WORTHINGTON -- Sailboards and surfers, singers and song. These are things one expects at the Windsurfing Regatta & Unvarnished Music Festival.
But there are also art projects for kids, a music workshop, a fun walk, a bike ride, art displays and plenty of fun activities.
For those up to the task, the Surf's Up 5-Mile Run begins at Chautauqua Park at 8 a.m. Saturday, with registration beginning at 7 a.m. For those who prefer a slower pace, the Y-Pals 5K Regatta Walk leaves from the same spot at 9 a.m., with registration beginning at 8 a.m. All registered participants get a T-shirt, and post-race beverages and food will be available in the park.
For those who prefer wheels over feet, the 2010 Regatta Bike Ride, with 15-, 30- or 50-mile routes, starts at Centennial Park, with registration from 8 to 9 a.m. The rides, regardless of route, begin at 9 a.m. Bike helmets are encouraged. The registration fee includes a T-shirt, lunch ticket, rest stops and support vehicles.
For more information about the bike ride, contact the Worthington Area Convention & Visitors Bureau, 372-2919. For the walk or run, contact the YMCA, 376-6197.
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Anyone who has ever felt the urge to bang a drum should make an appearance near the main stage on Sailboard Beach at noon Saturday for the free percussion workshop.
Marc Anderson, drummer for Boiled in Lead, and Mark O'Day, drummer for the Galactic Cowboy Orchestra, will lead participants in a hands-on discussion and demonstration of drumming techniques and rhythms from Northern Europe, the Middle East, the Caribbean and West Africa.
"We will demonstrate and talk about specific styles and what it is that gives them their character," Anderson explained. "We will also demonstrate how to think about and accomplish effective accompanying rhythms on hand drums."
Participants are encouraged to bring a drum if they have one, but drums and other percussion instruments will be available for those without their own. The workshop is appropriate for students from beginner to advanced.
"We will look at how to use hand drums to create drum set-like sounds, and if time permits, how to get some 'alternate grooves' on the drum set," Anderson stated.
When it comes to alternate grooves, adults and kids of all ages are invited to participate in the folk dancing lessons sponsored by the Comprehensive Arts Planning Program (CAPP).
"We decided at the last minute to try to get some visibility for our group and provide an opportunity for people to experience the arts in another way," said CAPP board member Jeanne Mammen. "We decided the regatta was a great place to start."
Andrew Ellingson, a Twin Cities teacher with a dance background, will do half-hour lessons at 1, 3, and 7 p.m. near the AOK arts tent.
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"The public is encouraged to join in, and not just kids," Mammen. "This is multigenerational. (Ellingson) will teach in a user-friendly way."
CAPP is a program established to support the arts in the community, and Mammen said dance is a subject that needs more emphasis in ISD 518.
"The Minnesota art standards recommend all students have dance experience," she stated.
The Worthington High School AOK (Art-Optimist-Kiwanis) Club will sponsor free arts and crafts activities in the AOK tent from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Saturday, with kids being given the opportunity to make Filipino parol, which are star-shaped lanterns. They can also decorate a hat, paint a hacky sack or a Japanese fan or make a music shaker. According to AOK advisor Gail Holinka, there will be a kazoo parade at the end of the day with the kids carrying stars, wearing their hat creations, fanning themselves and playing kazoos.
Holinka is still looking for a few teen or adult volunteers to help in the booth, so anyone interested should contact her at (507) 360-4619.
She is also looking for people of all ages to participate in a mural project on Sailboard Beach. Participants will be given a six-inch square masonite board and be asked to paint a design that will become a section of a large mural. The mural project, funded by a grant from Southwest Minnesota Arts & Humanities Council (SMAHC), will be created with the help of artists Nick and Nicole Fischer of South Dakota.
In between art projects, dancing lessons and various fun, festival guests should also take the opportunity to peruse the art vendors who set up booths for the Arts on the Shore Art Fair.
