|
||||||||||
OGALLALA (1997): In days gone by, the phrase "Go fly a kite" could have led to a fight. However, on the sunny, sandy beach at Lake McConaughy on Saturday, July 26, those words would have led to a fun-filled afternoon with fellow kite enthusiasts. The event was the eighth annual Kites and Castles, sponsored by the Ogallala Chamber of Commerce and the Keith County News, held at Martin Bay on the shores of Big Mac. According to event organizer, Bob Josjor, there were 153 registered attendants from 39 cities and six states. Kite flying was not the only thing on the agenda for the day. There was also a sandcastle building contest, or in this case, sand sculpting, which attracted 62 registered participants from 18 cities and four states. |
||||||||||
| Mark Carlton and Bryan O'Donnell of Ogallala won the open division of the sculpting contest with their work titled "God and Country." They had rendered the faces from Mt. Rushmore and Jesus on the cross. |  |
|||||||||
 |
In the 13-15 age group, Kate Jenson and Erin Nielson of Ogallala won with their sculpture of what is often on the mind of most teenagers, a Big Mac and fries. They said, "What could be better at Big Mac than a Big Mac." | |||||||||
| In the 12 and under
division, the winners were Elizabeth and Katherine Armstrong and Robert Ruhlman, all of
Ogallala, with a depiction of a tulip. The morning was filled with some kite-flying frustration at the lack of wind--an amazing thought in this part of Nebraska. In the afternoon, the advent of a wind off the shore sent the kites into the sky. In addition to the light-weight, winged stunt kites, there were rokkaku kites--a Japanese fighting kite--box kites, delta-conynes, regular deltas, a parafoil, dragon kites with their long tails, and an assortment of various sizes, shapes, and colors. There was even an arch of 45 red, white and blue kites created by Gregg Loghry of Benkelman, Nebraska. The arch is a series of 18-inch high kites sewn side-by-side to a single line. Each end of the line is then tied to stakes in the ground and when the wind comes up, so does the arch. |
||||||||||
| Just as there was a sculpture judging, there was a kite construction contest. In this contest, each of the entrants had to have made the entry. No store-bought kites here. In the masters division, Dan Proebstal of Colorado Springs, Colorado won with his unique creation of a cellular, or umbrella, kite. It is called cellular because each of the panels can be replaced and, with the removal of a few pieces of hardware, the entire kite folds like an umbrella. This particular kite is Dan's own invention. |  |
|||||||||
| In the amateur division,
Gregg Loghry won with his box kite entry consisting of the letters BOX on all sides. In
the kids division, Kenneth Whetstone of Benkelman won with his 17-kite arch entry. Young
Mr. Whetstone also won the drawing for the door prize of a six-foot high, star-shaped
beach kite. If you enjoy the outdoors, kites, or sand, this event is one that is not to be missed. The thought of spending the entire day on the beach at the lake, watching or flying the kites, seeing the sand sculptures, going for a cool swim, or just sitting in the shade makes for memories not soon to be forgotten. If you missed the 1997 version of Kites and Castles and it sounds like something you would want to do, mark the last Saturday in July of 1998 and we will see you at the beach. |
||||||||||
 "Visions" Owned by Dan Proebstal. Made by Gail Lindsy. |
 |
|||||||||
