Written by Dale Silverman –
COULTERVILLE – New and exciting things are happening at this year’s CoyoteFest in historic Coulterville.
A fun filled 24+ hours begins at 5 p.m. on Friday evening on the Coulter Café’s patio. This new opening FUNdraising party will feature a BBQ menu, a super fun band and a number of micro-brews.
On Saturday, Sept. 22, at 10 a.m. sharp, the FUNdraising really gets howlin’. The parade down Historic Main Street will be led by Grand Marshal Les Weir. Adding some Hollywood pizzazz will be Honey Bee – a ’56 “Foose” Chevy Bel Air convertible which has recently appeared in the Billy Bob Thornton TV show “Goliath,” and will be making its big screen debut in “Backseat,” a Dick Cheney biographic drama debuting in theaters later this year.
Honey Bee, along with another Burbank housed classic – a ’69 “Matching Number Factory Stocker” Camaro – are entered in the car show with about 75 cars expected this year. The team accompanying this Hollywood duo will be giving away CD clips of the Foose Overhaulin’ episode as well as posters. The cars are on display until 2 p.m., with awards presented in front of the Hotel Jeffery at 2:30 p.m.
Meanwhile, action in Peddlers Alley and the Coulterville Park gets started just as soon as the parade is a wrap. The Mountain Fever Band, featuring Keith Keenom, Tom Phillips, Steve Leeper and Mike Naranjo will be entertaining folks on the Coulterville Park stage until 4 p.m.
Break times are filled with fun “stuff” with the Coyote Howl contests beginning at 12:45 p.m., with both Pups and Lone Coyotes howling their best at that time, and then Pup Packs followed by Adult/Mixed Packs take the stage about 2:30 p.m.
There will be pony rides, a petting zoo, a horseshoe contest, lots of food choices, beer gardens, art, handcrafted goods and other great merchandise both in the park and filling Peddlers Alley.
The UC Master Gardener booth “Friends of the Forest” will have activities for the kids and adults alike. If you have gardening and landscaping questions, are interested in upcoming Master Gardener training, or just want to have some forest fun, stop by and visit!
Sign-ups take place in the park for the Coyote Howl contest and the Horseshoe contest, which begins at 10:30 a.m., until the start of each contest.
But wait… the fun doesn’t end at 4 p.m.! Back at the Coulter Café patio, The Castoffs will be winding up for four more hours of great sounds and that great menu of BBQ, micro-brews and other good stuff will be available until 8 p.m. For those with energy left to burn, an After the After Party will take place at the local VFW.
The net proceeds of the CoyoteFest, including the Pre and After Parties at the Coulter Café, benefit the nonprofit Northern Mariposa County History Center. So come on over to Coulterville for a Howl of a Good Time. Ahhwooo!
FREE CoyoteFest Shuttle
To facilitate our expanded parking at the edges of town, a handsome red trolley will serve as this year’s CoyoteFest shuttle. Parking is available in a lot on Broadway (just before Cemetery Street, a block east of the park), the two Methodist church lots, the museum lot, the IOOF lot, and once the parade is over, the lot in front of the cemetery. The trolley will pickup and drop folks off at these spots as well as at the base of Main Street and at the park.
