Oakdale Fun Days took place this past weekend, on the 15th and 16th of July, at the Oakdale Community Park, which is located just off highways 12 and 16, with an official address of 232 Ballpark Avenue. Put on by the Oakdale Fire Department, which is headquartered at the park, the event has been held annually, for 29 years, and is aimed at supplementing the budget of the department.
At the two-day celebration, there was a 5k and 10k run that was held on Saturday morning, which had 43 entries in the walk/run event. Later in the day, the ten-teams-of-two that had entered the bean bag (cornhole) tournament, commenced their quest for bragging rights. There was also a softball tournament that lasted for the duration of the festival.
From the Top
Gary Granger, serving on the Oakdale Fire Department for 37 years and counting, reported to the Herald that the monies raised from the event go towards supplementing their budget, for the Fire Department. “The money we raise goes towards items that we feel would enhance our operations here, but that may not be covered in our main budget. Last year we purchased a Gear washing machine and a thermal imaging camera.”
On whom takes charge of making sure that Oakdale Fun Days happens, Granger said, “That name changes from year to year, as does the vice president and president. It is a group effort, regardless of who is overseeing the finite details of the event.”
Popular Paddling of Ducks
A popular game on the grounds, for both adults and kids, was the Duck Races. Set up mainly for amusement, the contest consists of two cow tanks – filled halfway with water, a large paddling of rubber ducks, hand-operated fire engine-red water pumps, and aqueducts. The ducks are placed into the ducts, and a person pumps the handle, drawing water through a small pipe that sits in the cow tank and into the aqueduct, which then forces the rubber ducks down a decline, into the opposing cow tank. The act of hilarity is then repeated back to the original cow tank. The aqua ducks in the aqueducts was a smash hit at the event.
The Storm and the Band
Music by the band, Sexy Grandpa’s Mixtape, out of Kendall, was scheduled for a 7 p.m. start on Saturday. At exactly 6:34 p.m. the first drops of an ominous weather event dropped onto the scene of Fun Days, sending a few attendees under the shelters, while the softball tournament continued.
By 6:42 p.m., the rain came down in a Noah’s Ark fashion, with winds gathering momentum and sending deluge-rain droplets into every direction imaginable. Water flooded the shelters, where everyone in attendance was now standing, huddled together, and bracing against the impromptu storm. For twenty minutes, it seemed as if tornadoes would not have been a surprise, as the chaos of the moment saw worried faces, with nowhere to run. With water now ankle deep in the shelter, and the extremely powerful wind whipping droplets into a dizzying spin, it just stopped, and rays of sunlight once again, spotlighted the event.
The band started drying their equipment, with help from family members and friends. It took a concerted effort, but by 7:24 p.m., Sexy Grandpa’s Mix Tape was belting out a STYX favorite, Fooling Yourself, followed by hits from the Eagles, Doobie Brothers and Bob Seger. Lead singer and keyboardist for the group, Ryan Howe, said “The best way to dry this grass is to come up and dance the water away!” It was an invitation the crowd was delighted to take Howe up on.
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