“Post time in one minute!” yelled Kevin Barna, gathering people for the pig races at Secaucus’s fourth annual Riverfest celebration.
The weather was bright and sunny, and 10,000 people came to Laurel Hill park for the races and a panoply of other festive and educational activities on June 12.
First up was the Hollywood round. Four pigs including “Kevin Bacon” and “Arnold Schwarzenporker” waited behind the gate, ready for the starting gun. Squeals shot throughout the riverside as Barna placed the pigs in their own gates ready to run.
It was the first of five races. Other races took place among what were humorously called “ugly pigs from Bora Bora,” which were actually ducks. For the last round, they ran the ugliest pigs they could find, from Siberia – they were actually goats.
Pig teams ran several times that day. The crowd was divided by color so they could cheer for each pig. The little porkers wore colored pinnies.
“We assign the pigs to the audience to get them to clap,” said Barna between races. “They’re trained to run for clapping and food.”
Barna, who works for a company called F and F Productions (who are also the pioneers of skunk racing), said, “Usually we run on chips, not grass. The goats love grass, so every once in a while, we have to get behind them and say ‘go on.’ ”
The pigs race when they are 6 to 8 months old. It takes three days to train them.
“They’re easy to train,” said Barna. “They’re third on the intelligence scale, after humans and dolphins.”
After three months, the pigs retire to the farm, where they grow for another two and a half years until they’re ready for, um, processing.
Alas, no studding for these swine.
Music, eco-tours, and more Between races, entertainment was abundant.
“I think the events they have are great for kids,” said Jennifer Shepherd, mandolin player for the two-piece Cincinnati-based folk group, the Singing Trainman. “The rock climbing wall, the ponies, the game shows, and the reptiles are all great. You have all kind of events, both informational and educational.”
Shepherd was accompanied by Dave Sands on banjo.
“Things started slow, but got real busy,” said Sands. “Lots of kids, but I could do without the bugs.” Up on the hill, Dawnie coaxed children to sing along with Silly Critter Talk.
“Don’t touch the bumblebee,” she sang as children danced and visitors filtered past.
Diane Migliaccio came from Little Ferry with her children and friends to enjoy an eco-cruise, a pontoon boat tour of the Hackensack River and the Saw Mill Basin.
“It was relaxing,” she said.
John Dubiel from the Secaucus Public Works Department said that the 20-minute tours went more quickly than expected. Perfect wind conditions, a good tide, and an abundance of wildlife made for successful outings.
Secaucus operated one boat, the Hackensack Riverkeeper ran two, and the New Jersey Meadowlands Commission ran four.
Glen Blank from the Hudson River Fishermen’s Association talked to visitors about fishing techniques.
“We teach kids about tides and currents,” he said. “You always want moving water when you fish. It moves the bait and activates the fish. Certain species like moving bait. It also gives the boat a drift so you can cover more ground.”
Blank also teaches kids about fish-tagging. He has personally tagged 941 stripped bass and a total of 1,162 fish in 2003, and 4,000 in his lifetime.
“With fish-tagging, we’re able to learn about fish and the environment,” he said.
Blank has had tag returns from the Hudson and Hackensack Rivers found from as far away as Maine and North Carolina, and has had 199 tag returns in his lifetime.
Eco-Tours are available year round through Riverkeeper, at (201) 968-0808, and at the New Jersey Meadowlands Commisson, www.meadowlands.state.nj.us.