The summertime fun continues in Racine County. Make plans for a Downtown party, a three-day festival, canoeing, cycling and more. Real Racine has you covered this weekend.
Make it First! A wonderful summer tradition takes place this Friday in Downtown Racine. You’re invited to meet your friends at First Friday from 4 to 9 p.m. The beer garden will be set up at Monument Square with live music by School of Rock. More outdoors music is set from the five-piece High Stakes Band at Crosswalk Park on the 300 block of Main, Friday Night Lights at Paul Harris Plaza on Sixth Street and Identity Crisis at Indian Motorcycle on Sixth Street. There’s free admission all day at the Racine Art Museum, 441 Main St. Everyone’s invited to the opening of the exhibition, “Fashionista,” at the Racine Arts Council, 409 Sixth St. More of this month’s First Friday lineup can be found at www.firstfridaysracine.com
A big one. One of the area’s biggest church festivals — St. Lucy’s Festival — runs Friday through Sunday at St. Lucy’s Church grounds, 3101 Drexel Ave., Racine. This annual event includes great food (fish fry, pulled pork, lasagna), live music, auctions, raffles and a very popular bakery. Parking is at a premium near the festival site so take advantage of the free park-and-ride shuttle at Elmwood Plaza from 4 p.m. to midnight on Friday and Saturday. Festival hours are: 4 p.m. to midnight Friday, 2 to 11 p.m. Saturday and 11:30 a.m. to 8:30 p.m. Sunday.
See the cars. Car enthusiasts are welcome at Coffee & Cars, a monthly gathering at Roma Lodge, 7130 Spring St., Mount Pleasant. This month’s edition runs from 8 a.m. to noon Saturday. No charge to show your classic car but a $5 donation is appreciated.
Night time paddle. See the Root River and wildlife from a different perspective this Saturday night. The River Bend Nature Center, 3600 N. Green Bay Road, Caledonia, presents a Full Moon Paddle. Canoe or kayak the river starting at 7 p.m. to catch a glimpse of the outdoors under the full moon. Afterwards, gather around the campfire for snacks. The cost is $20 for RBNC members; $25 for non-members. Space is limited. Reservations are required to: 262-639-1515. If you can’t make this week’s event, other Full Moon Paddles are planned for Aug. 7 and Sept. 6. Visit www.riverbendnaturecenterracine.org
Another ride. You get in an early morning bicycle ride with the Coffee2Coffee Ride on Sunday. This week’s ride is from Burlington to LaGrange and back. Meet at the Coffee House At Chestnut and Pine, 492 Pine St., at 7:30 a.m. (weather permitting). Visit www.bikeburlingtonwisconsin.org for details.
Pancakes and more. Bring the family to the Kansasville Fire & Rescue’s Pancake Safety Day at 23730 Durand Ave., Kansasville. Volunteers will be serving a up pancake breakfast from 7 a.m. to noon on Sunday. There will also be fire and EMS demonstrations, emergency equipment displays, the Flight for Life helicopter and cash raffles. Breakfast is $7 for adults; $4 for children ages 5 through 12. Kids ages 4 and younger eat free
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