribute to the leek, or ramp, a wild
onion native to the area known for its pungent aroma and intense
flavor. Attendance for the event has increased steadily each year
since its inception, with about 6,000 people coming out last
year.
“You either love leeks or hate them,” Colman said. “I give
credit to the brave souls that can’t stand them but still had the
courage to venture out amongst the stinkiest crowd in Bradford.
There was something to do for everyone.”
Besides leek cuisine, this year’s Stinkfest included the
infamous outhouse races, a leek dip contest, “Kiddy Land” family
entertainment, the Lil’ Stinker parade and contest, a dunk tank and
live musical entertainment from the Church Street Blues Band.
This year’s winner of the International Outhouse Races,
sponsored by the Hero radio station, was the Worth W. Smith
Stinkers.
The “You-Be-the-Judge” leek dip contest, which is judged by the
public and chaired by Don Lee, had 11 entrees. There was a tie for
first place in the contest between Butch Green and Donald Snyder.
Lee said second place went to Randy’s Up the River Tavern in
Allegany, N.Y., and third place went to Matt Prentiss.
“We probably had about 200 people that tasted (the entries),”
Lee said.
Kiddy Land chairman Kim Glenn said Kiddy Land was a big
success.
“It was better than every year that we’ve done it,” Glenn said.
“Of course, the weather helped.”
Proceeds from Kiddy Land benefit the McKean County Elusive
Riders, a non-profit organization that provides therapeutic
horseback riding experience to youth with special needs.
Glenn said the winners of the 2007 Stinkfest Lil’ Stinker
Contest were Kaitlyn Byerly in the age 2 to 4 category and Samantha
Heffner in the age 5 to 8 category.
New this year was the Lil’ Stinker parade with the Lil’ Stinker
contestants proceeding down East Main Street to the gazebo, where
winners were announced and prizes awarded.
“We paraded the kids in the same place where they run the
outhouses,” Glenn said. “Then, we boarded them on the train from
Kiddy Land, and the train brought them through the crowd (to the
gazebo). This was brand new this year along with the way that we
judged the Lil’ Stinkers. It’s a new thing that we hope to do every
year.”
Colman said the food vendors also came up with many ways to make
use of the leek.
“The East Bradford Business Association created this event to
not only bring recognition to the East End but to have an event
that is fun for the whole family,” Colman said. “What makes us
proud is that with the Stinkfest growing every year, we are able to
donate more proceeds back to the community. Through the efforts of
all the volunteers over the years, I feel that we have accomplished
that. We keep getting more and more volunteers.”
It was announced earlier this year that the festival would have
to be canceled after East Bradford Business Association former
president Mike Smith, who was instrumental in organizing the event,
had to step down – both from his post as EBBA president and as
Stinkfest’s primary coordinator – due to health issues.
Local businesses and the remaining members of the EBBA worked to
revive the festival in Smith’s absence, announcing Steve Stidd,
owner of Togi’s Sub Station, would take over as EBBA president
temporarily.
Colman said the EBBA plan to continue Stinkfest again next
year.
“We are going to keep it running,” Colman said. “We got a card
from the East Main Street people, saying ‘don’t quit.’ On Wednesday
night, we’ll iron out any improvements. We always try to improve it
each year.”
