Stars: 4.6 out of 5.0
Pros: Plenty of space, Attractive Beer Choice, Excellent Exhibits, Quality Food, Music
Cons: Parking Entrance Confusion
When I heard there was going to be a Celtic festival in Richmond my inner Irishman hauled himself drunkenly up onto his wobbly potato fed legs, stamped out of the peat house of my soul and began to jig. I love a good festival. Especially one that celebrates my roots. SB was going with some friends and they invited me to join them. We agreed to meet there and, after a long night at work, I drove to RIR to meet the group.
The Central Virginia Celtic Festival (Celtic Festival) was held at the Richmond International Raceway Complex. This allowed for a big parking area and plenty of room for the event. They were able to spread the food, music and events out enough so you didn't feel cramped. I was a big fan of the layout. It was just perfectly conducive to this festival.
What I didn't like was trying to figure out how in the HELL to get into the parking area. Maybe this was something that just I suffered with, but it was a damn struggle. I pulled into 2 entrances that were wrong before even seeing a sign indicating where to consider going. An extra sign or 5 wouldn't hurt to direct us simple folk who have never been to RIR. Just saying...
I bought my ticket and met up with the group. We all stood around chatting for a bit before I determined I would like to have a beer. Now, being a Celtic festival, I expected certain beers. I was not disappointed. On tap, for a mere $5 a cup, was Guinness, Harp, New Castle, Smithwicks and Angry Orchard cider. If these don't speak to Celtic ideas of drink, I don't know what would. Except the Irish coffee tent or the scotch tasting area. I grabbed a New Castle and decided it was time to wander the tents.
PG and I broke off from the group to wander around a bit. We wandered among the tents eyeing the wares & knick-knacks. Eventually we made our way to the athletics area where we were able to witness a competition that involved throwing a giant log after carrying it a long way. What this event was or what the rules are, we never quite determined. But I think that is the unimportant part. It was interesting to watch and, as I predicted, the skinny chick did better then the big girls. She carried the crap outta that log. As we walked around I also found out some information on my family's name and where in Ireland we hail from.
After returning to the group we realized it was time for a snack. I was torn between a classic (scotch eggs) and the unknown (haggis). In the end the evil I know was way more appealing then the one I didn't. scotch eggs won out. Basically, for those who don't know, a scotch egg is not a booze soaked chicken baby in a hard shell. It is a hard-boiled egg wrapped in sausage and deep fried. Healthy may not be the first word I would use to describe it, but exquisite is up there. It came served on a bed of french fries. I promptly devoured every amazing bite. We topped this meal off with some fresh made, still warm Mrs. Yoder's Doughtnuts (Mrs. Yoder's Facebook). I won't get into that amazingness in detail here, but know that your mouth will hate you for waiting so long to try them if you haven't yet.
As we ate we were fortunate enough to listen to some excellent music. The stage was set-up so it could be heard from most areas of the festival without being over-powering. The band that was on while we ate was very good. They got the crowd involved and played some great covers of bands such as Drop-Kick Murphys. There was a huge group of people in front of the stage that were just jamming out. If it hadn't been for the rain, I would have been willing to stand and listen to them longer.
The Central Virginia Celtic Festival was a well organized and well laid out event. I had a great time, had a good beer, ate some great food, watched some logs get chucked and even learned a thing or two. I will certainly attend next year. Maybe I'll even see if I can find a kilt. Boxers are optional with a kilt, right?
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