By Carlen Ruth Hultgren
Saturday September 25, the East Atlanta Village Strut rolls back into town, and we do mean roll. What the pandemic required last year, turned into a brilliant idea and way to include a broader range of neighbors. The response was overwhelmingly positive. There were no street closures, so the businesses that chose to open could do so without parking interruption. The festival activities were spread around the neighborhood, spidering around to 74 households in EAV. And everything could be enjoyed in a painless, socially distanced way.
With the continuation of this format, in an enhanced 2021 version, the Strut organized events will be back to popular demand as well.
New last year, but wildly popular, the Leaf Blower Madness tournament is back to test the skills of weekend lawn warriors. Contestants use their leaf blowers to propel a box through an obstacle course. This is a test of precision rather than raw power, and it’s open to battery powered and corded blowers, as well as gas-powered. https://eastatlantastrut.com/leaf-blower-madness-tournament.
New this year, but sure to become a favorite, Strut Your Bake is a rum dessert bake-off inspired by longtime neighbor Katherine Carter, who baked a legendary dessert that brought her the title of Ms. Rum Cake at the very first East Atlanta Strut in 1998. Ms. Carter passed away recently at age 101, but her spirit, and her spirit-infused desserts, live on https://eastatlantastrut.com/strut-bake-off.
Also new this year, and a great way to Strut your morning, the Strut Your Garden gives everybody a chance to show off the results of their pandemic planting. This will be from 10:00am to 2:00pm, a little earlier than the main events, to highlight the plants before the afternoon’s heat. https://eastatlantastrut.com/strut-your-garden
And two local Village favorites from Strut’s past, the Hunt at the Strut scavenger hunt, https://eastatlantastrut.com/hunt-at-the-strut and the Roll Through the Strut classic car show, https://eastatlantastrut.com/roll-through-the-strut/
You can sign up with the links above, or for more info go to: http://eastatlantastrut.com or email info@eastatlantastrut.com. Registration is open for all the contests, and sponsors are welcome to attach their businesses to any of them. https://eastatlantastrut.com/sponsor/
The Strut activities officially start at noon and continue throughout the day until 6:00pm or until the Village closes down on a Saturday night.
