This weekend Mansfield will be celebrating its 200th anniversary with a jam-packed Bicentennial Festival. The festival will feature food and craft vendors along with acts ranging from Jack Hanna’s Animals and Friends from the Columbus Zoo and the Bobby Maverick Magic Show. A laser light show is scheduled for Saturday, when musical choices will include Mansfield native Bill Newdome performing his bicentennial song “Fly High” at 6:45 p.m. That makes him the opening act for Northwest Territory and headliners Poco.

Sunday will bring bagpipers, barbershoppers, a pet parade and more. As many people as possible are encouraged to meet downtown for the 5 p.m. Hands Around the Square event that will serve as a re-dedication of Mansfield’s Central Park.

June 26, 27, 28, 29 is the 5th annual Hovercraft Rally on the Scioto River in Chillicothe (across from Yoctangee Park). Watch some of the most talented hovercraft racers in North America battle it out to see who’s #1! There will be a number of different racing classes ranging from the 15 hp Entry Level beginners to the 100+ hp Formula 1 experts. This year $3,745 in prize money is up for grabs in 7 different racing classes, with cash prizes for 1st, 2nd and 3rd place finishers.

Not only will the hovercraft racing be as exciting as ever, but returning for Hoverally 2008 will be the incredible fireworks show of the Ohio Pyrotechnics Arts Guild. Hoverally 2008 will feature live music, a party atmosphere and it will happen in the beer garden located on the flood wall next to the beautiful Scioto River. Only Hoverally 2008 combines great racing, great shows and great music for FREE.

A $20,000 purse will be on the line when hundreds of top professional cyclists return to central Ohio for the 2008 Tour de Grandview Cycling Classic, June 28-29.

Ohio’s premier professional cycling race, the event will celebrate 16 years in Columbus when it returns to Grandview Heights this summer.

The lion’s share of the purse will be awarded to the top finishers in the elite men’s and women’s categories. Prize money also will be paid to placers in the Masters and Juniors categories. Unlike other events of its kind, the Tour will award equal prize money to the men and women.

“We’re very proud to be able to offer such a sizable purse for this year’s Tour and to reward our top men and women finishers equally,” said Tour organizer Julie Whitley of the Grandview Community Association. “It’s a testament not only to the growth and stature of the event, but also the generous contributions of Germain and our many other corporate supporters.”

A favorite stop for top cyclists from the U.S. and around the world, the Germain.com Tour de Grandview Cycling Classic features two days of world-class bicycle racing through the streets of suburban Grandview Heights, as well as a number events and activities for spectators and cyclists alike.

Among the events tied to this year’s Tour will be the Kids’ Sprints competition and Ohio Cup Series criterium races on Saturday afternoon; a Saturday night street party with food, drinks, live entertainment and children’s activities; and the signature Tour de Grandview Criterium races on Sunday afternoon.

The races will feature both men and women cyclists in multiple professional categories. The criterium courses will cover a number of the hilly, tree-lined streets on either side of Grandview Avenue, the city’s main thoroughfare.

The Germain.com Tour de Grandview Cycling Classic is Ohio’s premier cycling event, attracting an international field of more than 300 professional cyclists to central Ohio each year, as well as hundreds of cycling enthusiasts and spectators. Celebrating its 16th year in 2008, the Tour is organized by the non-profit Grandview Community Association with the support of the City of Grandview Heights and a host of local volunteers and sponsoring businesses.

In the rotunda of the Ohio State Capital building through November 10, 2008, is the Lima Company Memorial called: A Remembrance of Spirit and Choice. This is a particularly moving experience and strongly recommend as many people as possible visit the Statehouse to view the memorial. Admission is free and open to the public anytime during regular statehouse visiting hours.

The memorial was created by Anita Miller, a Westerville artist, and consists of 8 panels with 22 Marines and 1 Navy Corpsman. Seven of the panels each have 3 individuals depicted in various scenes, and 1 panel has 2. In front of each of the panels are lighted candles, and the combat boots of each individual depicted in the scene.

Lima Companyis a Reserve Unit based out of Rickenbacker Air base in Columbus

According to Frankfurt Kentucky’s WSAZ Channel 3 News, Kentucky state leaders are saying that the theft of the Indian Head Rock that was recently removed from the Ohio River by is as bad as robbing a grave. For more info on the Indian Head Rock see the post:

Kentucky Wants its Rock Back

It’s a battle between Ohio and Kentucky, and the battle escalated Wednesday, as cries of historic looting took the floor in two state capitols.

Portsmouth Mayor Jim Kalb said the Indian Head Rock belongs to the city and will be an important part of their upcoming July 4 festival.

The Portsmouth festival will feature events that include rock skipping and maybe even an Ohio and Kentucky tug-o-war.

Sen. Mark Wagoner (R-Ottawa Hills) introduced Senate Bill 336 on May 12. This legislation would create a new tax check-off on Ohio individual income tax forms, whereby people could voluntarily donate a portion of their tax refund to the Ohio Historical Society.

The Ohio Historical Society testified in committee hearings that this bill raise approximately $500,000 annually. The revenue generated would be used to create a new competitive matching grants program for local history-related organizations.

The matching grants program would double the state’s investment into local history projects and initiatives. There are hundreds of local organizations all across the state that would be eligible for such a grants program, enabling this pool of money to be distributed equitably to help local communities and organizations preserve Ohio’s history.

Buffalo Bill was a legendary western figure from 19th Century. Part of his fame was the Wild West Show that he created that toured the country during his day. That show will be re-enacted on July 6 on the Sunbury Town Square and Smith Park in Delaware County. There will be over 90 mounted riders putting on the show which will include a mock stagecoach attack, re-enactment of the Battle of Little Big Horn, Teddy Roosevelt’s charge up San Juan Hill. There will also be barrel races, roping, trick riding and more.

Called the longest yard sale in Ohio, on August 7  - 9, people from all over the state will descend on a long stretch of the Lincoln Highway for their annual yard sale. There will be over 700 yard sales along the famous byway as it stretches across northern Ohio. Even Indiana and Illinois will be holding yard sales on the highway that 2nd weekend of August.

Sara Lou Brown, Wyandot County’s Visitor Bureau director and president of the state-designated Lincoln Highway Byway group, said:

“The Lincoln Highway Historic Byway created this event four years ago on the outside chance that it would ‘go’ and we’ve been busy managing it ever since.”

The “Buy-way Yard Sale” is in its 4th year, and each year the 3 day event becomes even bigger than the year before. The event is a loosely organized sale-abration that different groups choose to participate in. It doesn’t cost anything to participate, nor does it cost anything to do your shopping.

Ohio Department of Natural Resources announced plans to acquire land in Vinton County to create Ohio’s 21st State Forest. Plans are to turn the 2,200 acres into the new state forest. The state already had spent a big chunk of money on preservation rights for 12,650 acres of land surrounding the new acquisition. Once all the paperwork and fund transfers are complete, the area will be opened camping, hiking, and hunters.

The new state forest is located just southeast of McArthur in southeast Ohio.

If you love a good old-fashioned festival, set to the tune of the fabulous 50s and 60s, then Wilmington in Southwest Ohio is right place. Just think drive-in movies, poodle skirts, sock hops, Dick Clark’s American Bandstand, hula hoops, classic cars, and roadside diners. That’s all you have to do to feel the atmosphere that surrounds the annual Banana Split Festival held each year the 2nd weekend of June.

So why does Wilmington hold an annual Banana Split Festival each year. The answer is that Wilmington claims to be the birthplace of the Banana Split! In fact, it’s Wilmington’s claim to fame. It all began in 1907 with the banana split’s creation by local entrepreneur, Ernest Hazard. A contest to bring in students from the local college started it all.

The Banana Split Festival is the only one in the nation and word continues to spread about the annual celebration. It’s a family-fun festival and begins June 13, from 4:00 p.m. - 10 p.m and June 14, 12:00 - 10 p.m. Admission is free. For more information, call 1-877-428-4748.

1326 Fife Ave., Wilmington, OH 45177