Swashbuckling pirates to swarm

The easternmost city in the U.S. will once again host the largest pirate festival in northern New England and the Canadian Maritimes. The festivities for the 14th annual Eastport Pirate Festival will be held on Friday, September 6, through Sunday, September 8. Pirates of all ages will descend upon the island in their favorite pirate garb to watch or take part in many events, and all festival-sponsored activities are free to the public.
"We will have most of our usual Saturday events, including the Suddy race, and there will be a lot of events aimed toward the youth," says Donald Dunbar of the Pirate Festival Committee.
What is hoped to be the first annual Pirate Rum Barrel Relay Race will be held at 2:30 p.m. on Saturday, September 7, and the rules will be similar to the Codfish Relay during Old Home Week. Every contestant will have to change in and out of clothing before handing the barrel off to a teammate. The winners will receive $200, second place, $100.
"Ravenbane's Firecraft will be back as performers and Maine's top rock group, Whoopy Kat, will be on stage before there are fireworks at the fish pier," reports Dunbar.
The Pirate Festival Committee is asking the public to park as far away from the fireworks as possible to accommodate the handicapped. "Please respect people who are handicapped who need to park downtown and park someone else," requests Dunbar.
"There will also be a lot of kids' events on Sunday [September 8] including the cannon ball roll and battle of the pirates in Bank Square," adds Dunbar. "The last event will be the Lobster Crate Race at the breakwater."

Friday, September 6
Best dressed home and business/window/employee entrants are asked to call David at 458-3185 to have their house or business judged. There will be a senior center pirate lunch at 12 noon; a pirate party at the Eastport Memorial Nursing Home at 12:30 p.m.; a performance by Rockin' Ron at the elementary school at 1:30 p.m.; and the Longshanks will perform stories for children from 4 to 4:30 p.m.
A Lee Southard concert will begin at 4 p.m. Shank Painters will perform at 5 p.m., and children will be able to meet Rockin' Ron "the Friendly Pirate" from 6 to 7 p.m. in Bank Square. The pirate king and queen will be crowned downtown at 6:30 p.m. before the Shank Painters perform on stage at 7 p.m. The Ravenbane's Firecraft performance at 6:30 p.m. is geared specifically for children and families.
The Pirate Ball with Whoopy Kat will be held at the Eastport Chowder House from 9 p.m. until closing, and Ravenbane's Firecraft will perform again at 10 p.m.

Saturday, September 7
Events will begin at 7:30 a.m. with the Christ Church breakfast and 8 a.m. with registration for the 11th annual Suddy 5K Run/Walk and 1 Mile Fun Run. The race begins at 9 a.m.; a treasure hunt with pirates will begin at Bank Square at 10 a.m.; the Tides Institute & Museum of Art's (TIMA) exhibit "Mapping the Edge" will be open from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.; the silver doubloon scramble will be at 11 a.m. in front of the Breakwater Gallery; and the Kids and Youth Pirate Pageant starts at 11:30 a.m. at the Sutherland Amphitheater; Ross and Brandy Argir will perform at 12:15 p.m.; and the muster for the Pirate Parade is at 12:30 p.m. All are welcome to join in the Pirate Parade, which will begin in front of the schools at 1 p.m.; Ross and Brandy Argir will continue their performance at 2 p.m., which is also the time the St. Andrews Pipe and Drum Band will perform behind the library; Rockin' Ron will perform from 3 to 5 p.m. in Bank Square; and the first annual Pirate Rum Barrel Relay Race starts at 2:30 p.m.
Activities in Bank Square from 4 to 5 p.m. will include how to fight like a pirate, walk the plank and other children's games. One-man band Lee Southard will perform from 4 p.m. until the fireworks; Ravenbane's Firecraft will perform again at 4 p.m at the Sutherland Amphitheater; the street dance featuring Whoopy Kat will be held from 5:15 to 7:15 p.m.; another Longshanks storytime will take place at 6:30 p.m. in front of the Eastern Maine Images Gallery, followed by Rockin' Ron "the Friendly Pirate" at 6:30 p.m. Captain Jay Tucci will conduct a book-signing from 6 to 8 p.m. in Bank Square; and the Kids Rainspout Pirate Ship Race will begin at 6:30 p.m. Fantastic fire from Ravenbane's Firecraft will begin at Sutherland Amphitheater at 7:30 p.m. The fireworks display at the fish pier will begin at 8:15 p.m., and the street dance will continue with Whoopy Kat until 10:30 p.m.

Sunday, September 8
Sunday's events begin with an opportunity for children to get their pirate name from Captain Jack Sparrow at 10 a.m. in Bank Square, which is where Rockin' Ron "the Friendly Pirate" will perform from 10 to 11 a.m; a treasure hunt with pirates will begin at 10 a.m. at the pirate encampment in Bank Square; the TIMA exhibit "Mapping the Edge" can be viewed from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.; and the Kids Rainspout Pirate Ship Race starts at 11 a.m. in Bank Square. The one-man band Lee Southard will perform from 12 noon until 3 p.m., and that will be followed on Boynton Street by the cannon ball fundraiser for the Shead girls' basketball team. The winner of the Pirate Poster Contest will be announced by Captain Jack Sparrow in front of The Commons at 12:30 p.m., followed at 1 p.m. by "Prepare For Battle" cutlass lessons on stage for children ages four and up. The March of the Pirates to Bank Square to battle the pirates at their encampment begins at 1:30 p.m., and the battle at Bank Square begins at 1:45 p.m., followed by an "After the Mayhem" pirate gathering from 2 to 2:30 p.m. at Bank Square, where youngsters can get a pirate tattoo or balloon and interact with the pirates to get their pirate name. Ravenbane will perform at 2:30 p.m. on the breakwater, and that will be where the final event of the weekend, the Lobster Crate Race, will begin at 3 p.m.