TICONDEROGA — When the Ticonderoga Fourth of July Parade gets rolling on Wednesday, community volunteer and activist Robert C. Dedrick will be waving to the crowd from the lead car.
Dedrick, a former Ticonderoga town supervisor and retired Ticonderoga Middle School science teacher, was elected grand marshal of the celebration.
“I told them, why pick me?” he said. “I was supposed to drive the Kiwanis float in the parade. I told them I could just drive it as the first vehicle in the parade, but they said, ‘No, we want you in a car.’”
Dedrick has aided the community as a volunteer for many groups, including Kiwanis and others, and also serves on town committees.
The annual “Best Fourth in the North,” which kicked off Sunday, runs through Wednesday; it is the largest annual event in town.
The celebration includes the parade, a carnival in Bicentennial Park, a footrace and a comic bed race.
The parade, with the theme “A Salute To Community Volunteers,” starts at 2 p.m.
But first, the 26th-annual Montcalm Mile footrace will start at 1:45 p.m. in front of the former Wicker Ford on Wicker Street. Runners will head down Montcalm Street and finish at the Heritage Museum. Check-in is 12:30 to 1:30 p.m. at Wicker Ford. Entry fee is $10 for adults and $4 for children younger than age 16.
A record field of more than 200 entrants ran in the 2011 Montcalm Mile last year.
The bed race will follow the footrace, starting from the Ticonderoga fire station after the last runner crosses the finish line. The bed race ends near the Heritage Museum.
EVENTS
Ticonderoga holiday events continue today with food, vendors, entertainment and amusement rides in Bicentennial Park from 4 to 10 p.m. Buffalo Barfield performs at 5 and 7 p.m. Rockology will play ‘80s rock at 6 and 8 p.m. Ride bracelets are priced at $20 between 5 and 9 p.m.
Wednesday, Bicentennial Park will be open 10:30 a.m. to dusk. Buffalo Barfield takes the state at 3:30 and 5:30 p.m. Joe McGinness and Longshot will perform country and rock music from 7:30 to 9:30 p.m.
The Best Fourth in the North will conclude with fireworks at 9:30 p.m. Wednesday.
Registration for the bed race and parade is ongoing. Parade and bed-race applications, as well as rules and regulations, are available online at www.best4
thinthenorth.com (although the 1 p.m. footrace time should read 1:45 p.m.), and at the Ticonderoga Area Chamber of Commerce office at 94 Montcalm St. Applications must be returned to the chamber office.
For more information about the Montcalm Mile, email Jay Wells at
jaywells70
lmckinstry@pressrepublican.com
