Published: April 24, 2008 12:36 pm            

Springfest ’08 sporting several grand attractions

Vendors, fun and food all available

By Philip Navarrette

reporter@trcle.com



This year’s Springfest celebration is bursting with activities for the whole family.

One of Springfest’s staple attractions is the pony rides, and Lora Bradshaw of Precious Ponies Attractions is delivering the goods again this year.

“We’ll have the pony rides available and pony photos,” she said.

The pony rides consist of a pony Ferris wheel and an instant photo with a pony.

Based in Blooming Grove, Bradshaw and her ponies have participated at the Springfest event for 11 years, she said.

“We’ve been doing the pony rides there for a long time,” she said. “Most of those kids in Cleburne know our ponies by name already. They’ve seen the same ponies year after year, so they’ve gotten attached to them.”

The ponies can carry a person weighing up to 150 pounds, so the rides aren’t just for children, Bradshaw said.

“So that actually includes most teenagers and small adults,” she said. “We just look at the weight limit, not the age or the height.”

Bradshaw also plans to have a game booth for kids to win prizes.

Tom Shackelford of Texas Fun Zones will provide several attractions that will be available during the event.

“We’ll have a kiddy airplane ride, a kiddy Ferris wheel, a single bungee jump and a rock wall to climb,” he said.

“We’ll have some smaller amusements for the little ones, and we’ll have stuff for the big kids too, like the rock wall and the bungee jump,” Shackelford said. “I try to have something for kids of every age.”

Shackelford is a regular at Springfest, but this is the first year he’ll have the kiddy airplane ride.

“We just bought it, and we’re refurbishing it, so the first time we use it will be at Springfest,” he said. “We’re looking forward to doing it.”

Chandra McFarland of Inflatable Party Magic will provide an inflatable slide, an obstacle course and a trackless train.

One of the best things about the activities is that they’re suitable for all ages, she said.

Ben Buckwalter of Anna will provide authentic stagecoach rides. With a full-sized coach, there’s room for several people, he said.

“Four adults is comfortable,” he said. “You can squeeze six in there, but I like to do four adults and two kids, or something like that.”

Springfest will also have a myriad of vendors selling items such as arts and crafts, jewelry and sunglasses.

Other activities such as face painting and the annual Ducky Derby will also be available.

And plenty of food will be available for those who need the extra energy for a full day of fun.

        

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