NORTHBOROUGH – On Saturday, Sept. 9, the smell of kettle popcorn hung heavy in the air.
You could smell it from one end of Blake Street to the other, and you could see big bags of it being carried by customers.
Popcorn was not the only morsel offered at Applefest’s annual street fair – pizza, hot dogs, sausages, ice cream and candy were also on hand for hungry patrons.
In addition to the food, there were plenty of activities offered by vendors. America’s Best Defense martial arts studios offered visitors the chance to split boards with their bare hands, though the boards were not made of real wood. Close by, the Assabet Valley Regional Vocational Technical High School’s Aztechs robotics team demonstrated its competition robot. It also had a remote-controlled convertible that children could ride, under the supervision of the team.
Select Board Chair and Rotary Club member Mitch Cohen said the vendor turnout was the biggest since before the COVID-19 pandemic.
Despite the warm and very humid weather, hundreds of visitors came to have fun and learn about the town’s many civic and nonprofit organizations.
The street fair was one of several events sponsored by Applefest on that day. Next door, at Trinity Church, it held a craft fair complete with a café and live music.
Down the street, the historical society opened its museum, and it also hosted an ice cream social. And yes, there was plenty of homemade root beer.
A book sale at the Northborough Free Library gave visitors a chance to stock up on reading materials for bargain prices.
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Other events held on Saturday included the road race, farmers market, bicycle rodeo and the home run derby.
Due to thunderstorms in the area, the fireworks scheduled for that night were canceled.
Also due to inclement weather on Sunday, Sept. 10, events scheduled for that day were canceled, including the parade and classic car show.
