"People look forward to this every year," Waverly Mayor Kyle McDuffee stated. It gets the kids excited, he said, which is what it’s all about. McDuffee added that it’s good for the village and vendors as it gives them recognition. It’s "free entertainment," he stated.

Bellinger said that they had between 10,000 and 15,000 people throughout the day, adding that in the past they had gotten between 20,000 and 30,000 people. He did mention that they had fewer cars than last year due to the price of fuel. McDuffee said that they "still get the crowds."

Fan Fair history

Waverly resident Ron Keene began the Racing Fan Fair almost 20 years ago at his auto sales on Broad Street where J.M. Auto Sales is now. The first one was on the lot, Keene said, with five different units. "I wanted to see the interest," he explained.

Shortly after the Fan Fair exploded into a three-day event. It would begin on a Sunday picnic in Muldoon Park, Keene said. He said a lot of the veteran racers would come to the picnic who hadn’t seen each other in years. "It was a great time," Keene said. "It was great to see them mingle."

Keene also mentioned that he would try to get the local "Bodine Boys" — Jeff, Todd and Brett — to come but couldn’t because of scheduling conflicts. He did say that Todd Bodine came once and that their parents came every year. "They (the Bodine boys’ parents) couldn’t believe it," Keene said. The Fan Fair eventually merged into a two-day event and finally into the one-day celebration it is today.

"It brings a big smile to my face," Keene said of the Fan Fair today. "People come from miles around," he said. "A couple people I talked to came from Johnson City. This brings people into the community that have never been here before," Keene explained, saying businesses in Waverly may not see the payoff right away, but later, after the Fan Fair, when some Fan Fair visitors come back.

Keene said that every year they like to bring in different things so that it’s not the same year after year. For this year, Keene said four racing tires would be given away to a car or kart that was on display at the Fan Fair.

Cars, vendors, activities

There were dozens of cars on display at the Fan Fair, from race cars and pace cars, to go-karts and off-road buggies. Many of the cars had their drivers and teams with them, along with the trophies they had won.

Besides racing cars from near and far, there were several food vendors and raffles. The Salvation Army and the Rail House on Broad Street were just a couple of the many food vendors while the local American Red Cross Chapter and the Southern Tier Microd Racing organization were raffling off a motorcycle and four-wheeler. There were also several vendors selling racing merchandise and memorabilia.

Local radio stations WATS/WAVR, 94 Rock and Wiggle were on hand. There was also a Kids’ Corner and inflatable rides for the kids as well. The National Guard was also present, with the National Guard racing car. They also had a push-up contest.

One big vendor who has been coming for 18 years was the Watkins Glen International Racing Only Twisted Tour. Ryan Boice of the Tour said members came down to promote the Glen while Mat Lotito, also of the Tour, said they like to show support to the communities neighboring Watkins Glen.

Boice said that they wanted to show support to the communities who have supported them for 60 years. Boice also said that it’s "really great" for the fan. He mentioned that the fans get to see the cars up close and get to hear them.

The Spalding Foundation was there as well. The Spalding Foundation is an organization that helps injured drivers, crewmen and track employees who are injured in a race-related incident, Board of Directors Betty Sherwood said.

She explained that the foundation, which has been around for 20 years, began when Rod Spalding of Troy was injured in an asphalt modified accident in 1988 in Rougemont, N.C. Sherwood said that they held a fundraiser for him to help pay for the physical therapy and other treatments.

She said they get a lot of their money through donations and fundraisers. "We’re not huge" Sherwood said, explaining that they give out $500 to $3,000 depending on the seriousness of the injury.

"We’ve been very successful," Sherwood said. They had been coming to the Fan Fair for many years, she explained, to get recognition and to raise some funds. This year they had a Chinese auction.

One Broad Street organization that really got into the celebration spirit was the Susquehanna River Archaeological Society. SRAC had a Chinese auction of its own, with more than 100 items. SRAC Executive Director Deb Twigg said that the center also cleared out the inside to have a farmer’s market vendor, jewelry vendors and an arts vendor, along with several artifacts on display. They also had a tent outside where vendors were cutting geodes and Sayre student Daran Carlin Weber was drawing caricatures for his senior project.

"We did this to get people in," Twigg said. "People pass by and don’t have a clue of what’s inside. This is a perfect opportunity to see what the SRAC and Waverly have to offer," she explained.

In fact, they were even handing out one free ticket per person for the Chinese auction just to get people to go inside. Twigg said many of the people were going inside and buying more tickets.

The items they had in the auction were donated, she said, with the proceeds going to the SRAC. "We have a lot of renovations," Twigg explained.

Chris Manning may be reached at (570) 888-9652; e-mail: reviewvalley@thedailyreview.com