The primary tourist season may be over, but October has produced a busy month for the Ocean Shores Convention Center with an eclectic mix of private and public events, some new and others returning annual favorites on the North Coast.
Sunday, October 1, was the last of three days of the “Creative Memories Scrapbooking Festival of Fun Croptoberfest,” which has been coming to Ocean Shores for 20 years, and has grown to 100 or so participants annually. The month will also see a couple of private religious meetings, including a three-day family education conference that is expected to draw 1,000 to 1,200 attendees.
Convention Center manager Cheryl Turner said these are some of the conference-type events that “make up the bulk of our occupancy,” while the event mix in October offers examples of “so many of the diversified events that come here throughout the year, in addition to our two annual arts & crafts shows.”
Toward the end of the month will be two of the area’s most loved events. Four days of live music with Galway Bay’s 14th annual Celtic Music Festival run October 26-29 and the month concludes with the annual Ocean Shores Firefighters Association’s kids Halloween party, from 6 to 8 p.m. on Tuesday, October 31.
And then there’s the first time for the “Bloodhound Beach Bash,” which will occupy the entire Convention Center from Oct. 10-14. This is an American Bloodhound Club (ABC) “National Specialty” dog show, plus a Regional Specialty show and several other event elements, including two days of bloodhound trailing activities in and around Ocean Shores. The last two days will be open to the public.
The event is produced by the Pacific Rim Bloodhound Club (PRBC), which has members in Washington, Oregon, Idaho, California, British Columbia, and Alberta, Canada.
Show chairperson Cindy Wolfrom of Olympia said she expects 80 or more dogs and about twice as many humans to participate in the event.
A dozen or so bloodhounds, plus their human handlers, are expected for the trailing events, on Monday and Tuesday, October 9 and 10. “People in Ocean Shores will definitely notice some bloodhounds around town those days,” Wolfrom said.
The main room at the Convention Center will be set up for a traditional competitive dog show, as the site of four days of various competitions.
Wednesday, October 10 will see a futurity event for breeders and an invitational “Top 20” event and catered banquet.
Thursday, October 11 will feature “veterans” events for dogs age seven and older, several puppy events, and a PRBC birthday party.
The “National Specialty” is a national level, once-a-year set of events specifically for bloodhounds taking place Friday from 9:30 a.m. to 1 p.m.
Event categories include Juniors, Veteran Classes, Dog & Bitch Classes, Best of Breed and Non-Regular Classes. A “Regional Specialty” with similar content is set for Saturday, from 8:30 a.m. to 12 noon. These two days are open to the public, with admission by donation. A private, catered banquet will take place Friday evening.
Wolfrom said the selection of Ocean Shores was based on the Convention Center being large enough to host the event and having available dates, and her personal knowledge of the area as being very dog friendly. And she knew there is some logistical and prep help available here, since he step-father is local artist and bloodhound lover Larry Walden.
More information on the Bloodhound Beach Bash can be found online at www.pacificrimbloodhoundclub.com.
For the Celtic Music Festival, all-days pass tickets for the Convention Center performances are now available online at http://www.galwaybayirishpub.com/
