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From:TheBahamasWeekly.com Ministry of Tourism Updates  38 years later, in 2011, the festival continues to be a homecoming event for McLean’s Town. Visitors and residents alike flock to this sleepy settlement to enjoy the festivities. At this culture-filled event, the patrons can taste a variety of Bahamian conch dishes, participate in quadrille dancing, Junkanoo, climbing the greasy pole, hook conchs and more. The excitement increases with the main event, the Conch Cracking Contest! As the name suggests, contestants compete to see who can most swiftly extract [and clean the meat from] a given number of conchs. There is a competition for men, for women, for locals, and for visitors! In addition to the conch cracking contests, there will also be other games, food and music as well as live entertainment. Bradley Armbrister, Local Government Administrator for East Grand Bahama, remarked that this is a signature event that “encapsulates the congenital nature of the local residents”, and Hon. Kenneth Russell, Member of Parliament for the High Rock Constituency, commended the committee and the people of McLean’s Town for keeping indigenous experience alive, and extended an invitation to the entire island of Grand Bahama to experience one of the oldest festivals in The Bahamas. Ms. Karen Seymour, Ms. Karen Seymour, Director for the Ministry of Tourism & Aviation’s Grand Bahama office said that it is important to nurture events that celebrate our island’s heritage, and pointed out that the Grand Bahama Island experience is not limited to Freeport, but rather includes the entire island from McLean’s Town to West End. The festivities will take place, as always, on the grounds of McLean’s Town Primary School. Friday, October 14th, 2011, 10 AM to 8 PM F or more information contact Renamae Symonette ( rsymonette@bahamas.com) or Elaine Smith ( esmith@bahamas.com) via e-mail or at (242) 350–8600.
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