At Danville’s Festival in the Park, cooking is serious business

By Bernard Baker

Published: May 16, 2008

A lot of prayers were being offered early Friday as Festival in the Park organizers watched brief showers and cloudy skies with dread.
They hope to have at least 30,000 people show up in Ballou Park this weekend for events ranging from Pigs in the Park to the Cheesecake Challenge, kids’ rides, music and the Southern Living cooking show.
On Friday morning, Bill McMann, organizer of Pigs in the Park, examined the ribs Dewey Matherly of Berry Hill Smokers had selected for the competition.
McMann pointed out that barometric pressure affects smoking meat — especially ribs. Bones can stick out of smoked ribs when a weather front passes through and raises the barometric pressure, he said.
“Please blow out of here. Please blow out of here,” McMann said, doing his best Charlton Heston impression as he willed the clouds to go away.
It was wiser to walk along the gravel and straw-covered paths to see what was going on before more vendors encroached on the park.
Some teams were setting up tents. Some were grabbing a quick bite to eat before getting down to business. There were still some teams that had not arrived yet.
At about 10:30 a.m., Charles Haynesworth, the head honcho of Pig Me, was preparing freshly smoked barbecue for some lunch guests.
Haynesworth has done well in Pigs in the Park competitions, but he said it’s time to focus more on having a good time than winning this year since there are a record number of entries in the contest — 54.
“If you come here to have fun, you’re a winner,” Haynesworth said, as team member Neil Spivey prepared pork shoulders for the grill.
The afternoon featured an assortment of art vendors and community groups, along with magic and kids’ rides that attracted hundreds of people.
At about 6:30 p.m., Taylor and Katie Parrish of Mr. Edd’s BBQ were preparing smoked chicken quesadilla for the Anything Butt competition. This event is an opportunity for chefs to create any dish they like, as long as it’s not on today’s menu for the Pigs in the Park competition.
Taylor Parrish seasoned chicken breasts with a mixture of Colby Jack Cheese, onions, jalapeno peppers and other secret ingredients to get the judge’s attention.
Later in the evening, Joe Pobal, a Community Emergency Response Team volunteer, talked to a family about last week’s fire at Dan River’s Long Mill property. He said CERT volunteers where there making sure firefighters didn’t get dehydrated while battling the blaze.
Betty Brower, another CERT volunteer, took several photos of the fire and said being visible was a good recruitment tool.
As the evening wound down at about 8 p.m., Washington D.C., firefighter Brett Sutor was putting the finishing touches on smoked baby lobster tail with back fin crabmeat. He said the trip to Danville was fine except for the two tires that blew out on the way down.
Sutor said everyone he’s met in Danville has been helpful, and that impressed him.
“It looks beautiful. I’m tickled to death,” Sutor said.
Contact Bernard Baker at or (434) 791-7986.

Saturday’s events at Festival in the Park
10 a.m. to noon — Danville City Middle and High School Instrumental Groups
11 a.m. — Chris Camp “The Whip Guy,” Section 3 (show repeats at 1:30 and 3:30 p.m.)
Noon to 12:30 p.m. — Tunstall Middle School BETA Club Shag Dancers
12:30 to 1 p.m. — Schoolfield Academy Chorus
1:30 to 2 p.m. — Kuumba African Dance Company
2 p.m. — Southern Living BBQ on Tour, section C
2 p.m. — Powerskates demo, Section 3
2:30 to 3:30 p.m. — WAKG/WBTM Rising Stars Winners
4 p.m. — Ricochet
6 p.m. — Confederate Railroad

(All events main stage unless noted otherwise)