2012 South Carolina Peach Festival

by

S.Crawford

The South Carolina Peach Festival is a popular regional event held during the peak of the state’s peach season. The town of Gaffney, in the Upstate region, is considered the peach capital of the state and has hosted the festival since 1976. The 2012 event is scheduled for July 12-28.

The Peach Festival kicks off at 9am on July 12. The first event is the much anticipated Dessert Contest, whose entries will all be scrumptious peach-themed desserts. A dog show will follow in the afternoon, and a Talent Night is scheduled in the evening at Limestone College’s Fullerton Auditorium. The main weekend of the festival is July 13-14. A golf tournament is scheduled for July 13 at Cherokee National Golf Club, a private club in Gaffney. The ‘Wing Ding’ Barbecue Cookoff will take place the evening of July 13. This contest has been chosen as a SC Barbecue Association World Food qualifying event. The winner will receive an invitation to compete against 100 teams in Las Vegas in November for a $50,000 prize. Attendees can purchase tickets to sample and judge the entries for the People’s Choice BBQ Award. The Peach Festival Road Races are scheduled for July 14. The 5K Walk, 5K Run, and 10K Run will begin at 7:30 am, and the Kids Run starts at 9am. Prizes will be awarded in different age categories. The start and finish of the races will be the Limestone College gymnasium. Everyone will enjoy the Family Fun Fest in downtown Gaffney on July 13-14. Activities will include a parade, carnival rides and games, arts and crafts, car show, wrestling show, and corn hole tournament. There will be plenty of barbecue and other food to enjoy. Attendees will be treated to live music at Peach Beach on both days. Musical groups will include Pozitive Traxion, Scoot Pittman, Big Daddy Love, Zoo Food, Linda ‘Chocolate Thunder’ Rodney, and The Fantastic Shakers. All of these activities are free to the public. Other Peach Festival events include a Beauty Pageant on July 20. The venue is Limestone College. The Peach Jam concert on July 21 will feature country singer Colt Ford. The concert venue will be Lake Welchel. Tickets are $20 and are available through Ticket Alternative or the Cherokee County Chamber of Commerce. The final event of this year’s festivities will be the Mud Bog on July 28 at Lake Welchel. This popular sport is mud racing by 4-wheel drive vehicles. Several classes of trucks will compete for payouts. The South Carolina Peach Festival is a family friendly event. It has been chosen as one of the Top 20 Events in the Southeast.

S. Crawford is the Director of Sales at the Hampton Inn

Gaffney Hotel

. The Hampton Inn Gaffney Hotel offers a welcome place to rest when you’re on the road. This Gaffney hotel is conveniently located off I-85 next to Hamrick’s Department Store and Premium Outlets Gaffney. This property offers a full range of services and amenities to make your stay exceptional.

For more information visit: http://www.HAMPTONINNGAFFNEY.COM

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2012 South Carolina Peach Festival