LAURINBURG — The grounds of the North Carolina Rural Heritage Center were filled with the sounds of bagpipes Saturday as crowds gathered for the 11th annual Scotland County Highland Games.
This year featured the largest number of competitors that the Games had seen, with 15 pipe bands, 80 Highland dancers, 82 solo pipers and drummers, and 38 athletes competing in a variety of games. As for the crowd, Bill Caudill, chairman and founder of the Games, said it appeared to be the largest one in its history.
“When we cut off online ticket sales, we were 40% ahead of where we were last year for online ticket sales,” Caudill said. “That’s always a good indicator, though we never know until we get those final numbers. But from what I’ve seen, the crowd is spectacular.”
Last year, the event came on the heels of Hurricane Florence and Tropical Storm Michael, which kept a lot of the competitors and visitors away from the Games. This year, the crowd was welcomed with fall weather in the mid-60s and cloudy skies.
There were more than 40 clans represented this year and in those was the Cape Fear Valley Scottish Clans, which has participated in all 11 games. Member Marianne O’Loane of Fayetteville said that, since the beginning, she has seen the Games grow tremendously.
“Every year we get more people coming, more tents and more bands,” O’Loane said. “It grows every year and it’s been nice being able to watch it grow.”
O’Loane has traveled to hundreds of Highland Games across the region, going as far as Stone Mountain, Georgia. She said that, while the Scotland County Highland Games are on the smaller side, it gives people a better feel.
“Everyone here is so friendly that you feel at home,” O’Loane said. “At other Games, you tend to feel like a visitor — but here you feel like part of the community.”
While the traditional staples of the Games were there, like the vendors selling haggis or kilts and the stages for the Highland Dancers and harps, this year brought some new tents to the event.
According to the guest of honor Robert Currie, the commander for the Name and Arms of Currie, he and Caudill have worked in the Scottish-American community for a while and thought that bringing fiddle and Gaelic language tents would help bring more Scottish culture to the games.
Coming from New Jersey, Currie said that when he was asked to be the guest of honor and speak at the opening ceremonies, he couldn’t say no. He added that he’s been in the area both for the Games and for lectures and that the people are so friendly.
”For me, personally, these Games are just the right size,” Currie said. “It’s got everything you could want from any Highland gathering large or small, but it’s accessible and it’s all in an area where people can experience it together … you’ve got 30-plus clans here today, 15 pipe bands that’s world-class for the United States, so here in little Laurinburg they’re putting on some of the best Games around.”
Reach Katelin Gandee at 910-506-3171 or at kgandee@laurinburgexch.wpenginepowered.com
