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CA Strawberry Festival: Bigger & better in 2015
By George Miller
The Strawberry festival never disappoints- it was big, raucous and loud this year. We didn’t get a count, but you can see from the pictures that it had a very good crowd. Previous events have had over 70,000. This year’s event was probably in that range. This is THE biggest event in Oxnard if not in the county.
Elvis LIVES- in the form of Moorpark High School teacher Ramond Michael. (Photo: CitizensJournal.us)
Music acts, rides, strawberries in many forms, food, crafts, mercahndise, strawberries, lessons, contests, did I mention STRAWBERRIES? The only downside was that the BIG crowds made for long lines at the food and drink sites and SRO (Standing Room Only) at the 3 PM Saturday Santana tribute (Savor) concert. The music acts also included Stars of Beatlemania, Oxnard H.S. band, Zero gravity, Road Brothers, Sheiks of the Oxnard Plain, UnUsual Suspects, California Dreamin’, and LA All-Start of Funk.
Also on deck were: the Wonderworld Puppet show, Terry Godfrey Magic Show, Jest in Time Circus of Fools, Berry Best Dresed Baby Contest, a strawberry cook-off, coctail mixology and various contests, rides, scads of food, drink, craft and mertchandise booths. This was a very good value for the money. The event raised a lot of money for charities, too. Put this on your calendar now for next year.
Santana clone Savor jammin’ near the end of the set at CA Strawberry Festival, Oxnard, CA, 5-16-15. Photo: (CitizensJournal.us)
Santana – Oye Como Va lyrics | LyricsMode.com
We’re old enough to remember Santana when they were the first really big Latino Rock crossover act in the USA- and they were VERY popular back then. this group consists of very competent musicians and has preserved much the style and repertoire of the orginal Santana. Young and old seemed to appreciate it. The dance fllor was packed.
We recognized quite a few locals and also talked to people from out of town- San Diego, Culver City, Camarillo, Santa Barbara, Chicago…
One would really need two full days to really absorb what was at the festival. It might take a couple of days just to peruse all of the vendors, another two days to try all the food and drink, assuming your stomach was large enough- heck- you could spend 2 days just waiting on a few food lines- I hope they fix that next year.
Ride tickets were only a dollar. We noticed that the prices weren’t all out of this world. For instance, we bought really tasty strawberry smoothies for $2.50, a REALLY big burrito for $8 and 4 large chocolate-dipped strawberries for $5, the latter from Ambassadors of Peace, a new local faith-based group. Items like the huge (and delicious) turkey legs cost more than a whole turkey in a supermarket used to sell for not so many years ago.
ELVIS hasn’t left the building
Elizabeth allows herself to be charmed by “ELVIS”, CA Strawberry Festival, 5-16-15. (Photo: CitizensJournal.us)
The other main music act was ELVIS, or at least a good impersonator, in the form of “Raymond Michael,” an unassuming-looking Moorpark High School teacher by day, who becomes ELVIS occasionally, assuming legendary proportions, when the price and time are right. He has a good act, doesn’t think he’s actually ELVIS, doesn’t try to make us think he’s ELVIS, but skillfully evokes his music, mood, tells ELVIS stories and has excellent crowd rapport. This includes whisking ladies out of their seats and out in front of a crowd in a manner masterfully calculated to please and amuse, but stopping short of irritating jealous husbands and boyfriends. Elizabeth (very close to Elvis, below), from Pana, CA, near San Diego, was thrilled to be included in the act and begged us to send photos- which we did:
He was all over the arena, climbing on haystacks, shakin’, mugging classic ELVIS poses for the crowd, kissing babies, etc. and he CAN sing.
Made a promise to the Oxnard PD Dragg folks to put them in this article. (Photo: CitzensJournal.us)
Between the show management and the Oxnard Police Dept. the roads didn’t seem as congested this year- even with large crowds. I attribute this to good police traffic management and a really good shuttle system. We actually took the shuttle for the first time, prepared for the worst and were pleasantly surprised. We heard they were coming every 20 minutes and were unhappy to see one leave just as we were pulling into the parking lot. But another one was waiting right behind it and whisked us away within 5 minutes, carried us through relatively uncongested streets and dropped us off at the blue gate before we knew it. I say that because we hardly noiticed the passage of time while looking at the sights along the way and chatting with about a half-dozen passengers on a school bus with seats designed for ten-year olds.
Wooden ties? (Photo: CitizensJournal.us)
Lots of interesting food and drink booths at the CA Strawberry Festival, but they were not adequate for the peak crowds. We suggest that you eat real early or late. (photo: CitizensJournal.us)
The event is held in Strawberry Meadows of College Park, Oxnard, a spacious venue with beautiful mature trees and lawns. Enjoy them while you can, because lawns might soon be a relic of the past if drought conditions like the current ones persist
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George Miller is Publisher of Citizensjournal.us and a “retired” operations management consultant, active in civic affairs, living in Oxnard.
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