‘What Royal City is all about’

ROYAL CITY — Royal City celebrated the sunny season with its annual Summerfest last weekend, and the event was by any measure a success.

“The feedback has been really great,” said Committee Chair Jill Larsen. “People loved the parade; it’s an election year, so that brings out more people. Our dancing horses were as popular as ever. I’m pretty sure we had around 75 horses this year.”

This year’s Summerfest featured a couple of new events, both geared toward younger attendees. The Royal Ranchers 4-H Club hosted goat tying, which actually involved untying a ribbon from the tail of a goat. A 4-H volunteer held the baby goat still so the smaller competitors could get a hold on the ribbon; for the older kids, a mama goat led them on a chase around the ring.

“We’re just trying to get kids interested in animals,” said Katie Gilbert, a 4-H mom who was helping the young volunteers. “We don’t actually have any goat people in our 4-H group, so this is kind of a new thing for us.”

Royal’s Got Talent was the other new addition this year, which Larsen said was popular. David Hernandez, whose band Los Vega headlined the entertainment later in the evening, served as MC, Larsen said.

“We had a lot of kids participate, and once the crowd saw what was going on, we had three people come from the crowd asking if they could do a song,” she said.

The crowd dancing at Los Vega’s performance later that evening was the biggest she had ever seen, Larson said.

The Summerfest car show drew about 64 competitors with prizes in eight categories, Larsen said. The show was renamed this year in honor of Dean Callahan, a Royal City community member and car enthusiast who passed away last year. Callahan’s grandson Austin Huss fabricated the trophies for the show and also entered the vehicle he had restored with his grandfather, said Callahan’s daughter Cindy Carter.

“That was the last project that my dad worked on prior to his passing,” Carter said. “It was about 95 percent completed, and Austin finished it.”

The vehicles were set up on the grass Friday evening: low riders, antiques, muscle cars and more. One was the 1972 Plymouth Road Runner owned by Sam Garza, with a stuffed Wile E. Coyote at the wheel. The car was just a shell when he bought it, Garza said.

“I was scared to the max because it was all pulled apart when we picked it up in Bremerton,” Garza said. “It was just the body; there was no dash, nothing. It was scary because most of the time when you pull it apart (yourself), you know how to put it back together. I didn’t know what to do.”

It took four years and the help of about 10 friends to restore the car, Garza said.

“A guy in Toppenish painted it or me about 14 years ago,” he said. “Everybody (did) a little piece. Some helped with the engine, some painted it, (some) guys helped me put on the grill in front; (another one) helped me with all the interior work … That’s why (the sign) says ‘Built by Sam Garza and friends.’”

The Almost 5K Run, described on the T-shirts as “close enough to count,” had more than 100 entries, Larsen said. 

“The first year I did it, I think we had 20 (entries),” said Summerfest Committee member Mackenzee Anderson, who coordinated the fun run. “And then every year it’s doubled.”

Club America Royal City held a 5-on-5 adult soccer tournament on Royal City’s new soccer field, leading up to the championship game Friday night, Larsen said. The winner was Deportivo Heavily.

Summerfest is almost entirely homegrown, Larsen said. Food and craft vendors are all local businesses, rather than vendors who make the rounds of fairs and festivals. The event started with a breakfast provided by the Royal Education Association. Dale Roth, whom Larsen described as “The Voice of Royal City,” served as DJ for both the car show and the parade. 

“It wouldn’t be possible without sponsors and volunteers who step up, a lot of them even at the last minute,” Larsen said. “I waved down (a local businessman) at 9 o’clock on Friday morning and said ‘Hey, can you bring your water truck out and water this empty lot? It’s a little dusty.’ And his guy was there 30 minutes later. It’s nice to know that they’ll show up when we need them. That’s just what Royal City is all about.”

    The Dancing Horses clip-clop their way down Camelia Street in the Summerfest Parade in Royal City Saturday.
  

    Mauricio Alamos, 7, tries his hand at wielding a fire hose with help from a Royal Slop Firefighter at Summerfest.
  

    Wile E Coyote is ready to run down some lunch in this 1972 Plymouth Roadrunner entered by Sam Garza in the Dean Callahan Car Show at Summerfest Friday.
  

    A runner prepares to cross the finish line in the Summerfest Almost 5K Run Friday.
  

    Dean Callahan’s final project, finished by his grandson Austin Huss, took center stage in the car show renamed for Callahan this year. Huss also fabricated the trophies for the show.