Paddleboats, ice cream offer cool end to Batavia Windmill City Festival
The Batavia Windmill City Festival provided a weekend packed with activities, as visitors dove headfirst into an ice cream eating contest and feet-first into the Fox River on the Batavia Park District's new paddle boats.
In response to public demand, this year's festival extended its run by one day, to include Sunday. The additional day gave organizers the opportunity to spread out the weekend's activities and launch of the new Batavia Riverwalk Paddleboats. During the weekend, festival visitors could rent the paddleboats for a discounted price of $5 per boat. The rental price will now return to $10 per boat for the rest of the summer.
According to event organizers, the plan for an extended festival worked, drawing in more people than ever before.
"We've been pleasantly surprised by the crowds ... This weekend we had the best attendance we've ever had for a Friday, approximately 5,000 people were here," said Allison Sohr, the park district's director of marketing.
This is nothing but good news for the park district, whose goal is to offer as many free and reduced price activities as they can this summer. The Windmill City Festival, which charges no admission, is one such activity.
The festival also helped raise money for the Batavia Parks Foundation through activities like the "Get Your Mind in the Gutter" ice cream eating contest, held Sunday. There was no charge to enter the contest but the park district asked participants to make donations to the foundation, which will use the proceeds to enhance the city's green space.
The contest is the brainchild of Craig Foltos, owner of Foltos Tonsorial Parlor on East Wilson Street in downtown Batavia. Children eagerly lined up in front of one of the two gutters donated to the contest to see who could gobble up two scoops of Batavia Creamery's "Superman" ice cream the fastest.
"Kids like to break rules and this contest allows them to do that. Kids love this, parents love this, and you can never have too many smiles," Foltos said.
William Pawlicki, 9, of Batavia agrees. While his favorite ice cream flavor is cookie dough he had no qualms about diving face first into the blue, white and pink "Superman" ice cream.
"I liked getting messy. Mom doesn't let me eat like this," Pawlicki said as he wiped blue ice cream from his face.