by Bea Peterson
Hot, hot, hot! At 11:45 am Saturday, August 4, the temperature on the new clock and thermometer at the Trustco Bank on Main Street in Hoosick Falls read 101 degrees! With low attendance, the Hoosick Hometown all day events at the Hoosick Soccer Field stopped at 1:30 pm. [private]The scanty crowds during daytime hours Friday and Saturday at the Hometown Days event attested to weather too hot for people to be out. Fantastic bands played to only a handful of listeners. Carnival rides were at a standstill.
Things picked up a little bit when the sun went down.
The car show on Saturday brought more than 40 cars and pretty good attendance.
The show closed at 3 pm, and many of those folks scattered when it looked like rain was headed their way. There was no rain, however.
Chickens smoked away on the grills, creating even more heat for those cooking the dinners.
Non-for-profits had a hard time finding customers for their hot dogs, hamburgers, fried dough, lemonade or strawberry shortcake.
It wasn’t until about 7:30 pm Saturday that the crowd picked up. By then the temperatures were more comfortable.
Last year the event was spoiled by Hurricane Irene. This year it was the heat. Event organizers such as Jerry McAuliffe remain optimistic however. No decision has been made about next year at this point, though many ideas for improvements and greater participation by more groups are being discussed.
Those who did attend enjoyed the rides, the music and the food. And the fireworks at 10 Saturday night were terrific!
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