CARSTAIRS -- The first-ever Heritage Festival and Parade of Kilts, held Saturday in Carstairs, was a resounding success, according to organizers.
Marty Ratz, town councillor and organizing committee member, said they estimated between 1,000 and 1,500 people came out to see and hear the bands.
Ratz added that around 400 to 500 people lined the streets for the Parade of Kilts, which started off at the curling club and wound its way through downtown and back again.
"I thought it kicked off well," said Ratz. "I thought the parade went exceptionally well. It led off with the RCMP band and they did a very special thing at the cenotaph in Carstairs.
"They stopped and saluted. They started a new song as they marched away. They played Maple Leaf Forever. It was very touching. It was very fitting and very appropriate."
The event featured pipe bands from the RCMP, Calgary Police, Innisfail, Ogden, Cochrane and Red Deer.
"The performances all went well," he said. "The tug of war was won by the Uptown Gym crew. So the trophy stays in Carstairs."
Ratz said the pipe bands moved into the curling rink in the afternoon after a storm blew in.
"We finished the event inside the curling rink alternating between the dancers and the pipe bands," he said.
The festival ended with a mass band inside the rink with all the bands performing together.
"It seemed like everyone had a really good time," he said. "The feedback from people attending was great. We hope to see this next year. Many of the bands have already committed if we're going to hold this next year. I think it's a pretty good chance it'll happen."
Ratz said the committee is going to wait for a few weeks before bringing together all the stakeholders.
"We want to get more feedback about what went well and what maybe needs to change for next year," he said. "I think things went well enough that you can expect it to happen again next year."
The Heritage Festival also featured a kid zone, petting zoo, face painting, concessions featuring local cuisine, as well as a heavy athletics demonstration including caber toss.
