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Sombrero Fest: Los Invasores to headline opening night
- WHAT: Sombrero Festival.
- WHERE: Washington Park, East 7th at East Adams.
- WHEN: Today 3 p.m. to midnight, Friday 11 a.m. to midnight, Saturday 7 a.m. to midnight.
- ADMISSION: $6 for adults. Free for children age 12 and under. Free for those who enter the grounds the first two hours each day.
- FOR MORE INFORMATION: 550-9682
Sombrero Festival Schedule
Main Stage entertainment
Today
3:30-5 p.m. Emilio y Los Bluzanos
5-6:15 p.m. Frequencia Norteña
6:30-8 p.m. Dos De Nuevo Leon
8:30-10 p.m. Los Cadetes De Linares De Lupe Tijerina
10:30-midnight. Los Invasores De Nuevo Leon
Friday
3-4:15 p.m. Amos De La Noche
4:30-6 p.m. Conteño
6:30-8 p.m. Jaime Y Los Chamacos
8:30-10 p.m. Wayne Toups & ZyDeCajun
10:30 p.m.-midnight. Siggno
Saturday
5-6:30 p.m. The Brew
6:45-8:15 p.m. Tex-Mex Kadillaks
8:30–10 p.m. Retoño
10:30 p.m.-midnight. La Mafia
Entertainment under the Big Tent
Today
6:30–8 p.m. The Four Dirty Birds
8:30-10 p.m. Ben Neece (Earth Bound)
10:30 p.m.-midnight. Chris Rivera Band
Friday
6-9 p.m. DJ music during chili cook-off
9-10:30 p.m. Noe Garcia (Fallback)
10:30 p.m.-midnight. Vallejo
Saturday
8 a.m.-2 p.m. DJ during Frijolympics
2:30-4 p.m. Army Band
4:40-6 p.m. Frijolympics Awards
6:30-8 p.m. The Good Times Band
8:30-10 p.m. Ben Neece (Earth Bound)
10:30 p.m.-midnight. The Brew
Events Schedule
Friday
5 p.m. Chili cook-off
Saturday - Main Stage unless otherwise specified
7 a.m. Charro Days Classic 5K Run at Seventh Street
7 a.m. Frijolympics setup
8-10 a.m. Tug of war (high school)
10 a.m. Zumba
11 a.m.-1 p.m. Tug of war (adults)
Noon-1 p.m. Waiters race in fountain area
1:30-2 p.m. Tortilla toss challenge
2-2:30 p.m. Taco eating contest
2:30-3 p.m. Hot wings eating contest
3-4 p.m. Jalapeño eating contest
4-5 p.m. Grito contest
Big Tent
Noon-4 p.m. Frijolympics
4-4:30 p.m. Beard contest (ugliest, longest, neatest, best all-around)
4:30-5 p.m. Costume contest (most original for men, women, children)
Fountain Stage
5 p.m. Frijolympics awards
Los Invasores De Nuevo Leon will help kick off Sombrero Festival tonight with an exciting delivery of Norteño music.
Starting the festival — a yearly event at Washington Park at East 7th and East Adams streets — with Norteño music has been a real crowd pleaser, says Roy De Los Santos, chief marketing officer for Sombrero Festival.
“This is the first time we’ve gotten this particular band,” De Los Santos said.
Los Invasores are the last band scheduled on the main stage tonight, opening at about 10:30. Three other groups are scheduled to perform under the tent.
De Los Santos said Siggno will be the closing band Friday night, and La Mafia will perform Saturday night.
“The Sombrero Fest is strictly to enhance the spirit … for Charro Days,” De Los Santos said. “We’re here definitely to promote and support that entire event.”
Other acts scheduled to perform on the main stage during the three-day event are Brew, Vallejo, Jaime y Los Chamacos, and Emilio y Los Bluzanos.
The Chris Rivera Band will perform today under the big tent.
On Friday, there will be DJ music during the chili cook-off, and there will be more music during the Frijolympics — a cooking contest for charro beans — on Saturday.
The Frijolympics, De Los Santos said, is especially popular this year.
“We’ve had to turn people away ,” he said. “The demand is really high to enter that contest, and I think we’ve got as many as we can squeeze under that tent.”
De Los Santos said 56 teams would compete, and six more have been turned away for lack of space.
Charro bean entries will be judged on several criteria, said Veronica Peña, president of cookoffs.
“What they’re looking for is the aroma, the taste, the way it looks, and consistency,” she said.
The Sombrero Fest will feature the usual food booths, filling the air with the smells of fajita tacos, funnel cakes, hamburgers, kettle corn and other eats, De Los Santos said.
This year there will also be more activities for children he added.
“We’ve got a goldfish pond,” he said. “Basically it’s a game where the kids get a chance to win a goldfish. It’s one of the new things for the kids. We’ve also got several young kid dance companies.”
Home Depot will have building workshops for children, and H-E-B will promote health and physical fitness.
The ever-popular jalapeño eating contest will be on Saturday at 3 p.m., with the grito contest an hour later.
The entire schedule is listed at http://www.sombrerofestival.com/calendar.html.
Twhitehead@brownsvilleherald.com
