Late-summer outings heat up to shift July into August
A wave of summer remains, but the clock is ticking toward autumn, before schools bells resume – Aug. 17 in Horry and Georgetown counties, and Aug. 29 in Brunswick County.
With August starting on Monday, the calendar for festivals and special events is getting back into gear after a post-Independence Day lull to lead into these dog days of summer.
Gilmore Shows’ 34th annual Craftsmen’s Summer Classic, at the Myrtle Beach Convention Center, and the NOPI (Number One Parts Inc.) Nationals Car Show, at Myrtle Beach Speedway, each open Friday for three days, and the 17th annual Guy Daniels Memorial Foundation Surfoff benefit takes the waves for two days of competition and family activities starting Saturday.
Carly Gilmore Cook, advertising/marketing director for her family’s Gilmore Enterprises Inc., based in Greensboro, said since the 2015 show last August, “hundreds of new exhibitor applications” came in, “and this means new, unique and original items.”
“The dynamic of this show is always changing,” she said. “Customers will recognize their favorites from previous years, as well as have the opportunity to meet and shop with new talent that this area has never seen before.”
Cook brought up Germain Ekamby making his debut at this show, with his product, MangoBeat, hand-carved speaker enclosures made of mango wood from eco-managed forests. Each object amplifies the sound of all mobile phones without using electricity, a battery, or any connections, Cook said, of “a unique gift that combines art, nature and technology in a decorative and useful way.”
Teresa Pennington, a colored pencil artist from Waynesville, in far-western North Carolina, will return to the Craftsmen’s Summer Classic for the first time since 1995, Cook said, noting that the artist “sets up a little desk in her booth and customers can marvel at her talent as she works on her next original” through these demonstrations.
“We know many beachgoers also enjoy visiting the North Carolina mountains,” Cook said, “which are almost always the subject or backdrop of her artwork. She has also been commissioned by the Biltmore Estate several times.”
Cook credited Grand Strand residents and visitors for the support to keep this show coming back, year after year, decade after decade.
“One of our highest compliments that we have received several times from customers,” Cook said, “is this: ‘We plan our annual trip to Myrtle Beach around your show dates.’ ”
Surfing for college scholarships
Mikey Pruitt, director of the Guy Daniels Memorial Foundation’s annual surf-off – in memory of Guy Daniels, a lifelong Surfside Beach resident who died in 1999 at age 19, also a College of Charleston student who spent his summers as a lifeguard in Surfside Beach and worked at a local surf shop – spoke of this event making waves in 17 years.
Surfoff proceeds have amounted to more than $100,000 in college scholarships shared by than 60 local students, Pruitt said. He counted about 120 competitors in 2015, with all ages, in male and female ranks. Registration at surfoff.com was slated to close Wednesday, but walk-ups might have entry, if space permits, he said.
With the addition of a first-ever pro-am division for 2016, planners hope to widen the radius to draw skilled participants, from as far as Virginia Beach down to northern Florida. Thanks to a collective largesse from donors, “$2,000 is up for grabs” in the pro-am, Pruitt said, breaking down the prizes for first through fourth places: $1,000, $500, $300 and $200.
“A lot of surf contests have that kind of format,” Pruitt said. “We’ve always wanted to try it and see. We expect more people to come from further distances.”
Contact Steve Palisin at 843-444-1764.
If you go
Indoors
▪ Gilmore Shows’ 34th annual Craftsmen’s Summer Classic, 10 a.m.-6 p.m. Friday-Saturday and 11 a.m.-5 p.m. Sunday, at Myrtle Beach Convention Center, at Oak Street and 21st Avenue North. $8 ages 13 and older, $1 ages 6-12, and free ages 5 and younger, plus admission’s good for all three days with free return pass available from show office. 336-282-5550 or www.craftshow.com.
▪ National Sculpture Society 83rd annual Awards Exhibition, Aug. 6-Oct. 30 at Brookgreen Gardens, on U.S. 17, between Murrells Inlet and Litchfield Beach, across from Huntington Beach State Park. Free with admission, which lasts seven days: $16 ages 13-64, $14 ages 65 and older, $8 ages 4-12, and free ages 3 and younger. 843-235-6000, 800-849-1931 or www.brookgreen.org; and nationalsculpture.org.
▪ 28th annual “South Carolina’s Largest Garage Sale,” 7 a.m.-2 p.m. Aug. 20 in Myrtle Beach Convention Center, at Oak Street and 21st Avenue North. Admission is free, and parking at the center is $5. 843-918-1235 or www.cityofmyrtlebeach.com/garagesale.html.
Outdoors
▪ NOPI (Number One Parts Inc.) Nationals Car Show, gates open 4 p.m. Friday and 11 a.m. Saturday-Sunday, at Myrtle Beach Speedway, 455 Hospitality Lane, off U.S. 501, near Tanger Outlets and Carolina Forest. Three-day pass for general admission $20 advance, $25 at gate, and free for active duty military; car entry fees vary. 843-236-0500 or www.myrtlebeachspeedway.com, and www.nopinationals.com.
▪ “Materfest: A Celebration of Brunswick County’s Tomato Production” (tops in North Carolina), 8 a.m.-2 p.m. Aug. 6 in Shallotte’s Mulberry Park, 123 Mulberry St., including watermelon roll at 10 a.m., mater toss 11:30, and entertainment by The Grass Needs Mowing at 10 a.m., Brunswick County Gatorettes 11 a.m., and Blackwater Rhythm & Blues Band noon-2 p.m. 910-253-2610 or brunswick.ces.ncsu.edu/.
▪ Tobacco Heritage Day – including demonstrations of grading tobacco, grinding grits, and blacksmithing – 9 a.m.-4 p.m. Aug. 6 at Horry County Museum’s L.W. Paul Living History Farm, 2279 Harris Shortcut Road, north of Conway, off U.S. 701. Farm open 9 a.m.-4 p.m. Tuesdays-Saturdays, and free (843-365-3596). Also inside museum, 805 Main St., Conway, lectures at 1 p.m.: “The History of Roots & Ethnic Music in South Carolina” with John Fowler on Aug. 13; and “Upper Cretaceous (Age of Dinosaurs) Vertebrate Fossils of the Pee Dee Region” with Don Kirkpatrick. Aug. 20. Museum open 9 a.m.-4 p.m. Tuesdays-Saturdays, and free (843-915-5320). www.horrycountymuseum.org.
▪ City of Myrtle Beach’s “Community Block Party,” 10 a.m.-2 p.m. Aug. 6 in field at Mount Olive African Methodist Episcopal Church, 1108 Carver St.; and day of special events on Aug. 13 inside Mary C. Canty Recreation Center, 971 Canal St, with “Larry Legend” Basketball Clinic, noon-2 p.m., for ages 8-17, with Larry Gadsen – free, but pre-registration required at 843-918-1475, or email docmoore@cityofmyrtlebeach.com – and game between Myrtle Beach Police Department Ballers vs. Canal Street Ballers Ballers, 3-5 p.m., and freestyle dance performance afterward, then Back to School Teen Celebration, 5:30-8 p.m., all free. 843-918-1465.
▪ At La Belle Amie Vineyard, 1120 St. Joseph Road, Little River, just west of North Myrtle Beach Middle School: “Whole Lotta Shakin’ Fest,” noon-6 p.m. Aug. 6; and “Summer Breeze Music Fest,” Aug. 20 – Each $8. Also, bring two canned/dry good items for food bank, for $3 off admission. 843-399-9463 or labelleamie.com.
▪ Myrtle Beach Car Club cruise-ins: Aug. 7 with Grand Strand Corvette Club’s fourth annual Open Car & Truck Show (grandstrandcorvettes.com), with registration 10 a.m.-1 p.m. for $20, judging noon-1:30 p.m., and awards 2:30 p.m., in benefit for Jason’s House, at Jud Kuhn Chevrolet, 3740 S.C. 9 E., Little River. Also, free cruise-ins, 11 a.m.-2 p.m.: Aug. 20 outside Precious Blood of Christ Catholic Church, 1633 Waverly Road, Pawleys Island; and Aug. 27 at Texas Road House, 3037 U.S. 17 Business, Murrells Inlet. 843-742-9802 or www.myrtlebeachcarclub.com.
▪ Town of Surfside Beach’s “Beach Luau,” 6-9 p.m. Aug. 8, with music by Latitude, by Surfside Beach Pier, 11 N. Ocean Blvd., at Surfside Drive. Free. 843-650-9548 or www.surfsidebeach.org.
Benefits – inside and out
▪ 17th annual Guy Daniels Memorial Foundation Surfoff, benefiting college scholarships and “Respect the Beach” campaign to keep beaches clean, 8 a.m. Saturday-Sunday at Atlantic Ocean, at 13th Avenue South in Surfside Beach, also with new pro-am division, with $2,000 in cash prizes. Free to see. Entry fee applies for walk-up registration, if space permits. 843-655-1434 or surfoff.com.
▪ Burgess Organization for the Advancement of Young People’s “Burgess Summerfest,” 11 a.m.-8 p.m. Saturday at Burgess Community Center, 10299 S.C. 707, including rock climbing walls, face painting, a petting zoo, and entertainment by Tru Sol. $15 ages 13 and older, $10 seniors and ages 6-12, and free ages 5 and younger. 843-957-5104, or email boaypevents@gmail.com.
▪ Third annual “BarkAid” – benefiting SC-CARES (S.C. Coastal Animal Rescue and Educational Sanctuary), based at 236 Abbeville Drive, off U.S. 701, north of Georgetown (843-546-7893 or www.sc-cares.org) – with haircuts by Patrick Lomantini or accompanying stylist, doing benefits in 70 cities across nation (www.barkaid.org), 10 a.m.-6 p.m. Aug. 4 at EA Sansbury Salon & Boutique, 70 Da Gullah Way, Pawleys Island, beside Indo restaurant and Surf The Earth. Dry cuts for minimum $20 donation; shampoo/cut option also available. Appointments at 843-235-9838.
▪ Autoimmune Metro Style Fashion Show – benefiting awareness for autoimmune diseases – Aug. 4-7 at Oceans Dunes Resort & Villas, 201 75th Ave N, Myrtle Beach, including, on Aug. 4 – Yoga class (Graves’ disease instructor presentation) 8 a.m., and “Water on the Runway” 4-5 p.m.; Aug. 5 – Candy Land Kids Fashion Show 6:30 p.m.; and Aug. 6 – Nutcracker Fashion Show, noon. Admission varies by event; tickets at www.eventbrite.com. 267-253-9238, sabreinc.org, or email kendrajamesproject@gmail.com.
▪ Clubs for Kids’ third annual “Back to School Rally” – benefiting students attending Horry County Schools’ nine Conway-area sites – noon-4 p.m. Aug. 13 at Smith-Jones Recreational Center, off U.S. 378 in Conway. Free. Donations of school supplies also sought. 843-855-3471, or email ebellamjr@gmail.com.
▪ Colt Ford, in customer appreciation concert by Jud Kuhn Chevrolet of Little River – with donations benefiting SOWW (Special Operations Wounded Warriors) of Myrtle Beach (www.sowwcharity.org) – 7 p.m. Aug. 14 at House of Blues, at Barefoot Landing, on U.S. 17 in North Myrtle Beach. Get free tickets, while available, at Jud Kuhn dealership, 3740 S.C. 9 E., Little River (843-399-4400 or www.judkuhnchevrolet.com), and The Gun Store and Indoor Firing Range, 3594 U.S. 701 S., south of Conway (843-397-4867 or www.scgunstore.com). coltford.com.
▪ “Bark in the Park” finale night by Myrtle Beach Pelicans – 2015 Carolina League Mills Cup champions and Class A-Advanced affiliate of Chicago Cubs – 7:05 p.m. Aug. 19 against Lynchburg (Va.) Hillcats (Cleveland Indians) at TicketReturn.com Field at Pelicans Ballpark, 1251 21st Ave. N., Myrtle Beach (Enter parking lot from Robert Grissom Parkway). Free admission for dogs with purchase of left-field bleacher seat: $9 advance or $11 game day, and $3 military discount available with ID at box office. 843-918-6000, 877-918-8499 (TIXX) or www.myrtlebeachpelicans.com. Also, 6-10 p.m., meet Simon, “spokesdog” for Coastal Waccamaw Stormwater Education Consortium – based at Coastal Carolina University in Conway – including pregame pet parade and meet-and-greet table during game, all part of effort for “poo-llution solution” to help increase awareness about importance of cleaning up pet waste, to prevent a common source of bacteria in local waterways (843-349-2839 or cwsec-sc.org).
▪ The Pet Doctor (based at 2321 Dick Pond Road (S.C 544), east of U.S. 17 Bypass, between Surfside Beach and Socastee) sixth annual Pet Pageant & Adopt-A-Thon – “Heroes & Rescues,” benefiting local pet shelters, 3-6 p.m. Aug. 20 at House of Blues, with entertainment by The Special Blend Experience, vote for favorite hero and rescue for 2017 calendar – see contestants at thepetdoctormb.com/blog/?cat=178. 843-650-1555.
This story was originally published July 28, 2016 at 10:00 AM with the headline "Late-summer outings heat up to shift July into August."