Wacky Saturday’s third time back on the Westlock calendar after a long on hiatus will hopefully be the best one yet.
“It’s getting better and better every year, so maybe this year we can blow them out of the water,” said town economic development and tourism co-ordinator Vivian Zittlaw.
New to the Saturday, June 1 event is a portable skateboard park slated to be set up in front of Drayden Insurance at the corner of Main Street and 104 Street, she said.
The skateboard park measures about 18 metres by six metres, and comes with helmets and skateboards for kids to try it out, Zittlaw said. The hope is the park will be one of the biggest draws of the day.
“Once the kids see that, they’ll be pretty excited about it,” she said.
FCSS executive director Jayme Baxter said another new event scheduled for this year is an expansion of the stilt-walking show that made its way up and down the streets last year.
“They are doing a workshop this year,” Baxter said. “They’re going to allow other people to try out the stilts. We had the stilt walkers last year and people really like them. So we thought this year we’d give people a try.”
Also planned for Wacky Saturday are two performances by children’s singer Mary Lambert.
Originally from Bracebridge, Ont., and now living in Alberta, Lambert is known for her energetic performances and for getting the audience involved in her shows. Lambert is scheduled to give a show at 1 p.m. and 3 p.m.
Zittlaw said one thing she is really excited about is a 2 p.m. conga line that will snake its way through the crowd, led by several town and Wacky Saturday mascots.
“With the mascots, you’re going to have all the little kids who are just going to want to chase you,” she said.
With organizers wanting to make this year’s event the biggest ever, sights have been set on attracting more people than ever before,” Baxter said.
In 2012, the event drew close to 3,000 people. The hope this year is to get 5,000 people to come out and walk the street.
But in order to achieve that goal, she said Mother Nature is going to have to lend a hand.
“The weather being great is what we’re hoping for,” Baxter said.
All in all, she said it’s a day to get out of the house and spend time with your family and your neighbours.
“There’s something for everyone, so come out and give it a try.”
