This past weekend in upstate New York, more than three dozen people unleashed their best Bigfoot-inspired howls, hoots, and whoops at the third annual Sasquatch Calling Festival. The unique event took place in the town of Whitehall, a community which made news back in June by declaring Bigfoot to be their 'official animal' and, in a stroke of fantastic timing, a Sasquatch was subsequently spotted a few weeks later.
The festivities, a local newspaper reports, drew approximately 200 people who took in Bigfoot-related exhibits and lectures along with the usual staples one might except from your usual fall festival. But unlike the Harvestfest in your hometown, Whitehall's Sasquatch-centric celebration culminated with an amusing and odd competition in which participants bellowed like Bigfoot in the hopes of taking home a small cash prize as well as this year's title.
Over the course of what we imagine was a wildly entertaining hour, based on the video above, 21 children and 18 adults competed for the honor of being named this year's Sasquatch calling champion. The 'Youth Division' title was taken home by a ten-year-old named Adison Eglin and a woman named Lisa Loeber was awarded the championship for adults. When asked how she would spend her $100 prize, she promised to "give back to the community" by way of a visit to a local watering hole "for shots."
Remarkably, a crew from ESPN was apparently filmed the competition in what we can only hope will be the start of annual coverage of the event. Considering that the channel also airs the Nathan's Hot Dog Eating Contest and the Scripps National Spelling Bee every year, it's not that far fetched to imagine that Whitehall's Sasquatch calling competition could wind up somewhere on their schedule.
