Reyes Adobe Days 2008

Annual festival puts spotlight on Agoura's rancho culture
•Parade and art show among the many highlights

IRIS SMOOT/Acorn Newspapers EYE CONTACT—Melissa Fleming of West Hills watches as her 2-year-old daughter, Kate, takes a close look at Julius, a Shetland pony that doesn't seem to mind its floral harness. The fourth annual Reyes Adobe Days, which pays tribute to the rich history of Agoura Hills, featured several new and expanded festivities for the hundreds of residents of visited the weekend-long event.

The festival kicked off Fri., Oct. 3 with a Fiesta at the Adobe, a luncheon for adults 50 years and older. The luncheon included live entertainment and tours of the historic Reyes Adobe.

Friday's Night at the Adobe was new this year and gave about 300 adults the chance to mingle under the stars while listening to Jesse Thomason and Tracey Benedict perform on acoustic guitar and harp.

"There's something for everybody," said Jodi Reagan,a volunteer coordinator for the city.

An expanded Reyes Adobe Art Gallery showcased many local artists, including students. Master artist Fred Stone, an Old Agoura resident best-known as an equine artist, signed posters and prints of his celebrated horse paintings.

ADOBE CELEBRATES THE FALL SEASON— Right, Agoura Hills resident Trevor Nimoy, 10, tries to hook a pumpkin stem with a ring toss during the games of the Reyes Adobe Days Festival last Sunday. IRIS SMOOT Acorn Newspapers Featured artist Sheldon Borenstein, a professor at San Jose State University and owner of Sheldon's Art Academy in Oak Park, had several watercolors of Agoura Hills scenes for sale.

"What a great event," said Amy Jones-Brink, director of Agoura Hills Community Services. "Over 300 people came out. . . . There was a very big buzz about the Art Gallery."

While adults spent the evening at the historical site, teenagers gathered at the Agoura Hills/Calabasas Community Center for the annual "Hay Fever Teen Extravaganza." New activities this year for the teens were a Comedy Sportz troupe, a roaming magician and a skate park. The young people also got their fill of music, food, video games and henna tattoos.

IRIS SMOOT/Acorn Newspapers TRADITIONAL TRADE—Menifee Valley resident Bob Nett, a practicing blacksmith for 32 years,, brushes a coat of wax over the heart he shaped from an old horseshoe during the festival. Parade, car show, festival On Saturday, the festival shifted into high gear with a morning car show, which featured classic and contemporary cars, before the parade with Grand Marshal Terri Nunn, lead singer for the band Berlin and an Agoura Hills resident. The parade, which traveled to the Reyes Adobe from Morrison Park, included floats, marching bands and a variety of school groups and local businesses.

The Day at the Adobe was a hit with families. They came from throughout the Conejo Valley and beyond. Pony rides, jumpers, panning for gold, a petting zoo, lasso lessons and many more opportunities were offered during Saturday. Entertainment throughout the day included a mariachi band, fiddlers, banjo players and flamenco dancers.

Children earned prizes by learning about the early rancho days. Signs with historical facts provided children with tidbits of what it was like to live in the area during the 19th century. According to one of the signs, pony beads were used by Native Americans to make necklaces for their tribe and their horses. The beads were called "pony beads" because they were delivered to the outposts by the Pony Express.

IRIS SMOOT/Acorn Newspapers QUACKING CAPTIVE— Tanner Feehan, 10, of Agoura shows off a duck he scooped up from the petting zoo pen at the Reyes Adobe Days Festival on Sunday. Oak Park residents Taylor and Shawna Driggs and their four children have attended Reyes Adobe Days every year since its inception in 2005.

"It's a perfect way to kick off the fall," Taylor Driggs said.

Between the bands, fiddlers, dancers, games and food, Savannah Zirnite, a 7yearold who attends Brookside Elementary School in Oak Park, said she enjoyed "playing all the games." The "Jumpy" was her favorite, she said.

"Reyes Adobe Days exemplifies the reason why those in our community love living and working here," said Agoura Hills Mayor John Edelston. "This threeday event is a showcase for the community spirit that we feel."

IRIS SMOOT/Acorn Newspapers IN STEP—From left, Agoura residents Rebecca Galvan and her daughter Ava, 2, dance to Spanish music with Dani Paltiz, 7; Danielle Rivera of the Mariachi Camarillo band, and Maria Lanner-Smith, 11, of Oak Park. Races, horseplay and music

A health expo, pancake breakfast, RAD 5K race and "Fun Run" kicked off Sunday's events.

"The RAD 5K Race was awesome," Brinks said. "We had over 125 people run in the Fun Run and 5K. The Old Agoura Homeowners Association had created a beer garden this weekend. We had several hundred people take advantage of that added treat."

The horse "play day" and gymkhana was held at the Old Agoura Equestrian Center. Proceeds benefited the Old Agoura Homeowners Association Scholarship program.

Reyes Adobe Days ended at the park with free concerts, rides and food. LA Carpool, Masanga Marimba Ensemble and El Chicano performed.

JANN HENDRY/Acorn Newspapers FESTIVE LUNCH—The Los Fabulosos Trio entertain Alice Lee, left, a Thousand Oaks resident, and Shirley Hall of Westlake Village at the Reyes Adobe Days Seniors Luncheon last Friday at the adobe. "Everyone contributed, from local businesses, city staff and, most importantly, all the volunteers who put in thousands of hours that resulted in a great weekend of fun and entertainment," Edelston said. "Thank you to everyone who came out to participate and to those whose support made this event so successful."

IRIS SMOOT/Acorn Newspapers HIT THE JACKPOT—Agoura resident Summer Windisch, 7, left, and her friend Natalie Piscitello, 8, search for pieces of pyrite (fool's gold) in a gold-panning activity at the festival on Sunday. IRIS SMOOT/Acorn Newspapers SPANISH BRASS—Members of the band Mariachi Camarillo entertain the crowds at the Reyes Adobe Days Festival in Agoura Hills on Sunday. JANN HENDRY/Acorn Newspapers BLUE RIBBON—Kayla Heyes, 13, a Lindero Canyon Middle School eighth-grader, rides Whisper, a Welsh thoroughbred cross horse, to victory in a barrel race during the equestrian events at the Old Agoura Equestrian Center last Sunday. IRIS SMOOT/Acorn Newspapers NIMBLE FINGERS—Megan Kelley, 13, of Girl Scout Troop No. 579, demonstrates how to play Cat's Cradle, a traditional children's game using a loop of string and a series of complicated hand movements.