Cancellations and postponements: The fate of Myrtle Beach’s annual festivals and events
The Myrtle Beach area is losing some of its annual festivals and events to the coronavirus pandemic, while other events are being postponed as their organizers hope to hold them later this year.
Joining already canceled events including the St. Patrick’s Day Parade in North Myrtle Beach and the Hootie & the Blowfish Monday After the Masters Celebrity Pro-Am, the Sun Fun Festival is another casualty of COVID-19.
The festival that annually marks the beginning of the Grand Strand summer season was scheduled for May 29-31 at Plyler Park in Myrtle Beach but has been canceled, according to a Facebook post. Music, entertainment and activities were planned.
The Sun Fun Festival was first held in 1951 and was celebrated each year until 2011, then was rejuvenated in 2016 with the support of the Oceanfront Merchants Association and the Myrtle Beach Area Chamber of Commerce. The festival previously featured air shows, parades, beauty and bikini contests, dance contests and beach activities.
The Horry County Fair has been postponed indefinitely, but Myrtle Beach Speedway still intends to host the fair at a later date. It was initially scheduled for April 24-May 3, then was moved to May 1-10 before this second postponement.
Myrtle Beach Speedway is maintaining events scheduled beginning in early June, including its next scheduled event, the Southeast Pool & Spa trade show June 5-7. The popular Myrtle Beach Nationals Truck & Car Show (formerly Nopi Nationals) has two upcoming dates scheduled from June 12-14 and July 24-26, and the Monster Truck Beach Devastation is set for June 20-21.
S.C. Gov. Henry McMaster’s current COVID-19 restrictions include non-essential business closures and allowing authorities to disperse groups larger than three people at their discretion to combat the virus’ spread.
So event organizers will likely be hamstrung by government restrictions for some time to come, and have a lot of other considerations in attempting to hold their events as well.
“Everything between now and Labor Day is up in the air. There are just so many unknowns about it, there are a lot of variables,” said Steve Taylor, owner of NS Promotions, a division of Native Sons that has multiple festivals and events in the area that have been impacted by the coronavirus. “Nobody knows what the guidelines are going to be and if there are going to be government regulations that prohibit gatherings.
“Then you run into is it going to be a risk, and whether people are ready to go back into big crowds? The last thing being as an event planner or community are there liability issues? I don’t know if that’s in play but it’s something to think about.”
Here are other postponements, rescheduled events and uncertainty:
▪ The sixth annual Carolina Country Music Fest has been rescheduled from June 4-7 to Sept. 17-20, when it will feature Luke Combs, Eric Church, Darius Rucker, Jake Owen and Ashley McBryde.
▪ The 81st Harley-Davidson Myrtle Beach Bike Week rally has been postponed from May 8-17 to July 13-19.
▪ Atlantic Beach Bikefest, also known as Black Bike Week, has been postponed from Memorial Day weekend to Labor Day weekend.
▪ The World Famous Little River Crab Festival scheduled for May 16-17 has been postponed and will be combined with the Little River Shrimpfest on Oct. 10-11.
▪ The 15th annual Myrtle Beach International Film Festival was scheduled for April 21-25 and organizers say it will take place later this year after movie theaters reopen.
▪ Conway Riverfest is scheduled for June 27 but the Conway Chamber of Commerce, which operates the event, is analyzing the feasibility of the date, is holding off on accepting vendor applications and expects to make an announcement soon.
▪ The Myrtle Beach Food Truck Festival has been rescheduled from April 3-5 to Oct. 30-31 on Ocean Boulevard.
▪ The 10th annual Irish Fest has been rescheduled from March 14 to June 13 at Grand Park in The Market Common, but organizers expect to have to reschedule it again.
▪ The 12th annual Ground Zero Dragon Boat Festival has been rescheduled from April 25 to Aug. 22 at Grand Park in The Market Common.
▪ The 32nd Pee Dee Streetrodders’ Run To The Sun Car and Truck Show has been rescheduled from March 19-21 to Sept. 24-26 at the former Myrtle Square Mall site.
▪ Pooch-A-Mania has been moved to Oct. 4 at Grand Park in The Market Common.
▪ The spring Art in the Park has been rescheduled from April 25-26 to Aug. 22-23 at Valor Park in The Market Common, where later Art in the Park events are scheduled Oct. 10-11 and Nov. 14-15.
▪ Myrtle Beach Jeep Jam has been rescheduled from April 30-May 2 to Oct. 23-25 at the former Myrtle Square Mall site.
▪ Coastal Highland Games have been rescheduled from April to Nov. 14 at the Grande Dunes Marina Park.
▪ NS Promotions’ running events the Brookgreen Gardens 5K on May 24 and Independence Day 5K on July 4 are on schedule but the company is considering its options on both the format and dates of the races.
Events later in the year that aren’t yet impacted by the coronavirus include the Aynor Harvest Hoe-Down on Sept. 19, Harley-Davidson fall rally from Sept. 28-Oct. 4, Myrtle Beach Oktoberfest on Oct. 9-10 at Market Common, Loris Bog-Off on Oct. 17, and the Myrtle Beach Mini-Marathon on Oct. 18 with a finish on the Myrtle Beach Boardwalk.
“September and October are already heavy event months, so there will be double and triple events being held at the same time,” said North Myrtle Beach Parks & Recreation Department event and program director Tina McCrackin.
Her department has a few concert series that it has yet to alter as it awaits decisions by government officials.
The Music On Main free weekly Thursday concert series is scheduled from May 14 through September, the Sounds of Summer monthly series is from May 15 to mid-September at the North Myrtle Beach Park and Sports Complex Amphitheater, and Pops in the Park featuring the North Myrtle Beach Community Band is May 30 at the amphitheater. Monthly Movies at McLean in NMB is scheduled to begin June 12.
“As an event organizer, everything is going to change,” McCrackin said. “It’s definitely a challenge.”
This story was originally published April 16, 2020 at 12:26 PM.
