Weather May Cooperate For Mayville ICE Festival
By PATRICK L. FANELLI
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2/13/2007 - MAYVILLE — The weather forecast for this weekend brings nothing but good news for ICE Festival organizers.
It will be cold, but not too cold. It won’t be too windy, and there should be more than enough snow on the ground for the winter-related activities on the itinerary.
‘‘It’s supposed to be good,’’ said Chuck Hinman, festival spokesman, referring to the weather. ‘‘The weather always is a challenge because you never know what you’re going to get. A lot of times these things come together at the last minute because we don’t know what the weather is going to bring.’’
This weekend’s festival, which kicks off early Saturday at Mayville Lakeside Park, will be the culmination of months of preparation by event organizers, the Mayville Chamber of Commerce and participating groups and businesses.
According to Hinman, those who plan the annual event — which is hailed as the biggest winter festival in the region — try to keep it fresh every year by incorporating new ideas as much as possible.
Many of the activities are tentative. Weather permitting, this year’s event will be a mixture of traditional activities and newer ones, such as golf contests, historical exhibitions, crafts, children’s activities, snowball throwing and snowman building contests, snowmobile rides, ice skating, broomball and the traditional fireworks display after the snowmobile flare parade.
This year, the festival is also incorporating local businesses to a greater degree than in the past. Events will be scattered throughout the Mayville area — such as wine tasting at Mazza Chautauqua Cellers, beer tasting at the Lakeview Hotel, sleigh rides at the Chautauqua Institution, pottery showings at Portage Hill Gallery and jazz music at area restaurants.
‘‘We are trying to come up with new and innovative events that may not mirror past events,’’ Hinman said. ‘‘We need to have an eye on the future.’’
The festival often features a mammoth ice castle built with blocks from Chautauqua Lake — the centerpiece of the annual event. According to Hinman, the ice cover is not thick enough to yield blocks big enough to build the castle, but the festival will still feature a smaller version carved by Mayville resident Brian Stahlsmith, an accomplished sculptor who often works at the Chautauqua Institution.
‘‘He’s really good,’’ said C.J. Kelly of the Jamestown Savings Bank, who is helping to organize this year’s event. ‘‘In fact, he just did one of the Chautauqua Bell Tower. He did a beautiful job with that.’’
According to festival organizers, Stahlsmith will tentatively begin working on the castle at 10 a.m. Saturday, and festival goers will be able to watch his progress throughout the day.
It will be cold, but not too cold. It won’t be too windy, and there should be more than enough snow on the ground for the winter-related activities on the itinerary.
‘‘It’s supposed to be good,’’ said Chuck Hinman, festival spokesman, referring to the weather. ‘‘The weather always is a challenge because you never know what you’re going to get. A lot of times these things come together at the last minute because we don’t know what the weather is going to bring.’’
This weekend’s festival, which kicks off early Saturday at Mayville Lakeside Park, will be the culmination of months of preparation by event organizers, the Mayville Chamber of Commerce and participating groups and businesses.
According to Hinman, those who plan the annual event — which is hailed as the biggest winter festival in the region — try to keep it fresh every year by incorporating new ideas as much as possible.
Many of the activities are tentative. Weather permitting, this year’s event will be a mixture of traditional activities and newer ones, such as golf contests, historical exhibitions, crafts, children’s activities, snowball throwing and snowman building contests, snowmobile rides, ice skating, broomball and the traditional fireworks display after the snowmobile flare parade.
This year, the festival is also incorporating local businesses to a greater degree than in the past. Events will be scattered throughout the Mayville area — such as wine tasting at Mazza Chautauqua Cellers, beer tasting at the Lakeview Hotel, sleigh rides at the Chautauqua Institution, pottery showings at Portage Hill Gallery and jazz music at area restaurants.
‘‘We are trying to come up with new and innovative events that may not mirror past events,’’ Hinman said. ‘‘We need to have an eye on the future.’’
The festival often features a mammoth ice castle built with blocks from Chautauqua Lake — the centerpiece of the annual event. According to Hinman, the ice cover is not thick enough to yield blocks big enough to build the castle, but the festival will still feature a smaller version carved by Mayville resident Brian Stahlsmith, an accomplished sculptor who often works at the Chautauqua Institution.
‘‘He’s really good,’’ said C.J. Kelly of the Jamestown Savings Bank, who is helping to organize this year’s event. ‘‘In fact, he just did one of the Chautauqua Bell Tower. He did a beautiful job with that.’’
According to festival organizers, Stahlsmith will tentatively begin working on the castle at 10 a.m. Saturday, and festival goers will be able to watch his progress throughout the day.
For more information on Chautauqua Lake Real Estate & Living visit: www.chautauqualakehomes.com
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