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WMVY Annual Chili Contest This fundraiser held in mid-January (usually Saturday of the weekend before Super Bowl Sunday) and sponsored by radio station WMVY is sure to warm you up. This contest strives to solve an important culinary question: Who has the best-tasting chili on the island? One category involves the island's top chefs, and the other is for amateurs, with ordinary islanders bringing out their best recipes. Bring your appetite; bowls and spoons are provided. A fee, usually about $12, will get you in the door to sample all the chili you can eat.
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Annual Spring Short Play Festival Featuring some of the islands favorite short plays from previous years, the festival is divided into two evenings of eclectic entertainment, performed six times, over a two-week period in mid-May. The Bald Soprano by Eugene Ionesco, Pavane by Sall Sixon Wiener, and This Property is Condemned by Tennessee Williams highlighted the festival in 2000. Memorial Day 5K Road Race Memorial Day weekend is regarded as the kickoff for
the new tourist season here on the island. It is also the weekend for the
annual Memorial Day 5K Road Race, held on the Rotary Club Annual Flea Market Held over Memorial Day weekend at the Edgartown
School, this annual sale includes many items donated by local folks who
have caught the spring cleaning bug. Imagine the treasures that emerge
from people's attics Spring Plant Sale The beauty of the sanctuary is a fitting setting for this fundraiser, which is always held over Memorial Day weekend. Bring lots of green--the sales and varieties are outstanding!
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Oak Bluffs--Inn Place to Be Oak Bluffs has plenty of charming inns, and they're on display this day only as part of this popular self-guided tour. Held in early June from 1 PM to 4 PM, the admission is free and there is a wine reception afterwards from 4 PM to 6 PM sponsored by the Oak Bluffs Association. Oak Bluffs Annual Harbor Festival This is a festive waterfront celebration that
attracts both locals and tourists in large numbers. Bands fill the air
with joyful sounds while seafood fills the air with enticing aromas. There
are games and arts and craft booths to keep kids and adults entertained.
Admission is free. Sponsored by the Oak Bluffs Association, A Taste of the Vineyard Sample food and drink from more than 60 island
eateries and beverage merchants on Thursday night and be wined and dined
at the live auction featuring various goods and services on Saturday
night. It is held in mid-June under a tent next to the Old Whaling Church.
Tickets for Thursday night are $100 and Farmers Market This is what we call an old-fashioned farmers market. Held at the old Agricultural Hall on Saturdays from mid-June to mid-October and on Wednesdays from the end of June to the end of August, it offers fresh locally grown vegetables and homemade baked goods. There are even some artisans selling their arts and crafts.
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Band Concerts Now this is an island vacation--music on a summer night! Sunday night is the night for band concerts, alternating between Owen Park in Vineyard Haven and Ocean Park in Oak Bluffs. You might want to bring your own lawn chair or blanket and soak up the sweet sounds under the summer stars. The band is always the Vineyard Haven Band Inc., and the admission is always free. Edgartown Fireworks Fireworks over the harbor--need we say more? The Edgartown fireworks cap off the town's Independence Day celebration. Get there early to claim your spot. Parking is a challenge but don't worry, you'll find a space somewhere. Independence Day Parade What would the Fourth be without a good parade? Edgartown comes through with the annual event featuring local high school bands and floats which pass through the historic main routes of this old whaling port. You'll find yourself humming a Cohen song as you are swept up in the patriotic theme. Tisbury Birthday and Street Fair Tisbury is the second-oldest town on the island, incorporated in 1671 just after Edgartown. To celebrate its incorporation, the town throws itself a party in early July, and you are invited. Festivities include games, live entertainment, and craft booths. Of course, food is available as well. Edgartown Regatta This regatta, now in its 78th year, is one of the largest amateur sailing events in the area, usually beginning on the third Thursday in July and running throughout the weekend. Races include many classes of boats, from smaller boats to larger cruising vessels. The race weekend attracts large crowds to Edgartown so you may want to make your room reservations months in advance to guarantee accommodations. Portuguese Holy Ghost Feast Portuguese first arrived on the island in the early to mid-18th century. Many found employment as merchant seamen or on whaling vessels. Portuguese-American heritage is the focus at the Holy Ghost Feast--a festival of games, entertainment, and some of the greatest food on the planet. The festival is held in mid-July and runs from 5 PM to midnight on Saturday and from noon to 6 PM on Sunday at the Portuguese-American Club. Monster Shark Fishing Tournament Images of Quint standing upon the rocking bow of the ORCA with a harpoon gun in his hands come to mind when you consider this fishing tournament held over three days towards the end of June. Local charters and anglers alike vie to land the largest beast. Registration is held at Oak Bluffs Wesley Hotel. Call the Big Game Fishing Club at the number above for more about this event.
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All Island Art Show The famed Tabernacle at the Methodist campgrounds in Oak Bluffs is the site of this art show in early August, which features island artists placing juried works on display. The event is well attended, as the work is of the highest caliber. Admission is free. Possible Dreams Auction Vineyarder Art Buchwald hosts this early August auction at the Harborside Inn gardens. It is a fundraiser for Martha's Vineyard Community Services in which you can bid on everything from a sailboat ride with Walter Cronkite to a tour of CBS and the 60 Minutes' studios with Mike Wallace or lunch with Carly Simon. Anything is possible, so bring your checkbook. Annual Antique Show Sale This large antiques show, now in its 29th year, features hundreds of vendors from Massachusetts, Connecticut, and New York showcasing their treasures. Benefitting the Rotary Club of Martha's Vineyard, the two-day event is held at the Oak Bluffs School the first weekend of August from 10 AM to 6 PM on Friday and from 10 AM to 5 PM on Saturday. Admission is free. Chilmark Road Race This series of 3-mile races for varying age groups takes place in mid-August. It benefits the Chilmark Community Center. The race starts at 10:30 AM and there is an entry fee of $10. In the Spirit Festival The In the Spirit Festival is a multicultural extravaganza that combines music, dance, food, and merrymaking. It takes place in early August; an admission fee is charged. Top Gun Marlin and Tuna Tournament You could possibly call this JAWS II since it follows the Monster Shark Tourney in July, but this one's for marlin and tuna. The goal of this mid-August event is quite simple: catch the biggest marlin or tuna and have fun while you try. Registration is $700 per boat for the tournament and that also gives you four tickets to the Awards Banquet dinner at Lola's afterwards. If you aren't participating but want to attend the awards banquet, tickets may be purchased for $65 per person. Agricultural Fair Tradition is the centerpiece of this grand, old-fashioned country fair. Pastoral West Tisbury is the perfect setting, complete with cotton candy and pie contests. In the old dairy barn you'll find agricultural exhibits featuring fruits, vegetables, arts and crafts--all judged. In the livestock barn, different farm critters are judged daily throughout the four days. The fair takes place the third week in August on Thursday, Friday, Saturday, and Sunday. Admission is $5 for adults, $4 for seniors, and $3 for children 5 to 12 years old. There is a midway full of rides (bring extra money for each ride), a dog and horse show, ox pull, music, and food. This fair prompted Bonnie Raitt to write Stayed Too Long at the Fair. (She probably had too much cotton candy.) The Agriculture Fair is sponsored by the Martha's Vineyard Agricultural Society. Fireworks at Ocean Park by the Sea Be prepared to "ooh" and "aah" at this traditional end-of-summer fireworks show which takes place the third weekend of August. The event is free; bring along your own lawn chairs and blankets. Sponsored by the Oak Bluffs Firemen's Civic Association. Illumination Night As its name suggests, this annual event involves luminescence. Tradition abounds as each of the gingerbread houses of Oak Bluff's old Methodist campgrounds twinkles with Japanese lanterns and candles as they have each year for the past century. Illumination Night marks the end of yet another summer season and is a free event.
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Vineyard Artisans Festival Local artists display their work amidst West Tisbury's country setting. Sounds like a fun afternoon to us. It all takes place at the New Agricultural Hall the first weekend in September from 10 AM to 5 PM. The festival is free, but there is a $5 parking fee. Jazzfest The Union Chapel on Kennebec Avenue is the site of the Jazzfest. Some of the best jazz musicians in the country show up. Tickets average $15, and the event is held over Labor Day weekend. Vineyard Nursing Association
Annual Golf Tournament The 9-hole Mink Meadows golf course is the site of this annual tournament. It is held in mid-September from 8 AM to noon to benefit the Vineyard Nursing Association. Tivoli Day Festival Tivoli is a city in Italy, just northeast of Rome. Closer to home, the Tivoli used to be the old dance hall in Oak Bluffs. Today, Tivoli Day is a festival of music, arts, crafts, and food held from noon to sundown on Circuit Avenue. Admission is free. Martha's Vineyard Striped Bass and
Bluefish Derby This fishing tournament is a month-long competition with more than $100,000 in prizes for those who catch the largest bass, bluefish, bonito, and false albacore. Running from mid-September to mid-October, there are daily, weekly, and grand prizes awarded. The year, 2000, marks the 55th annual derby. The weigh station is at Oak Bluffs Harbor, although the Derby Headquarters can be reached by writing Box 2101, Edgartown, MA 02539. |
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Annual Crop Hunger March This 10-kilometer walk from Vineyard Haven to Oak Bluffs (and back) raises awareness and money for the problem of hunger. The event, sponsored by the Vineyard Committee on Hunger, Island Food Pantry, and the Martha's Vineyard Clergy Association, is usually held on the second Sunday of the month. Anyone can join in; participants are asked to be sponsored. Since 1991, each march has raised about $10,000. Columbus Day 5K Road Race The air is a little cooler for this 5K endurance race. The event usually draws a good field of runners and an enthusiastic crowd of onlookers. Registration is at the Wesley Hotel. Happy Haunting Weekend Ghosts and goblins and a devilishly good time come together in this traditional Halloween weekend, held closest to October 31 at the Colonial Inn. There is a pumpkin-carving contest, face painting, and trick or treating at participating stores. After dark all the pumpkins are illuminated. Spooky!
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Annual Martha's Vineyard Figure
Skating Club Open Competition Is there another Carol Heiss, Tenley Albright, or Peggy Fleming out there waiting to capture Olympic gold? Come find out for yourself at the Martha's Vineyard Arena in mid-November when the figure skating club open competition is held. Vineyard Artisans Festival This annual holiday festival is held on Thanksgiving weekend. Local artists display their work amidst West Tisbury's country setting (a reprise of the August show). This festival takes place at the New Agricultural Hall and admission is free, but there is a $5 parking fee. Tisbury's Come Home for the
Holidays From Thanksgiving through the First Night Celebrations, the town of Tisbury holds a variety of events. There are horse-and-buggy rides, chowder festivals, and performances at the Vineyard Playhouse. For a listing of all events, check the calendar section of either the Vineyard Gazette or Martha's Vineyard Times, or call the Chamber of Commerce at the above number. Most of the events are free, except for the performances.
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Annual Chowder Festival There's nothing like a good chowder (pronounced chow-dah) to keep you warm on a brisk December day. Your taste buds will be dancing as you sample the many delicious chowders made by area restaurants competing for the coveted title of "Best Chow-da on the Island." Held at The Tisbury Inn, the event raises money for the Red Stocking Fund, a charity that buys gifts for families in need. An Old-Fashioned Christmasin
Edgartown 'Tis the Christmas season in Edgartown and the old whaling port is celebrating in a big way. What a grand event, or rather, series of events, this is! This old-fashioned Christmas celebration, chock-full of fun and festivities, is held over three days, typically on the second weekend of the month. There's so much to do that you need three days to do it all. There are bah humbug walking tours, free trolley tours, festival of lights tours, hayrides, horse-and-buggy rides, musical events, and holiday concerts at the Old Whaling Church. There's a Christmas parade, and you can even have breakfast with Santa. An annual craft fair is held at the bedecked Victorian Inn. And of course, all the shops are open for business to cater to all your Christmas shopping needs, and many offer free eggnog and tea to get you warm and toasty as you walk the brick sidewalks of the perfect Christmas village. Many of the inns and hotels offer special rates for the weekend, but be
sure to call ahead for reservations. Christmas in Edgartown-- First Night Celebration The first First Night was held in 1994, and since
then it has become (many say) The
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Vineyard Gazette At 155 years old the Vineyard Gazette is one of the oldest papers in the country. It publishes twice a week from Memorial Day to Columbus Day (on Tuesday and Friday) and once a week throughout the winter (Fridays only). Martha's Vineyard Times The island's other newspaper, the Times, keeps you up to date on all the island happenings from Vineyard Haven to Edgartown and from East Chop to Aquinnah. Started in 1984, it is a weekly paper that comes out on Thursdays. It is free to residents and on sale at newsstands.
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WMVY Radio WMVY at 92.7 FM plays adult-oriented rock (AOR as they call it in radio station talk). You can hear local news and weather as well as entertainment, concert reports, and steamship sailing updates along with great music.
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Channel 8 This local station is owned by Adelphia Cable, 7 Merchant's Mart, State Road, Vineyard Haven, (508) 693-6644. Channel 8 offers a comprehensive high school sports schedule as well as other shows geared to the island. |
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