FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contact:
Elizabeth Evans
Cahoon
& Cross
Phone:
(757) 705-7153
Celebrating
All Things Potato at the N.C. Potato Festival,
May 16-18 in Elizabeth City, N.C.
(Elizabeth
City, N.C., April 23, 2014) – Extra festival days, an expanded midway, more great music
and plenty of spuds! The N.C. Potato Festival, May 16-18 along Elizabeth City’s
downtown waterfront, is bursting at the seams with a family-friendly event that
will please both your taste buds and your desire to have a good time.
What began as a simple tribute to the farmers
that tend the state’s major potato-growing areas along the Albemarle
Sound has grown to attract more than 27,000 celebrants annually
for a weekend full of festivities. This year, festival organizers even added an
extra day to the schedule to better accommodate all the activities—and the
visitors.
“Our
slogan, ‘Come and Stay All Day,’ is truer than ever this year,” said Cindy
Williams, a festival volunteer. “Arrive on Friday for the kick-off party, and
then spend Saturday and Sunday enjoying the food, live music, arts and crafts,
potato competitions and our new and improved midway with State Fair-quality
mechanical rides!”
After
festival-goers have whipped and twirled on the Typhoon, Super Shot and Orient
Express (plus more!), they can take in live music, performed on three festival
stages. Local entertainment is a hallmark of the festival, and homegrown bands
Out ‘n the Cold, Million Watt Sons and 40 East are scheduled to perform, in
addition to national recording artists Nantucket, Team Collective, Skinny Bag
of Sugar, plus The Fort Eustis TRADOC Band.
And
don’t forget the ‘taters. In addition to nibbling on home-cooked fries,
festival-goers can sample the results of the "Anything But Fries"
restaurant cook-off, watch the National Potato Peeling Contest competitors peel
through bushels of spuds, cheer on the "Little Miss Tater Tot
Pageant" contestants and shop and dine among arts/crafts and food vendors
lining the Main Street thoroughfare. Visitors can also see antique and
modern-day potato diggers and farm equipment in the festival’s featured tractor
show.
Mark your calendars and bring your appetite! It
will soon be all things potato—all weekend long in Elizabeth City.
The kick-off party is May 16 from 5
to 11 p.m., and festival runs May 17 from 10 a.m. to 11 p.m., and May 18 from 12
to 5 p.m. Perry Auto Group, Alliance Nissan, Biggs and McDonald’s are premier
sponsors of the event. For more information and a complete lineup of live
entertainment check the festival’s Facebook
page or visit www.ncpotatofestival.com.
About Elizabeth
City
Sidebar: Potatoes Are Good For You!
Did you know that …
·
The average
American eats 142 pounds of potatoes a year, or almost 365 potatoes per person?
That’s an average of a potato a day!
·
Contrary to the
common misconception, potatoes are not high in calories? One medium sized
potato contains 110 calories, while a one-cup serving of rice has 225 calories
and a cup of pasta has 155.
·
One serving of
potatoes provides 45 percent of the recommended daily value of Vitamin C? It’s
also an excellent source of potassium, with one potato providing 610 mg.
·
Potatoes should be
eaten with their peels on? A wealth of vitamins, minerals and fiber are found
in the peel. The peel also contains the flavonoid, quercitin, and chlorogenic
acid – antioxidants that may protect the body against certain types of cancers
and heart disease.
