It was a bewildering event to witness – especially considering all the hoopla was about a race between twenty-five woolly worms.įor many people, the woolly worm races are the reason they attend the Woolly Worm Festival. When the race leader was overtaken by an opponent, the crowd erupted into a thunderous ovation. Live commentary echoed across the festival ground, drowning out the murmurs of a hundred conversations. Go!” Almost at once, thousands of spectators began clapping and cheering. There are no ATMs on festival grounds, but there are nearby ATMs in town.“On your mark.Doggie day care is available outside of the gates at the main entrance. Be patient - expect traffic jams getting into town!. There is ample parking, but the free parking is on a first come basis and other parking by organizations for $5-$20/car.Admission is $6 for adults, $4 for children 6-12, under 5 years old, free.Go Up To The Race Board: Get ready to race and good luck!.When your heat is called, go directly to the race board. Listen For Your Heat To Be Called: The races move along quickly.At the table, turn in your registration form, pay the $5 registration fee, and get a Heat Number. Visit The Registration Table: The registration table will be located near the large, raised platform where the races will be held.Obtain A Registration Form: The official woolly worm race registration forms will be available right at the entrance to the Woolly Worm Festival grounds.Name Your Woolly Worm: The name you give your woolly worm can reflect your aspirations of his (or her) performance.Get a Woolly Worm: If you don't have a woolly worm to bring, buy one at the festival for just a dollar. There will be many local 'breeders' on the festival grounds with an assortment of specially bred and trained worms.In addition to the races, enjoy live entertainment and 140 food and craft vendors with their handcrafted items. There is no other experience in life that can produce the absurd euphoria that comes from cheering for a caterpillar to climb a string! No person is more likely to have a winning worm than any other person. The darker black a segment is, the colder and snowier the corresponding week will be. The lighter brown a segment is, the milder that week of winter will be. The Woolly Bear caterpillar has 13 brown and black segments, said to correspond to the 13 weeks of winter. The Sunday races are for prestige, fun and a $500 prize. The winning worm on Saturday gets the $1,000 first prize that accompanies the prestige of having your worm used to pronounce the official winter forecast. Each heat consists of 25 worms and races continue all day until the grand final. The Woolly Worm races begin around 10 AM. They determine which one worm (out of 2,000!) will have the honor of predicting the severity of the coming winter and they make that worm earn the honor by winning heat after heat of hard-fought races up a three-foot length of string.įestival hours are Saturday 9 AM-5 PM and Sunday 9 AM-4 PM. Since 1978, the residents of this village at the foot of Beech Mountain have celebrated the coming of the snow season with the Woolly Worm Festival. The Woolly Worm Festival in Banner Elk (about 85 miles from Asheville) is held the third weekend of October. Race your woolly worm to help predict the winter forecast according to the worm's stripes.
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