By Julia Train
A day that was supposed to be stormy turned out to be a warm and sunny day.
A plethora of vendors set up between Huntington and Granville avenues in Margate for the 12th year of “The Planet’s Biggest Beach Party.”
In the park and along Huntington Avenue leading to the beach there was art, toys, plants, clothes and food being sold. There was a variety of cuisine to choose from, along with beer gardens.
The thousands of attendees could get hamburgers, fries and ice cream from Margate Dairy Bar and Burger, pizza from Jace’s Place, pulled pork and brisket from South Jersey Smokehouse’s barbecue and Vagabond Kitchen and Taphouse, tacos from TacoCat and sodas served in vintage tin cups by Tin Cup Soda Co.
For dessert there were rum cakes from Goodway Bakery and cannolis from Mannino’s Cannoli Express. California Frozen Yogurt and Shakes was even there with an endless variety of concoctions of smoothies, bowls and frozen yogurt using only the freshest fruit.
On the beach were two stages, the main 100.7 WZXL one and the 95.1 kids stage.
On the main stage, five local music groups performed throughout the day: No Clue Trio, South Pacific Island Tahitian Drums & Authentic Dancers Audience Participation, Nikki Briar, Mas Tequila Orchestra and Jah People Reggae.
“Thank you to everyone for willing the weather today. It turned out to be a beautiful day,” said Mas Tequila Orchestra’s drummer. “I think we just shouldn’t watch the weather anymore.”
While the music filled the beach, attendees joined in various activities. They played cornhole, shuffleboard and volleyball. There was also a Frozen T-Shirt Contest with 100.7 WZXL, free kite flying lessons and demos with Air Circus Kite Shop, and free lessons with Stacey’s Surf & Paddle.
Vendors were lined along the dunes in an “L” shape selling all sorts of art-related materials.
Along the line of small businesses was Play-PKL, a pickleball apparel and accessory company from Long Beach Island. The brand was created during the COVID-19 lockdown after the founder, Heidi Block, learned how to play the sport and couldn’t find any information about how to play or what was needed. Block’s store offers clothes for men and women, including skorts that feature pockets big enough for pickleballs.
“The brand’s mission is to help other people discover pickleball and love it as much as I do,” said Block. “A lot of what we do is educate people about the sport and send out informational emails with tips and tricks and everything you need to know to play.”
Two tents down was the tiki bar, where those 21 or older could try samples of different drinks or get the full-size version to carry around. On the street, there was a trailer with alcoholic beverages on tap.
Next to the tiki bar, Matthew Deibert from Sandcreation spent the day creating the “Finding Beachstock” sand sculpture, a nod to the film later shown at 6:45 p.m.
“The most important thing about carving a turtle is that you have to feed him every once in a while,” joked Deibert as he scooped sand with a tool and held it to the turtle’s mouth.
Deibert, who makes sand sculptures for major local events such as the Atlantic City Beer and Music Festival, started working on his creation around 7 a.m. and continued throughout the day.
The 14-hour event concluded at 10 p.m. with a bonfire, South Pacific Island Dancers and Jah People Reggae.
Photos by Tom Briglia/
PhotoGraphics
