Tupper Lake Field Day returns Saturday

by Dan McClelland

The Tupper Lake Field Day returns for a second year this Saturday, under the sponsorship of the Town of Tupper Lake and its hard-working recreation department team.

The event was created last year by Recreation Director Laura LaBarge to help boost July tourist visits in the wake of the departure of the Tupper Lake Woodsmen’s Day during COVID.

This year the town is partnering with the Adirondack chapter of Arc, which used to produce well-organized Rock the Arc events here for a number of summers. Together the two local entities are expected to produce a first-rate day of fun and excitement in the Tupper Lake Municipal Park.

The parade kicks off the two year old event at 11a.m. and will proceed from the town hall staging area to the park, after passing the judges’ stand.

The parade is again directed by the community’s very capable parade director, Amanda “Bird” Lizotte.

Admission to the Field Day this year is free, providing that event-goers bring with them a non-perishable food item for the Tupper Lake Food Pantry.

The Woodmen Life lodge here is organizing the food drive to benefit the pantry and its volunteers will be accepting the items at the park gates Saturday.

All day the park will be the place for fun and good old fashioned family entertainment.

Planned are a classic car show to peak the interest of teens and adults, a corn hole competition- all the passion for many these days-, an adult tug of war and a 500 Club raffle, plus plenty of food, beer and craft vendors.

For kids there’s all sorts of wonderful things to do that day.

There are youth field games planned- which were a hit last year.

Field game sign-ups will be available all day and parents of kids who want to participate will need to be present to sign participation waivers for their children. A slime run is expected to be wildly popular. It’s always more fun when slime runners wear white shirts.

There will be inflatable apparatus guaranteed to make the kids squeal with delight. In particular there will be a bouncy jousting court and a 24-foot long water slide- the remedy for coolness if the weather is warm. The weather forecast is only calling for a high that day of 70 degrees F., but as we all know, that’s likely to change and we could have another scorcher.

Kids and adults who tackle some of the wetter events are encouraged to bring with them a change of clothes.

Carnival games with prizes will be the focus of other vendors on site that day.

Just like last year, there’s be a dunk tank operated throughout the day to raise money for our emergency services agencies.

Director Laura notes this week that all potential dunkees must be over 18 years of age for insurance reasons.

The Field Day organizers this year have engaged 10 professional wood carvers, to keep the flavor of our lumbering heritage in full view. The carvers will be in the park as early as Friday and each one is expected to create at least two pieces. They will all be auctioned off about 5:30p.m. Saturday.

From late afternoon through the evening the park will rock with live music.

At 4p.m. Tupper Lake rockers, Junction Jam, will begin the music show, following by Atom Ghost at 5:30p.m.

Those two bands will musically warm up the park for the Field Day headliner this year- an AC/DC tribute band called “Bonfire,” from New York City and which organizers say always produces a good show in tribute to the popular AC/DC, which has many fans here.

Adirondack chapter Arc is helping the town with some of the band costs that day and will treat the community, as its major gift, to what is expected to be a great fireworks show at 10p.m.

So it’s fun all day long and evening for the entire family this Saturday at the Tupper Lake Municipal Park. Plan to be there for at least part of it!