Unlike past years, the participants and spectators at this Saturday’s North Carolina Holiday Flotilla boat parade will wait until Sunday to know which boats took home awards.
To boost attendance at Sunday’s award breakfast at the Blockade Runner Beach Resort, flotilla officials will wait until then to announce this year’s winners. In prior years, the winners were announced shortly after the parade ended.
Meanwhile, event organizers are looking to add more boats to a lineup that on Tuesday had 16 entrants. Boat parade committee chairman Jimmy Gilleece was encouraging more boats to enter, emphasizing the wide range of awards available, as well as the experience the parade offers.
“You don’t have to spend $1,000 on lights to have a chance to win,” he said. “You’ll never forget it. When you turn the corner at Motts Channel and see the huge crowds, it’s one of the most exciting things in the world. It’s one of the largest attractions in the Southeast.”
Gilleece believes there will be at least four more entrants and said there will be more sailboats in this year’s parade, with three entered so far. A $25 entry gets four tickets to the Friday captain’s party at the Blockade Runner and boats can be entered as late as Friday, he said.
The boat parade, judged by five observers at the resort hotel, offers a $5,000 prize for best in show. Boats can also be honored by the spectators through text-message voting, by texting the boat number to 24587, including the Crowd Favorite award or the People’s Choice award, which accepts an unlimited number of votes. Those awards pay $1,500, while the awards for different boat classes pay $750.
Once again, the boat parade will be followed by a fireworks show. From 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Saturday, visitors can enjoy local arts, crafts and food vendors during the Day in the Park festivities at Wrightsville Beach Park.
On Friday, Wrightsville Beach will light its Christmas Tree at the Park, which starts at 5:30 p.m. with a musical performance by Elf Patrol and the arrival of Santa Claus at 5:45 p.m.
On Saturday, the Heide Trask Drawbridge will be raised at 6 p.m. in advance of the flotilla parade, though available parking will likely be filled before then, town officials said. The town warned that cars parking in Harbor Island neighborhoods could be ticketed or towed, with signs being posted at North and South Channel drives, Island Drive, Shore Drive, Point Place, Live Oak Drive, Lindy Lane, Jasmine Place east of Live Oak Drive and Myrtle Court.
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