SPECIAL EVENT: Lyon College retraces its roots at Arkansas Scottish Festival

Batesville is about to succumb to a sea of plaid. A river of bagpipes. A flood of meat pies.

It's time for the Arkansas Scottish Festival, a 39-year-old celebration that has had different names over the years but has always been a tribute to Scottish and Celtic heritage.

Lyon College's affiliation with the Presbyterian Church USA, which has Scottish roots, makes it a natural spot for the festival, according to Eric Bork, the college's associate vice president of marketing and communications.

He describes the festival as "kind of a combination of a craft fair and a Renaissance fair and a music festival."

Celebrations start with the Scottish Arts Concert at 7 p.m. today, but most of the fun starts Friday when, in addition to the Scot Shop, there will be some new festival activities.

Friday evening, everyone is invited to take to the streets and show off their legs in the Kilted Mile, starting at 5:30 p.m., $15. The one-mile race goes through downtown and you can guess the required uniform.

Bork says, "There should be a couple hundred people sprinting through downtown wearing kilts."

After that will be the latest in Lyon College's free movie series, Tragic Scots: a screening of Braveheart in the historic downtown Melba Theatre. History professor Mark Wallace will give a short talk before the film starts at 7 p.m.

Patrick Regan, whom Bork describes as "part comedian, part musician, part storyteller," provides entertainment at 4:30 and 10 p.m.

The bulk of the excitement will be Saturday, starting with the Scottish Breakfast ($10), 7-9 a.m. The main festival starts at 8 a.m. and the day will include sheepdog demonstrations, highland dancing, piping and drumming competitions, a British car show, a book sale and soccer. Vendors will sell kilts, Scottish shortbread, swords, quilts and clothing.

And while people can find old stand-bys such as hot dogs and cotton candy, there will also be vendors and food trucks selling Scottish delicacies such as meat pies.

The Highland games athletics demonstrations have taken a few years off -- due to logistical problems -- but return this year.

"It's similar to what you see on strongman competitions where they're throwing cabers [huge tapered poles] or big heavy rocks," Bork says. "Everybody's wearing kilts."

This year, he says, the athletes are professionals invited for the occasion: "It's not just local dudes throwing stuff. It's big, hulky giant guys competing and throwing things. So it's a little bit more of a spectacle."

They've also added more children's activities including bounce houses and rides.

Saturday night is the big Ceilidh feast with traditional food, open bar and dancing. Tickets are $50.

"That's a blast," Bork says.

Sunday will see more demonstrations, competitions, the traditional Scottish Iona Worship Service and the ever-popular Bonniest Knees Contest.

"Everybody laughs at that," Bork says.

Because parking can be tricky at the school, there will be satellite parking and shuttle service throughout the festival and people should be sure to take money or credit cards for shopping.

Festivals are everywhere in the spring, but Bork says the Arkansas Scottish Festival is worthy of a special day, or even weekend, trip.

"This is not typical," he says. "A lot of communities have festivals. This one doesn't feel like any of those. People are dressed differently. There's different music."

And there are meat pies and plaid kilts galore.

Weekend on 04/12/2018