Events

One of the top events of the year in Redondo Beach is the Lobster Festival, sponsored by the Redondo Beach Chamber of Commerce. It is three days of eating, dancing and drinking in the Seaside Lagoon Park at ocean-side, which will be taking place next weekend, September  23-25, 2011. There will be fresh Maine lobster dinners, or Certified Angus Beef New York Strip Steak and Main Lobster Tail dinners, plus other international food booths, serving cobblers, corn, BBQ, Chinese and just about anything else. You won’t go hungry if you bring your money. The entertainment is as good as the food with live music from some of the best Tribute Bands in Southern California. There is a dance floor, children’s area, beer garden, super shark slide and arcade-style games with prizes. And my favorite, the free mechanical bull ride will be bucking all weekend. In addition to fresh, steamed lobster, visitors to the festival can visit a variety of arts and crafts booths selling cool beach items. An admission fee allows you to enter the festival without purchasing lobster meals so you can enjoy the live music, shows, entertainment, vendors, and seaside location overlooking the Redondo Beach Harbor. For all the details, tickets and entertainment schedule visit the website www.LobsterFestival.com

This Labor Day weekend closes out Fiesta Hermosa’s 40th year as an event that helped make this beach town famous as a festive place to take in the surf and sun and showcase what living along the coast is all about.  Since 1972, the Hermosa Beach Chamber of Commerce has produced Fiesta Hermosa, the ”largest arts & crafts fair in Southern California”. Over 400 artists and crafters are featured, including painters, photographers, ceramicists, jewelers, sculptors, and handicrafters. This year’s organizers expect about 150,000 people throughout the weekend. Fairgoers rave about our Food Court, which offers 18 different kinds of ethnic food choices. Everything is delicious – from roasted corn to Thai, Greek, and Mexican food, to tri-tip sandwiches and barbequed sausages, to the Hermosa Beach Lifeguards’ famous fish tacos. In addition to the two stages of live music and a variety of food, there will also be The Kiddie Carnival, which features a 30-foot slide, rides and games for children less than 10 years old. There will also be a petting zoo, pony rides and face painters. Fiesta runs from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. all three days. Free shuttle bus service will run daily from 7:30 a.m. to 7:30 p.m. from the Northrop Grumman parking lot on Aviation Boulevard about two blocks north of Marine Avenue in Manhattan Beach. Hermosa Cyclery’s bike valet will be open from 10 a.m. to 6:30 p.m. each day south of the Hermosa Beach Pier. The Los Angeles Kings Ice Crew will also make an appearance on Monday, Sept. 3, from noon to 5 p.m. at Fiesta Hermosa. For more information, visit www.hbchamber.net.

Summer is almost over, so take advantage of the gorgeous weather and enjoy a night with your neighbors, friends, and family. Hermosa Beach Friends of the Parks presents the animated flick “The Smurfs” Saturday, August 24th, at Hermosa Valley Park,Valley Drive at Gould, as part of the Movies in the Park series. Venue opens 4 p.m., the movie starts at dark. Popcorn and hot dogs will be available. No pets or alcohol, a $5 donation is suggested for everyone 4 and older; blankets and beach chairs are encouraged, but no high-backed chairs. Proceeds benefit Friends of the Parks, which makes improvements to Hermosa parks.

One of the biggest weekends of the year in the South Bay, the 2012 International Surf Festival will be held Tuesday, July 31st – Sunday, August 5th 8am – 6pm. The International Surf Festival returns to Manhattan, Hermosa and Redondo Beach! An athletic competition involving several events spans 3 days and is non-stop entertainment The Festival has events throughout the weekend revolving around the beach and ocean, including a Bodysurfing Championship, Surf Contest, Lifeguard Competition, Sand Soccer, Paddleboard Race and much more. However, the king of the contests is properly known as the Charlie Saikley Volleyball Tournament- or to anybody else, just the 6-man, a crazy, ultra-competitive sporting party. Dozens of teams compete over 2 days to take down what is a very honorable title here in the South Bay. Of all the events in the Festival, this is far and away the most popular, with hundreds of players and up to 60,000 spectators. This year, the main event kicks off with the LA County Lifeguard Championships at 7:00 p.m. at the Manhattan Beach Pier on Friday, August 3. There will be several contests, including the U.S. Coast Guard Helicopter & L.A. County Lifeguard Rescue Demo, 6-Lifeguard Run Relay, Lifeguard Events and the Bud Stevenson Intracrew Medley Relay. To see the full schedule of events see the event website www.surffestival.org/

Summertime and live music go hand in hand here in the South Bay, and this year all of the Beach Cities are offering a full music calendar! Redondo Beach, Hermosa Beach and Manhattan Beach each have an independent concert series of their own. Each city offers their 2012 concerts for FREE. You can choose between a Neil Diamond cover band, Hawaiian ukuleles or anything in between. The Hermosa Beach concert series begins this weekend, each concert begins at 5:30 PM and continues until sunset on the south side of the Hermosa Beach pier. The selected bands are currently popular with top-selling CDs and high-volume downloads from the iTunes store. Last year’s lineup included The Mother Hips, often described as “California Soul; Tribal Seeds- upbeat reggae/pop; and The English Beat.

• Sunday, July 29: 5:00 pm – 8:00 pm Nikka Costa: Funk/Soul/Blues
• Sunday, August 5: 5:00 pm – 8:00 pm Poncho Sanchez w/ The Bside Players: Latin Jazz
• Sunday, August 12: 5:00 pm – 8:00 pm Spazmatics: 80’s Band
• Sunday, August 19: 5:00 pm – 8:00 pm The Aggrolites: Punk/Reggae/Ska

Dubbed “Carmageddon II” a 10-mile stretch of the 405 Freeway is scheduled for full closure Sept. 29-30 while construction crews work to demolish a portion of the Mulholland Bridge, report officials at the Metropolitan Transportation Authority. The work is the second phase of demolition and reconstruction of the bridge. The northern portion of the bridge will be demolished to facilitate the widening of the freeway as part of the $1 billion Sepulveda Pass Improvements Project. During Carmageddon I, drivers proved the skeptics wrong, drivers heeded warnings and stayed off the roads, creating a traffic breather not seen since the free-flowing freeways of the 1984 Olympics. Metro officials are concerned Angelenos will be more bold this year, expecting to cruise vacant streets all weekend.

The South Bay offers a wide assortment of summer concert choices and venues. There are concerts in the park, concerts on the pier, concerts in the cove and what would the South Bay be without concerts on the beach? The Hermosa Beach Chamber of Commerce and Visitors Bureau is proud to sponsor the 2012 Hermosa Beach Summer Concert Seriesby Saint Rocke Productions. The concerts take place on Sundays during July and August from 5:00 to 8:00 PM on the south side of the the pier. Save the dates and head to Hermosa Beach for some classic summertime fun! The concert schedule is as follows:
Sunday, July 29th – Nikka Costa with guest Clayton Joseph Scott Band
Sunday, August 5th – Poncho Sanchez with guest The Bside Players
Sunday, August 12th – The Spazmatics with guest James Clay Garrison
Sunday, August 19th – The Aggrolites with guest The Common Sense Band

One of the biggest days of the year is coming to the South Bay- the 4th of July! Residents of Redondo, Hermosa and Manhattan Beach celebrate the peak of the summer Watch fireworks shows in Redondo Beach and Torrance on the Fourth of July this year. The Redondo Beach show which will be visible from the Pier and Harbor areas and will feature live music and all-day entertainment at Seaside Lagoon. Seaside Lagoon opens at 2pm with many activities for kids and families including live bands, arts/crafts, workshops, water activities, dancing, food & beverage and more! Fireworks show will begin at 9pm, choreographed to patriotic music.  Other shows that are currently open to the public are going to take place at Cabrillo Beach and Malaga Cove in Palos Verdes (shot from a barge offshore). The shows all begin between 8:00 and 9:00 p.m. and more info can be found at Redondo Fireworks. The Torrance Beach show off Hollywood Riviera sponsored by the Briles family of Torrance will once again have its privately funded fireworks show off the coast of Torrance beach. Jackie Briles, 92, covers the cost of the show in honor of her late husband. The pyrotechnics will begin between 9 and 9:15 p.m. from a barge.

North End Bar & Grill in Hermosa Beach is the place for real Kings fans and also for real Kings players. They got a surprise in the early morning hours on Tuesday when Los Angeles Kings players stopped by  to share the team’s first Stanely Cup. Owner John Courts told a reporter he had no idea Los Angeles Kings players would bring the Cup to his establishment to celebrate. The local bar is a favorite hangout for goalie Jonathan Quick and  other players who decided a celebration at the venue was in order. The MVP brought the Cup and his trophy and placed it right on the bar. Thanks to TMZ for the photos.