July 4 Puts Summer in Motion in Ashland, Kentucky

When thinking about the Fourth of July, the mind immediately turns to thoughts of cookouts, hanging out with friends and, of course, fireworks. Every city, town and village in America will have its own way of celebrating the 231st anniversary of our independence, and the nature-loving Appalachian town of Ashland, Kentucky will certainly be no different. In fact, they actually stretch their celebration into a four-day festival filled with music, air shows, parades, crafts, and much more.

Christened "Summer Motion" by its local organizers, the festival is held in two of the town's prime locations and presents residents and visitors alike with a veritable grab-bag of fun. An exciting ten-kilometer race is held to begin the festivities, running through town and directly past its splendid and historical Central Park. In the park itself, car buffs have the opportunity to view some of the finest, mint-conditioned classic autos in the Tri-State (the area that includes Ironton, Ohio and Huntington, West Virginia). Children can enjoy the pony rides and a petting zoo while adults can take in the craft shows and great local music at the band shell. Naturally, scores of picnicking families will be enjoying hot dogs and charbroiled burgers amid age-old beech and oak trees not far from the playgrounds.

However, the most anticipated of all the events are the nightly, free concerts performed on the Riverfront Soundstage. Located on the banks of the Ohio River, the stage and grassy "arena" are crafty in its placement -- accessible only by walking past a line of concession stands filled with mouth-watering delights and down a slight embankment. The concession vendors, arranged in a manner reminiscent of the old-time "boardwalk", are extremely popular -- especially those selling sodas and ice cream (remember, July's a hot month).

The concerts themselves feature some of the nation's best country and oldies-rock acts (this year, the lineup includes Lee Greenwood, 60s rock group The Turtles and Diamond Rio) on consecutive nights and entertain thousands of enthusiastic fans. However, if these fans arrive during afternoon rehearsals, when volunteers are setting up the folding chairs for the actual show, they may get the opportunity to personally meet and speak with some of the performers themselves. Past acts included British superstar Peter Noone (who, performing with the stateside "Herman's Hermits", once reminded his American band to "act English" for the show), local country superstar Billy Ray Cyrus, soul legends The Four Tops, rock/comic icons Paul Revere and The Raiders and other great stars of the past and present.

Of course, no July 4th celebration would be complete without an Independence Day Parade and a strong fireworks display -- and Ashland has both. In the parade, there's always a stirring salute to area residents who are serving with our armed forces overseas (especially in Iraq). But the town really gets into the patriotic mood when it's time for the pyros to go off on the banks of the Ohio River. The display takes place on the final night of the festival itself to officially close Summer Motion for the year. Its inspiring beauty can be viewed from many high-spots throughout town as well as across the river in Ohio.

Of the two major holiday events that take place in Ashland each year (the other being Poage Landing Days, held each September as both an unofficial "farewell" to summer and in honor of the town founders), the July 4th "Summer Motion" event is the one that lingers most in the minds of both residents and visitors. Considered one of the top 20 summer events of the Southeast, t's a time when everyone can "thumb their noses" at the summer blahs and relax to a great, down-home tradition.