New events headline eighth annual Red Fern festivalEthen HerringtonTNE writer

Ethen Herrington - The statue of Billy Colman stands in Norris Park. Billy is the main character from the book "Where the Red Fern Grows," the central theme for the festival.

April 25 will mark the eighth annual Red Fern festival in Tahlequah. It will begin at noon on Friday and last until late Saturday evening. The festival is based around the book and movie ‘Where the Red Fern Grows.’ It is one of the largest festivals of the year for the city of Tahlequah and is expected to draw a weekend crowd around10,000 people. There will be food vendors and arts and crafts vendors around Norris Park, but this year, the festival is expanding its bounds to accommodate crowds and broaden its reach in the community."We've stretched the festival down Water Street to connect Norris Park and the Cherokee Capitol Square," said Drew Haley, program director of Tahlequah Main Street Association.The extension will also include vendors lining Cherokee Capitol Square as well as local businesses having special booths set up outside to promote sales and the festival. The festival will have a variety of games for children to play. The games are created with an influence in mind that involves the main character of the book, a boy named Billy Coleman."We think what kind of games would Billy play and our games are reflective of that," said Kate Kelly, tourism director of Tahlequah Chamber of Commerce.Some of the games include sack races, tug of war, turtle races and a very popular crawdad-catching hole. There will also be inflatable toys and a petting zoo that is a new addition to the festival this year. The petting zoo will be located behind the Chamber of Commerce on the east side of the creek that runs through Sequoyah Park. The petting zoo

will also feature a new visitor."There will be camel rides and a kangaroo," said Haley.The traffic is always a concern during the event, so another new feature this year will be the addition of a trolley service. A trolley will run Saturday from Muskogee Ave. to Choctaw Street to the NSU circle drive near Beta field. The festival will start with a traditional cake walk on Friday evening, followed by live music at 6 p.m. Saturday will feature a car show, hound dog field trials, a barbecue and chili cook off and live-themed music to go along with the vendors and children games. The cook off will feature $7 tasting kits for visitors, and that will also include a vote on the best BBQ and chili."It's a good family atmosphere," said David Moore, director of the Tahlequah chamber of commerce. "It brings back a simpler time with a lot of good food and good music."The music is also going to be different this year. The music on Saturday will be a tribute band that is meant to set the environmental tone for a time associated with the book."The music Saturday night is something a little different than we've ever done," said Kelly. "It's a Hank Williams tribute show called Hankering for Hank.”The Red Fern Festival will also kick off Movies in the Park for Norris Park on Friday night with the first movie being ‘Where the Red Fern Grows.’For more information, email herringe@nsuok.edu