NORFOLK — Submarines, a rescue and salvage ship, a sloop sailboat from the 1750s, a couple tugboats, a speed boat and an ambitious kayaker — and a replica of John F. Kennedy’s ill-fated PT-boat, the PT-109 — made waves Saturday at the 49th Annual Harborfest.
Very small waves — in a parking lot next to Waterside.
The newly revived remote control boat club, the Elite Fleet of Virginia, made its first appearance at Harborfest. Members showcased their array of vessels and allowed the public to control many of them in a small pool.
Nate and Courtney Schilhabel brought their daughters, 11-year-old Gemma and 8-year-old Emery, to Harborfest for the first time and gravitated to the pool of intricate miniature ships. Emery was taking the speed boat for a spin, while Gemma guided a furiously paddling kayaker.
The kids also enjoyed the pirate demonstration, showing how they talked and how things worked on the pirate ships, they said.
“I came down to kind of see the festival and what they had to offer and it’s something for the kids to do and check it out,” said Nate, a 24-year Navy veteran.
Kasey Nein, 38, brought her sons, 9 and 6 , and her 10-year-old niece to spend the day with a group of five other families, after watching the Parade of Sail from their boat on Friday.
Her kids love wakeboarding and tubing, and so her oldest son couldn’t wait to play with the remote control boats, she said.
The remote control boats are just one part of a packed weekend at Town Point Park. Organizers expect 100,000 people over three days for live music, fresh seafood, local vendors and to learn about naval history — and to cap off Saturday night with the traditional fireworks show.
Harborfest has recently moved to focusing on a lineup of jam bands for Friday night, which, combined with the weather, helped get the weekend off to a strong start, according to Jordan Lett, marketing director for Norfolk Festevents.
Sunday’s festivities are headlined by country music artist Chase Rice on the main stage starting at 4:30 p.m. For a full schedule of events, check out .
Gavin Stone, 757-712-4806, gavin.stone@virginiamedia.com
