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Community Corner

Belmar's Annual Seafood Festival Overcomes Bad Weather

Bad weather couldn't stop the second day of Belmar's Annual Seafood Festival from being a huge success.

 

Bad weather couldn't stop the second day of Belmar's Annual Seafood Festival from being a huge success.

“I think this is a wonderful turn out, especially considering the weather,” said Diane Cornell who drove from the Trenton area with two of her friends.

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Cornell has been coming down to the festival for about ten years and always looks forward to seeing what the local restaurants have to offer. She says the weather didn't hinder her plans too much since there are three days of festivities to choose from.

The weather forecast wasn't a huge deterrence for first time festival goer Gale Sonnencat either. She came prepared with a umbrella large enough for her and her husband to enjoy the festival under, but didn't take into account all of the mud from last nights storm.

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“I would have worn sneakers if I knew”, Sonnencat said as she lifted up her sandals lightly covered in mud.

The mud is the only problem spectators and vendors had to point out about the festival. 

Ryan's Deli and Catering owner Jimmy Smith says working in the mud has even caused a few slips at his food stand.

“The weather is definitely working against us, but it's okay,” he said.

Even know rainstorms caused the Seaside Heights based business to forgo setting up shop on Friday, Smith says today's turn out is as good as the two previous years he has participated in the festival. 

“This is a well known festival. It's top natch,”said Smith.

The festivals popular reputation is what Debbie Jones says enticed her to set up her homemade soap stand at this years event for the first time. 

“We like the shore and we heard it's a good festival,” said Jones.

She even met a couple who came all the way from Maryland just for the festival when she came to set up early this morning.  

Jones attributes todays big crowd to people wanting to come down and support the shore.

She hopes tomorrow's turn out will be even more successful than todays.  

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