Bele Chere if you dare

Bele Chere is almost here once again. Did you see the title graphic in that link? It says "30th Anniversary." That's some nice spin by the Bele Chere folks, but it's wrong. Then again, the decision makers in the City of Asheville have never been accused of being math whizzes.

The first Bele Chere was in 1979. The "first anniversary" of Bele Chere was the festival in 1980; the 10th anniversary was in 1989; the thirtieth anniversary will be in 2009. A couple wouldn't call their wedding day their "first anniversary." However, calling it "The 30th Annual Bele Chere" would have been correct. It's simply the difference between counting cardinally and ordinally. Let's give the Bele Chere marketing department an F for math, and an B for spin.

I have mixed feelings about Bele Chere. I have been to Bele Chere several times...maybe ten. I like the food, even if it is overpriced. I like to look at the art, which I rarely buy. I don't particularly care for the concerts, although I do recall one year when "Beatlemania Now!" was particularly enjoyable. The parts of Bele Chere I dislike outweigh the parts of it that I like. What's not to like? That's another discourse of distractions....

From 1992 until 1997, I worked at three different Asheville area hotels - mostly during the night shift. I came to absolutely hate Bele Chere festival due to all the problems it caused and complaints we received from guests. Some Bele Chere revelers would go party and get drunk during the day, perhaps go to a bar or two later that night, then come staggering into their rooms in the middle of the night and try to continue the party (or fight, as the case may be) through the night. We received more complaints from other guests due to noise, more damage to rooms, and had to ask more guests to leave due to Bele Chere than we did for any other event at any other time of the year - including the so-called "rowdy" Honda Hoot and Harley Owners Group events. (Incidentally, I don't recall those two groups causing any problems at any of the hotels where I worked.)

I recall my first Bele Chere as a hotel employee. As I drove into the parking lot at work around 10:45 on that Friday night, I saw a drunk man down at street level yelling and cussing at another drunk man above him on a 2nd floor balcony. Apparently, this argument had been going on for a while. The man above, having heard enough of the man below, decided to end the conversation by pouring his beer out onto the head of lower fellow. Unfortunately, the lower man's anger grew and, after staggering around in a failed attempt to avoid the stream of brew, he fired up another louder, stronger volley of epithets. This was but an ominous overture to the events of that and future weekends of Bele Chere.

Thus, Bele Chere started off started off on the wrong foot with me. I guess I've always felt that the festival had to prove itself to me. What else don't I like? I can't stand the heat. I wish they'd move it to early September as a kick-off to the Autumn tourist season. It would be a nice follow-up to the NC Mountain State Fair.

I also abhor the moronic parents that let their kids run around unsupervised. I recall one year at Bele Chere where a group of about 15 teenagers (ages 13-17, I'm guessing) decided it would be fun to run from one end of Bele Chere to the other as fast as they could without regard for any of the people crowded into the streets. As they ran, they pushed over people, tipped strollers, and bumped art displays to the ground. Eventually, the police caught up with them and kicked them out of the festival, but by the time that happened their damage had already been done.

Lastly, while Bele Chere isn't exactly a sea of inebriation, there are quite a few boozed up people, some of whom can't hold their alcohol any more than they are able to master basic English grammar. It's one thing to go to a bar, a club or a party where you naturally expect to see intoxicated people. But Bele Chere isn't a bar. It's a public street festival complete with children and the elderly. However, APD seems to be able to stop the occasional brawl fairly quickly.

I often hear about how much money Bele Chere and tourism bring to the Asheville area. I don't doubt that large sums of cash exchange hands as a result tourism. In my own participation in the great American pastime that is the family vacation, I have disposed of more than my fair share. However, my experience speaks that very little of that money goes to the tourism workers. In my years of working in various hotels in Asheville, my wage averaged about $1.25 above the (then) minimum wage. Housekeepers made less. (I eventually wised up, went back to college, changed careers and got out of the hotel business for good.)