A fruitful event looks to get even sweeter as organizers aim to create a pit spit world record.
Blenheim Cherry Fest and Sidewalk Days are starting a little later this year, running from July 18 - 20.
The road closures start a little earlier, though, with sections of Talbot Street West, George Street, and Catherine Street in downtown Blenheim all shutting down at 6 p.m. Tuesday (July 16) until late Saturday night (July 20).
Organizer JP Huggins said the three-day event will include food, music, performances, and a couple of lip-smacking competitions.
Pit spit tryouts will be held Friday afternoon with the Canadian Pit Spit competition slated for Saturday morning at 11 a.m. The kid's contest and celebrity pit spit will also take place throughout the afternoon on Saturday. However, this year organizers are asking for non-competitors to take aim with their cherry pits.
"We're going for a Guinness World Record," said Huggins. "We're going for the most people simultaneously spitting cherry pits. There is no record currently, but Guinness says we have to have at least 250 people."
Another popular competition at the annual event is the pie-eating contest, which is scheduled for Friday night. Huggins said the contest is "a phenomenal thing to watch" and usually fills up with participants quickly.
In addition to some of the competitions, Huggins said there will be unique shopping opportunities for attendees to enjoy and midway rides.
"This year we're actually bringing back two rides -- I'm not going to say what they are, but they were huge favourites and they've been gone for years and we got them back this year," he said.
A full schedule of Cherry Fest's activities can be found on their Facebook page.
