Photos by Patricia Schallert

by Patricia Schallert

On July 30th, the 150 anniversary of the Ventura Fair was celebrated by having The Taste of the Fair which is a beloved annual event that captures the essence of the Ventura Fair’s vibrant food scene. Local chefs, restaurants, and vendors came together to offer a smorgasbord of culinary delights that showcase the area’s rich flavors and unique cuisine. From delectable vegetable dishes to savory street corn and tacos and everything in between, the fair is a true feast for the senses.

Guests were able to sample an array of mouth-watering dishes, sip on refreshing beverages, and indulge in sweet treats that highlight Ventura’s agricultural bounty. The fair is not just about food; it’s a celebration of community, creativity, and passion for good eats. Live music fills the air, adding to the festive ambiance.

As the fair opens, families, foodies, and friends come together to enjoy a day of delicious food, lively entertainment, and warm hospitality. The Taste of Fair is not just an event – it’s an experience that showcases the best of Ventura’s culinary delights and leaves a lasting impression on all who attend.

With summer in full swing, visitors can now board an Island Packers vessel to experience cruises and specialty trips as part of the company’s full transportation schedule to the Channel Islands National Park, in addition to popular summer whale watching.

Here’s a preview of what’s planned for the warmer months ahead:

• Anacapa Shoreline Cruise: This 3.5-hour tour offers views of the rugged coastline, historic lighthouse, and arch rock. Highlights include sightings of sea lions, seals, island birds, and other potential marine life during the crossing.
  • Adults: $45
  • Seniors: $41
  • Children: $32
• Specialty Trips – Painted Cave and Prisoner’s Harbor, Santa Cruz Island: Enjoy direct service to this popular destination with a coastal tour culminating in an “in the island experience” at Painted Cave. The trip is followed by a landing ashore at Prisoners Harbor for a couple of hours to picnic, hike, snorkel, or lounge, with the option for a naturalist-led hike or self-guided exploration.
  • Adults: $86
  • Seniors: $79
  • Children: $60
• Cueva Valdez or Fry’s Harbor Day Trips: These trips feature shore access on The Nature Conservancy property on Santa Cruz Island via small boats, with possibly wet landings. Island Packers staff share the natural and human history of the area, with approximately two hours to picnic, hike, snorkel, or lounge.
  • Adults: $87
  • Seniors: $82
  • Children: $68
• Summer Whale Watching: The Santa Barbara Channel, newly designated as a Whale Heritage Area and one of only two in the United States, is renowned for its biodiversity and thriving marine ecosystem. Over the summer months, visitors can witness humpback, fin, or blue whales, and view resident groups of seals, sea lions, and dolphins, with occasional sightings of sharks, sunfish, or swordfish. A six-hour day spent on the ocean in the company of these creatures can be awe-inspiring and memorable.
  • Adults: $79
  • Seniors: $74
  • Children: $64

To learn more, visit IslandPackers.com.

Fun, Sun, Sand, and Supporting Rescue Dogs!

Mark Your Calendars for the 2024 CARL Pooch Parade!
Sunday, August 18, 2024
10 a.m. – 3 p.m. (Pacific Time)
Ventura Harbor Village, 1583 Spinnaker Drive, Ventura, CA 93001

Gather your family and furry best friends and head to beautiful Ventura for the 24th Annual Pooch Parade! Canine Adoption and Rescue League (CARL) will host the event on Sunday, August 18, from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. Join CARL and its adoptable rescue dogs for a day of fun in the sun at Ventura Harbor Village, 1583 Spinnaker Drive in Ventura. This year’s theme is “Fun, Sun, Sand, and Supporting Rescue Dogs!” Dress yourself and your pup in fun, beach-inspired attire to join the celebration!

Visit poochparade.org for updates and to sign up for the fundraising Pooch Parade walk. Interested in being a vendor or an event sponsor? Contact Sheila at [email protected].

Photo courtesy of The Throw Down Cornhole Festival

New features include a World Axe Throwing League Tournament and an Expansive Food Court

The Throwdown Cornhole Festival returns to beachside Ventura County Fairgrounds on August 23 – 25.  Celebrating its 14th year, the tournament draws the sport’s best players from the lower 48 plus Hawaii as well as teams from Canada, Mexico, England, Venezuela, and Sweden.  With 1,088 teams competing for over $350,000 in cash prizes The Throw Down Cornhole Festival has grown to be the world’s largest and most popular cornhole tournament.

Sponsored by local favorite Spencer Makenzie’s seafood restaurant, fans of this family-friendly sport, car enthusiasts, music lovers, and foodies will want to mark their calendars to descend upon the Ventura County Fairgrounds to watch masters of cornhole and send off summer in style.  This multi-day party features the west coast’s best food, drinks, retail vendors, and live music, as well as DJs spinning tunes throughout the tournament.

This year brings new features and events.  The World Axe Throwing League (WATL), and sponsor The Mighty Axe, have teamed up with The Throw Down to bring the SoCal ThrowCal tournament to the fairgrounds. A WATL Tier 1 Tournament, the three-day event attracts some of the top ‘throwers’ in the sport and includes thrilling-to-watch competitions in hatchet, big axe, and knife throwing categories.

Attendees are also invited to go on a culinary adventure at the new Throw Down Food Experience on Sunday.  With over 25 innovative food trucks and pop-up restaurants that are curated for variety and quality, there will be something to tempt everyone’s taste buds.

Now in its second year, a highlight of the festival is Saturday’s Throw Down Truck Show that showcases classic vehicles from the 1960’s through the 1980’s – with a special emphasis on vintage ‘square body’ body types including early Broncos, Jeeps, Scouts, Suburbans, Blazers and Chevrolet C10 pickups.  Car clubs from throughout California will be participating and prizes will be awarded in many categories.  Ventura-based Crown Classics will be bringing over 60 high-end cars, trucks and exotics that will be available for purchase.

As a growing sport with a worldwide following, Cornhole games are unique in that champion players as young as 6 years old will be seen playing against adults as skill in the game can be mastered at almost any age.  The sport and The Throw Down tournament have garnered the attention of ESPN Networks, which will be streaming live coverage on all three days, including the finals on Sunday.

For those who want to play cornhole just for fun, all festival attendees are invited to play for free on the open-to-the-public courts, in the midst of the excitement but without the high stakes.  Players can also join non-tournament cash blind draw games to try their luck.  A big hit with Throw Down enthusiasts is “Cornhole Trebuchet” where players buy tickets for the chance to launch giant bean bags 150 feet at an oversized cornhole board.  Accuracy at that distance is challenging, but the lucky winner takes the ‘pot’ which can add up to thousands of dollars.

For more information, visit https://thethrowdowncornholetournament.com/

Front L to R: Kei Glavovic, Skyler Chaffey, Jackson Wallace, Brett Stein–filling in for Sophia Flosi. Back Row L to R in the Coach boat: Brookelyn Roelling, Braedon Baum, Logan Nordahl. Image by Janie Tran.

by Janie Tran

Ventura Yacht Club, located in Ventura Harbor, is making history for the county by sending four of its sailors to the 2024 CFJ Nationals at Mission Bay Yacht Club in San Diego from July 25-28. Coached by VYC’s Waterfront Activities Manager Braedon Baum, a former student of VYC’s Youth Sailing Program, the four students, aged 14-18, will compete against the top 60 youth sailors in the CFJ class.

The Club Flying Junior, or “CFJ,” is a doublehanded racing dinghy extensively raced at both the youth and collegiate levels nationwide. This small boat is the backbone of many yacht clubs’ programs. VYC had a CFJ race team composed of half a dozen sailors in the early 2010s, but the team, along with other VYC teams, took a hiatus as its core sailors began to age out of the program. Under Coach Braedon, VYC reintroduced its traveling race teams to Ventura in 2022 and now hosts two dozen youth sailors in the Optimist (“Opti”) and CFJ classes.

The interest in attending CFJ Nationals was sparked earlier this month by 16-year-old Sophia Flosi, another student-turned-coach at VYC, who gathered a crew of students-turned-coaches like Jackson Wallace, and in another boat, Skyler Chaffey and Kei Glavovic. Practicing three days a week, with post-practice skirmishes built into the decades-old “Friday Night Races” hosted in Ventura Harbor, the four teenagers hope to make the most of this experience by taking all that they learn at practice and competition and passing it along to the next crop of youths joining the sailing ranks.

When asked about sailing, 14-year-old Jackson Wallace said he started the program at 10 years old with no desire for team sports. This program not only ignited his competitive spirit but also brought him immense joy and significantly built his confidence. Sailing has taught him to think on his feet and has fostered both his emotional and physical growth.

Representing more than Ventura Yacht Club, these teens help constitute the resurgence in the sport of competitive sailing, embody the Corinthian spirit of all sports, and symbolize all that Ventura County has to offer to youths.

Updates on their experience at Nationals and more information on VYC’s other programs can be found online at vycyouthsailing.org, on Instagram @vycyouthsailing, and on Facebook as Ventura Yacht Club Youth Sailing.