Published: July 01, 2008 11:15 pm            

Haynes Apperson Festival kicks off Thursday

The Haynes Apperson Festival has been beefed up to three days this year with a greater number of rides, more performers and more focus on automotive events.

So it’s little surprise that the bigger, stronger festival is bringing with it a big, strong celebrity to join in the action.

Bill Kazmaier, three-time World’s Strongest Man and ESPN World’s Strongest Man commentator, will host the 15th annual Central USA Strongman Challenge, which returns to the festival Saturday afternoon.

“He’s probably the most respected name in strength training in the world,” said Chad Coy, owner of Club Fitness 24, professional Strongman and organizer of the contest. “He’s an American strength legend.”

Calling him the “Julius Irving of American Strongman” competitors, Coy said Kazmaier took three World’s Strongest Man titles in the 1980s and has been instrumental in bringing notoriety to the sport. Most everyone, Coy said, has seen footage of Kazmaier on ESPN at some point, and on Saturday Kokomo will get the chance to see the legend — and 22 Strongman competitors — up close and personal.

Saturday afternoon’s Strongman competition is just one of the new additions to the revamped Haynes Apperson Festival, which kicks off Thursday.

This year’s festival has been expanded to three days, features four national entertainment acts as well as a smattering of local talent and will see the addition of more carnival-style rides and midget car racing.

Festival chairman Paul Wyman said Tuesday the quality of entertainment is one of the most exciting things about this year’s fest.

“We’re getting calls from all over the country of people coming,” he said. “That’s probably been one of the most exciting things that’s been attracting people to Kokomo, Indiana, to celebrate our automotive heritage.”

The kickoff night will feature a performance from comedian, singer and songwriter Heywood Banks, a Bob & Tom Show regular. The festival will also see ’80s synth rocker Howard Jones and songwriter John Ford Coley on Friday night and Australian rockers Little River Band on Saturday. The shows, like the festival, are free. VIP tickets are available for purchase for $20, though, which will include VIP seating and a meet and greet with the artists.

“We were getting people calling in from upstate who want to come in and see some of the shows, which we were thrilled to hear because the whole thing is about promoting Kokomo and promoting the downtown area,” said board member Brett Daniels.

And to help with the celebration of all things automotive, Wyman said, there will be a car event every day of the festival, starting with the Dodge Brothers car show Thursday. The cruise-in will return on Friday, and the Pioneer Auto Club car show will cap off the fest on Saturday. In addition, Automotive Heritage Days continues at Markland Mall, celebrating the 100th anniversary of General Motors.

Old favorites will also return this year, Wyman said, including the annual fireworks show, which will be at dark Saturday night. Wyman said the best place to view the fireworks is inside Foster Park. The Kokomo Perspective Parade, which features nearly 1,000 participants, kicks off at 2 p.m. Saturday and will honor the 25th anniversary of the Sports Festival.

Hundreds of people will be involved in the Sports Festival, said chairman Dave Granson, from runners in the annual 4-mile run and 3-mile walk to the slow-pitch softball tournaments to the Sunstroke 74, a 74-mile bicycle ride.

For his part of the Haynes Apperson fest, Coy and the Strongman competition will also be raising money for Habitat for Humanity, a nonprofit that builds affordable homes for low-income families.

The Strongman contest has bounced from location to location over the years, finding homes at Rib Fest, the Haynes Apperson Festival and even on the grounds of Club Fitness 24.

“We’ve been doing this longer than anybody,” Coy said. “We laugh and say it’s the granddaddy of Strongman contests.”

But Coy said there is no greater place to get exposure for the show and for Habitat than at Haynes Apperson.

“People can walk over and say, ‘Oh, look at that, we watch that on TV,”’ he said. “When you get to see this first hand, it’s kind of cool.”

And spectators are in for quite a show Saturday, he said, as 22 participants will perform tests of strength — dragging, lifting, pressing and carrying anvils, tires, kegs, and other objects weighing hundreds of pounds.

The eight amateur lightweight competitors are vying for a pro card, which will let them compete at the professional level, Coy said, adding that only four lightweight pro cards are awarded each year across the country.

“Our show is a springboard, sling-shotting you into the sport and into being successful in the sport,” he said.



If you go:

• WHAT: Haynes Apperson Festival

• WHEN: Thursday through Saturday

• WHERE: Downtown Kokomo and various Kokomo sites

• COST: Free admission

• INFORMATION: www.haynesappersonfestival.com



Schedule of events:

Thursday

5 p.m.: Festival opens

5 to 9 p.m.: Dodge Bros. Car Show

5:30 p.m.: Mike Milligan and Steamshovel

8 p.m.: Heywood Banks

9 p.m.: Snake Charmers

Friday

7 a.m.: Sunstroke 74 Bicycle Race

10 a.m. to 5 p.m.: Quarter midget practice

Noon: Festival opens

Noon: Community religious service

1 p.m.: Paul Stout

3 p.m.: C&B Band

5 to 10 p.m.: Poker tournament at Eagles Lodge

6 p.m.: Cruise-in car show

6 p.m.: Joe Blo Risin’

6:30 p.m.: Men’s slow-pitch softball tournament, Northwest Park

6:30 p.m.: Ladies slow-pitch softball tournament, Northwest Park

7 p.m.: John Ford Coley

9 p.m.: Howard Jones

Saturday

All day: Golf tournament, Chippendale Golf Course

7:30 a.m.: 1-mile run and 3-mile walk, Memorial Gym

8 a.m.: Men’s slow-pitch tournament, Northwest Park

8 a.m.: Ladies slow-pitch tournament, Northwest Park

8 a.m.: Three-man Jam basketball tournament, Foster Park

8 a.m.: 4-mile run and 3-mile walk, Memorial Gym

8 a.m.: Disc golf tournament, Highland Park

9 a.m.: Kids track meet, Kautz Field

10 a.m. to 5 p.m.: Quarter midget car racing

11 a.m.: Karate tournament, Memorial Gym

11 a.m. to 9 p.m.: Pioneer Auto Club Car Show

Noon: Festival opens

Noon to 5 p.m.: Poker tournament at Eagles Lodge

1 p.m.: Free-throw contest, Foster Park

2 p.m.: Kokomo Perspective parade

4 p.m.: Bloodstone

4 p.m.: Central USA Strongman Challenge

6 p.m.: Cook & Belle

9 p.m.: The Little River Band

• Fireworks will be at dark



The entertainment:

Heywood Banks

Heywood Banks, real name Stuart Mitchell, is a comedian and song parodist who frequently appears on the syndicated radio program “The Bob and Tom Show.”

John Ford Coley

John Ford Coley is best known for his contributions to the Grammy-nominated duo England Dan and John Ford Coley. The group’s biggest hit was “I’d Really Love to See You Tonight,” written in 1976. The duo had six top 40 songs in the 70s. The group broke apart in 1980 and Coley has pursued a variety of musical and acting endeavors since that time.

Howard Jones

Performing since 1983, Howard Jones is best known for his 1989 hit “Everlasting Love.” In 2001, Jones played keyboards for Beatles legend Ringo Starr for Ringo’s All Starr Band tour. Jones continues to tour and write new music.

The Little River Band

In 1982 The Little River Band celebrated its sixth consecutive top ten single within six years. The group toured with the Doobie Brothers, Supertramp, America, and the Eagles. The Little River Band estimates worldwide sales of albums at 25 million.

Strongman events:

• Deadlift — Participants squat down and pick up 600 pounds, using their legs, then set it down again. The person who lifts for the greatest number of reps wins.

• Clean and Press for reps — Amateur and pro participants press 275 pounds above their heads for the greatest number of reps, novices and teens press 180 pounds .

• Farmer’s Walk — Amateur and pro participants walk with 351-pound weights in each hand for 200 feet or best distance. Novices and teens walk with 215 pounds in each hand.

• Yolk Walk — Pro and amateur participants wearing a giant 770-pound yoke around their necks walk to a 500-pound anvil and carry it back to the starting line. Novice and teen participants wear a 550-pound yoke and do not have to carry the anvil.

• Carry and Drag — Participants carry one or two 250-pound kegs, depending on their class, and drag a sled with two kegs back to the starting line.

• Loading — Participants will load several objects onto platforms of varying heights. Objects include a giant stone, a safe, a steel block, a keg and a sand bag.

In Thursday's Kokomo Tribune: Dodge Brothers International in town.

        

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