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Amid the titters, slithery critters
By MICHELLE JONES
© St. Petersburg Times, SAN ANTONIO -- John and Beth Triplett arrived at the 35th annual Rattlesnake Festival early Saturday, while the weather was still comfortable. They left before noon, shortly before the overcast sky cleared and the hot sun poured down on the festival grounds in City Park of San Antonio. "We always enjoy everything," said Mrs. Triplett. "He enjoys the woodworking, and I like all the crafts."
"I remember when they used real gophers (gopher turtles) for the races," said Mr. Triplett. "They would paint the gopher's backs and raced them (prodded them) with sticks." Since the gophers are on the special concern species list, nowadays they used wooden replicas in the race that has young children competing against each other. "It really was fun then," said Mrs. Triplett. "But I still say snakes are made for killing." And, there were plenty of snakes at the festival, all of them alive. Snakes Alive put on several shows during the two-day event, introducing audiences to several breeds of the cold-blooded creatures. Dennis Moore brought a black Pakistan cobra out of a basket for a closer look. "He falls when he strikes," said Moore to a packed house. "His fangs are small and he has to chew on his prey. How high he stands is how far he falls." Moore told the audience that the snakes in Florida are not as dangerous as the cobra. Anthony Carreno, 5, of Tampa, thought the snake show was "cool." "I liked it when they put the snake back in the box and he stuck his head out," said Anthony. "Everyone laughed." Artie Carreno, Anthony's father, said the snake his son referred to was a 125-pound Burmese python. This was their first trip to the festival and both thought it was great. SSnakes from Brooksville brought a large variety of snakes in display boxes so everyone could get a close look at the reptiles. Susan Sentman held a 6-foot-long Colombia boa constrictor for people to touch and ask questions about. Nicholas Degrosso, 9, of Durant and his mother, Terry, touched the constrictor as it was draped around Sentman's neck and shoulders. "It felt slippery," said Nicholas as his mother took a photo. "I'd hold it again." Nicholas' pained expression on his face showed he wasn't quite as thrilled as he said he was about holding the snake. World of Reptiles had John Storm mixing his humor with education as he introduced his audiences to reptiles including an alligator snapping turtle, a crocodile, a gopher turtle and some lizards. "See this little Australian lizard," said Storm. "When a dingo sees him, the dingo thinks lunch. The lizard has little feet so it can't run fast. What do you think he does to protect himself from the dingo?" Storm then explained that the lizard protects itself by blowing up its throat and making the skin turn into hard spikes. No lunch for the dingo. In addition to the snakes, gopher races and other reptiles, the festival featured arts and crafts, food and entertainment. Joy Burger of Lakeland rented a booth to sell her crafts, including patriotic earrings, for the fifth year in a row. But she said sales weren't as good this year as previous years. "I guess it is time for me to drop out for a year and then come back," she said. "I liked it a lot better when it was only one day." Margaret Beaumont who lives across from the park was having a yard sale. It was probably the best location in the state for one. "Last year I made $500, one third of what I had to pay for a new drain field," she said. "But I don't know if I have the strength to do it again next year." Bob and Margyl Dewitz of Zephyrhills were taking a break at a picnic table shaded by a tall pine tree. "We usually come for a little while each year," said Mr. Dewitz. "We usually buy a sausage or something, but basically we just look around." They even brought their dog, Sparky, who was drinking water out of a cup. "We like the new crafts," Mrs. Dewitz said. "But we sure didn't come for the rattlesnakes or other wild animals." -- Michelle Jones covers central Pasco community news. She can be reached at (813) 909-4612. Her e-mail address is jones@sptimes.com.
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