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Wilmington Mountain Bike Festival

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The Wilmington Mountain Bike Festival is returning for its seventh year from Friday, Aug. 30 to Sunday, Sept. 1 at the Wilmington Recreation Park.

Music lovers dance to a band during the 2023 Northern Current event in Saranac Lake. (Enterprise photo — Aaron Marbone)

The festival is designed for mountain biking enthusiasts of all ages and skill levels. This year’s event will feature on-site camping, live music, local food and beverages, group trail rides, shuttles and a kids’ mountain bike race. With over 25 miles of single-track riding, participants can explore the natural beauty of the region while enjoying a variety of activities.

The festival features group trail rides throughout Wilmington, Lake Placid and Keene, including options for novice, intermediate and advanced riders, and specific rides for youth and women. Those wishing to take part can register at a discounted rate and view the complete event schedule at wilmingtonmtbfestival.com/registration. Participants may also purchase their festival admission tickets on-site.

The festival kicks off at the nearby Twisted Raven, formerly Pourman’s Taphouse, with a pig roast and Zero Gravity beer tasting. Bike festival participants and volunteers can enjoy special pricing by presenting their festival wristband, which is included in their registration packet.

Saturday’s entertainment features two bands performing live on the festival grounds. Spring Street will play from 4 to 7 p.m., followed by St. Vith from 7 to 10 p.m. Spring Street offers a distinctive mix of old and new rock, blues, and strong vocal harmonies, ensuring a diverse musical experience for attendees. St. Vith is an eclectic indie rock band based in the Finger Lakes region, bringing a unique blend of psychedelic jam, art rock and time-honored American styles. Attendees can enjoy lawn games and snacks from the Waffle Cabin in the afternoon, with Island Vybz and Two Jerks BBQ providing evening meals.

On Sunday, the festival activities move to BETA’s newest trail system, the East Branch Community Trails in Keene, a 15-minute drive from Wilmington. The East Branch trails offer a variety of options for riders of all abilities, including the featured Downriver trail with its berms, rollers and jumps. Participants can relax between laps in the large field at the trailhead, perfect for lawn chairs and games. The nearby Monday Tuesday Grill will be serving food and drinks.

A biker rides an obstacle at the Wilmington Mountain Bike Festival in 2019. (Provided photo — ROOST)

The Wilmington Mountain Bike Festival is a major fundraiser for the Barkeater Trails Alliance, with all proceeds supporting the maintenance and development of local trails. This community-driven event offers a unique opportunity to explore the region’s natural beauty while supporting a great cause.

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Dmitry’s Feast of the Peaks and Music Festival

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The first-ever Dmitry’s Feast of the Peaks and Music Festival — successor to the annual I Love BBQ and Music Festival will be held on Saturday, Aug. 31. It is a fundraiser for the Shipman Youth Center.

The event will be held at the North Elba Show Grounds and will include many of the barbecue festival favorites: food, music, woodsmen’s competitions and professional wrestling. Unlike the I Love BBQ event, however, there will not be competitive barbecue cooking as there was from 2006 to 2023 (the 2020 festival was canceled due to COVID).

Over the 17 years of existence, the I Love BBQ and Music Festival raised more than $350,000 for the youth center. The new event was named to honor the festival’s founder, USA Luge Marketing Manager and Shipman Youth Center Board of Directors President Dmitry Feld, who died in January at the age of 68.

For the feast part of the festival, there will be competition in the categories of ribs, wings and mac and cheese. Members of the public will be the judges. In those food divisions, visitors will be able to sample food from Redneck Bistro, Pickled Pig, Cambria Catering, Generations Tap and Grill, Wyatt’s Lake Placid, Eleanor’s Pasta Kitchen, Fat Kids BBQ, The Greeks and other restaurants. There will also be food trucks with menus including Polish and American items and ice cream.

All awards for Best of the Peaks and raffle drawings will be live streamed at 6:30 p.m. on the Shipman Youth Center Facebook page.

For the music part of the festival, USA Luge Sponsorship and Marketing Director Gordy Sheer, Jim Cushman, Peter Thompson and Jeremy Preston are signing up local performers.

Other family-friendly activities will include exhibitions by Paul Smith’s College woodsmen; face painting by Sue Delamarter; caricature art by Joe Ferris; cornhole; a bounce house and obstacle course; and a show by PAC Wrestling.

Gates will open at 10:30 a.m., followed by the anthems of the United States and Ukraine at 11. There will be no entry fee; those attending the one-day event are encouraged to make a donation at the gate in the name of the Shipman Youth Center.

One of the top fundraisers is the 50-50 raffle where ticket sales will be capped at 300 tickets at a price of $100 each. The grand prize is $10,000. Tickets can be purchased directly at www.shipmanyouthcenter.org. A grill raffle will also take place, provided by Coakley Home and Hardware.

The Shipman Youth Center is located on Cummings Road near the Lake Placid Middle/High School. It was named after Thomas Shipman, the Lake Placid Police Department’s first juvenile officer. After he died in 1995, community members raised money to construct the building to honor his legacy. The center — “created to provide a safe place for the kids of the community to mature in a stable environment while providing both direct and indirect guidance for youthful activities” — serves students from ages 10 to 18.

The entertainment schedule is as follows:

– 11:05-11:50 a.m. — Crosswinds Jam Band

– 12-12:45 p.m. — Pat Duffy

– 1-1:45 p.m. — Ursa and the Major Key

– 2-2:45 p.m. — Last Pages

– 3-3:45 p.m. — Sven Curth

– 4-5 p.m. — Larry Stone

– 5 p.m. — PAC Wrestling

– 6:30 p.m. — Awards ceremony

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Olympic Car Show

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The 42nd annual Olympic Car Show will return on Sunday, Sept. 1 to the Olympic Speedskating Oval.

The show, open from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m., supports the Lake Placid Ski Club children’s ski education programs. Judging will begin at noon.

The cars, trucks and motorcycles will remain on display for spectators viewing until the awards ceremony at 4 p.m. Car show plaques and Olympic style medals will be given to 25 cars selected by the Lake Placid Ski Club.

Three cash awards will be given to the best of show vehicles, as selected by the spectators; as well as best of show awards, as selected by the ski club and the participants.

This gives everyone a chance to vote for their favorites and all participants have a higher probability of winning one or more awards.

This show will feature more than 100 cars, trucks and motorcycles. There will be plenty of activities, such as muffler raps, piston toss and a DJ performance. The Moonlighters will again be performing during the show as a partial donation to help raise money for the ski club. A hamburger and hot dog barbecue will be provided by the Lake Placid Volunteer Fire Department as a fundraiser for safety equipment purchases.

Spectators admission is $5 per adult and $3 for children under 12. Dogs, skateboards and bicycles will not be allowed on the speedskating oval.

For more information, or to register a vehicle, visit the ski club’s website at www.lakeplacidskiclub.com.

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Northern Current

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Northern Current: A Community Music Festival is gearing up for it’s fifth season on Sunday, Sept. 1 in Saranac Lake. Held at Riverside Park on the shores of Lake Flower, the festival celebrates diverse musical genres and pulses with community spirit.

The headlining act will be the Nude Party, and other performances will include Bella’s Bartok, Lady Moon & The Eclipse, the New Planets, All Night Boogie Band, singer songwriter Asher Danzinger and Badenyah Drum & Dance.

Admission is free, making it accessible to everyone. Held rain or shine, it features a large tent to keep attendees dry in case of bad weather. The festival is a family-friendly event, with a kid zone featuring activities from Play ADK and Circus with Sammy.

Food vendors will include Origin Coffee, Kate Mountain Farm, Jam Dots, ADK Street Eats and Triple Green Jade Farm.

For more information, visit northerncurrentadk.org.

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Labor Day Celebration

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The annual AuSable Forks Labor Day Celebration starts with a parade starts at 1 p.m. in AuSable Forks, with more than 50 organizations from Essex and Clinton counties and the towns of Black Brook, Jay and Wilmington taking part in the event, which is being hosted by the town of Black Brook.

The celebration continues at River Park with music, food, vendors, fire truck rides, a quilt raffle, children’s activities and more from 3 to 8 p.m. Fireworks will be set off at 8:10 p.m. at the Grove, with the best viewing from River Park.