VIDALIA &045;&045; With last year’s first ever Vittles and Fiddles festival deemed a success, the Vidalia Fire Department has cranked things into gear for the second annual festival this weekend.

Bluegrass music and gumbo will headline the two-day event at River View Park, which starts Friday at 5 p.m.

Friday night’s jam session featuring some of the weekend’s performers and probably surprise shows is free, with music starting at 6 p.m.

Saturday it’s $5 to enter the gate for all day long performances and gumbo cooking. The gates will open at 9 a.m., music starts at 11 a.m. and gumbo judging will be at noon.

The festival site will also include food and craft vendors and games for children.

Gumbo cooking will start at 7 a.m. So far eight contestants have signed up, Fire Chief Jack Langston said.

To cook, the entry fee is $20, and applications will be taken until Friday afternoon. Contact the VFD at 318-336-6262 to sign up.

The gumbo must be cooked on site with the exception of the chicken

Judges will be chosen from the group visiting the RV park. Langston said last year’s competition included judges from the northern part of the country who had never tasted gumbo.

&uot;It puts them in the mood of the contest,&uot; Langston said.

VFD will sell gumbo taster kits at the festival and everyone is invited to try the selections. Bowls of the gumbo will be available for purchase.

All proceeds from the gumbo and the festival gates will go to the fire department and will be used toward a training facility.

The festival was started last year as a fundraiser for the facility, which can also be used by the police department, Langston said.

Firefighters are required to have a certain amount of training hours each year to maintain or improve the department’s state fire ranking.

Without a training facility in their area, Vidalia firemen are limited in the training hours they can receive.

&uot;You can only do so much in a classroom,&uot; Langston said. &uot;A burn building gives you more realistic training. You can see the different patterns of the hose.&uot;

Currently under the state ranking system VFD is a three, with one being the best. Langston wants to see the ranking continue to rise.

Once a substantial amount of money is raised Langston hopes to work with the city to construct the building. No exact location has been selected yet.

Saturday’s festival performers will include L&M Band, Grass Fire, McCall Creek, the Harrigill Family, Clyde Ray Webber and Ronnie Cox and Friends.

Langston

said he was hoping for a crowd between 500 and 1,000.