Hair's the thing: The Festival of the Fish returns in a big way to Vermilion

VERMILION — Got bangs like a carport? Still sporting that haircut that tells the world you're all business in the front but party in the back? This weekend might be just the time to show off those mane masterpieces with the return of the annual Festival of the Fish and this year's theme: Fishing in the '80s — Big Hair and Mulletmania. Every year the festival committee starts out with about 30 ideas for the theme and narrows it down from there "and we pray to God it is as good as the year before," said Vermilion Chamber of Commerce Executive Director Sandy Coe. "This one's always made the list for a few years now. We have a lot of Gen X on our committee. I look around and it's our generation. I graduated in 1989, so I'm excited." The festival starts Friday and wraps up Sunday in historic downtown Vermilion. It will feature 37 food vendors, almost 100 craft vendors, live music and several planned events. On Friday there will be beach yoga at Main Street Beach, the royalty pageant, the Dad Band and E5C4P3, a Journey tribute band, on the main stage, and fireworks at night over Lake Erie. Saturday will start with a sandcastle-building contest on Main Street Beach, and Fusion Live, an interactive DJ experience with games and prizes on the main stage followed by the Crazy Craft Regatta on the Vermilion River. Vinyl Arcade, playing classic jingles and television theme show hits from the '70s through the '90s, will play in the afternoon and the popular Disco Inferno, performing '70s and '80s groove music will perform at night on the main stage. At dusk the Lighted Boat Parade will sail down the Vermilion River to the lake. On Father's Day, the Vermilion Port Authority's Paddle Fest Poker Run starts off the morning, and the Father's Day Parade begins at 12:30 p.m. This year's grand marshal is Don Parsons. "He's definitely a pillar in this community, he knows that lake, he knows that river," Coe said. The firefighter water fights and more live music — Shawn Perry and Vice City, and The Rock City Rebels — will follow. Coe said the best mullet spotted at the festival will win a $100 prize. "We kind of giggled when people said they were going to grow out a mullet, but we are going to have people going around Friday and Saturday taking pics and we're going to post them on our Festival of the Fish site on Facebook and the one that gets the most likes will win a $100 gift certificate from the Chamber," she said. It will be redeemable at participating merchants in town. Local merchants have decorated their storefronts to the festival's theme. BD Studio has an MTV jacket on a mannequin and the pups in the window at Tails of Vermilion, a pet boutique, all are sporting mullets. "I love when people come into fish festival and I see town is packed, lodging is packed, restaurants are packed. That is our goal," Coe said. "And of course to provide some free family fun." For a detailed listing of events, visit vermilionohio.com. Contact Rini Jeffers at rinijeffers@gmail.com