The Phelpstival

I just got back from the “Phelpstival” in Towson, Maryland. Michael Phelps, who swam in the Olympics and won 6 gold medals, is from Towson. I was really impressed with his success and sportsmanship. He became a national star overnight, and the local papers made an even bigger deal since he’s from the Baltimore area. So they planned a parade, a ceremony to present him with an honorary key to Baltimore County, and a street festival. A Phelpstival.

Aside from the goofy name, the event was really neat. I only saw a few minutes of the parade, but it looked like it got a really great turnout. It felt kinda odd to have a whole parade for one guy, but clearly the whole city of Towson was really proud of his accomplishments.

After the parade, there was about 45 minute stage presentation. It began with an exceptionally long invocation by a Catholic priest, which was very religious and a bit much. Then a number of people spoke, including Gov. Bob Ehrlich, Maryland’s senators and Congressional representatives, and a few others. Ehrlich’s really personable and seems very well-intentioned, which gives me a little cognitive dissonance since I disagree so vehemently with his politics. Sen. Barbara Mikulski spoke, and I think she seriously insulted the Chinese. (”When Michael competes in Beijing in 2008, he’ll make the Chinese eat their egg rolls!”) After the politicians finished, Michael Phelps and his mother both spoke and thanked all the people that helped them out over the years.

Overall the events were neat, and it was great to see the entire region’s enthusiasm. I’ve got some photos you can look at too.