{"id":38177,"date":"2022-09-27T18:54:39","date_gmt":"2022-09-28T00:54:39","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/new-mexicos-only-celtic-festival-runs-in-aztec-this-weekend\/"},"modified":"2026-03-31T08:42:46","modified_gmt":"2026-03-31T08:42:46","slug":"new-mexicos-only-celtic-festival-runs-in-aztec-this-weekend","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/new-mexicos-only-celtic-festival-runs-in-aztec-this-weekend\/","title":{"rendered":"New Mexico\u2019s only Celtic festival runs in Aztec this weekend"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><figure class=\"wp-block-image naviga-inline-image\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/imengine.public.prod.dur.navigacloud.com\/?uuid=05ffddba-8b32-4c9b-b02b-265aa80d0122&amp;function=cover&amp;type=preview&amp;source=false&amp;width=2000\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1335\" alt=\"Fifty to 60 vendors are expected to participate in the Aztec Highland Games &amp; Celtic Festival Saturday and Sunday in Riverside Park. (Courtesy photo)\" class=\"naviga-image\" loading=\"lazy\"><figcaption><span class=\"caption\">Fifty to 60 vendors are expected to participate in the Aztec Highland Games &amp; Celtic Festival Saturday and Sunday in Riverside Park. (Courtesy photo)<\/span><span class=\"credit\">du1-i-syn<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/p>\n<p>Expect to see kilt-wearing athletes competing in heavy lifting, vendors galore, traditional Scottish music and dance at the Aztec Highland Games this weekend at Riverside Park in Aztec.<\/p>\n<p>Proudly, Aztec claims New Mexico\u2019s only Celtic festival, among hundreds across the United States.<\/p>\n<p>The two-day festival kicks off at noon with opening ceremonies, a mass band, kids games and beer sales.<\/p>\n<p>Jessica Polatty, seasoned volunteer and event committee chairman, said her 11-year involvement as a volunteer and organizer has taught her the importance of organization, planning and relationships.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cEverything in life is all about the relationships,\u201d Polatty said. \u201cPeople will have your back when you need it.\u201d<\/p>\n<figure class=\"naviga-map\"><iframe src=\"https:\/\/maps.google.com\/maps?q=36.8219337%2C-108.0072609&amp;z=15&amp;output=embed\" width=\"100%\" height=\"400\" style=\"border:0;\" allowfullscreen loading=\"lazy\" title=\"Map\"><\/iframe><\/figure>\n<p>\u201cLast year was pretty great because people were finally coming out of COVID \u2026 and I think this year will be good too,\u201d said Polatty.<\/p>\n<p>Organizers expect \u201cbeautiful weather\u201d and lower temperatures.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cOctober is one of the best months around our area so people want to get out and do stuff,\u201d Polatty said.<\/p>\n<p>Fifty to 60 athletes, 25 dancers and about 25 vendors, including clans, have signed up. \u201cWe usually do over 500 spectators,\u201d Polatty said.<\/p>\n<p>Athletic events include: sheaf toss, weight for height (or weight over bar), Braemar stone (or stone put), light and heavy Scottish hammer throw, light and heavyweight for distance (or weight throw) and caber toss.<\/p>\n<p>Participants can sign up at <a href=\"https:\/\/www.aztechighlandgames.com\/the-games\" id=\"link-66120d6b8dffd1791f09b6f19daf7e70\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">aztechighlandgames.com\/the-games<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>The caber toss, traditionally a log toss, is a crowd favorite, along with the hammer throw. The objective and technique of tossing a caber is \u201cto flip it 360 degrees and land at 12 o\u2019clock noon,\u201d according to Polatty.<\/p>\n<p><figure class=\"wp-block-image naviga-inline-image\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/imengine.public.prod.dur.navigacloud.com\/?uuid=9402c991-5d38-53dc-b4e6-28b1a5d19d16&amp;function=cover&amp;type=preview&amp;source=false&amp;width=2000\" width=\"1664\" height=\"1364\" alt=\"Angus Mohr will perform at the Aztec Highland Games and Celtic Festival Saturday and Sunday, Oct. 1-2 by the banks of the Animas River in shady Riverside Park.\" class=\"naviga-image\" loading=\"lazy\"><figcaption><span class=\"caption\">Angus Mohr will perform at the Aztec Highland Games and Celtic Festival Saturday and Sunday, Oct. 1-2 by the banks of the Animas River in shady Riverside Park.<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/p><p>The Denver-based band <em id=\"emphasis-902d6dce5151bb8856ec544c88f0115f\">Angus Mohr<\/em> will enliven with an eclectic sound described as \u201cRock \u2019n\u2019 Roll with bagpipes\u201d by lead vocalist and bass player Paul McDaniels.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThe most prevalent sound would be hard rock, but there are definite elements of punk, with a nod to metal and a hint of thrash,\u201d he said. \u201cWe can\u2019t forget about country either, as country has plenty of Celtic influence in it. \u2026 The common thread is social commentary and the need to get a message across at a basic human level. The exception to that is music that is just too much fun to not play.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>The band formed seven years ago, but three members have performed together since 1980. <em id=\"emphasis-f2a453a9bbd6b3ecf9cf967e8c7c2db0\">Angus Mohr <\/em>arose from a six-piece band called Ricky Fire and the red-hot Voodoo Devils, which played regular rock and blues.<\/p>\n<p>McDaniel\u2019s son Matthew, the latest and fourth member of the band, pumps in the Celtic sound on bagpipes, adding to the band\u2019s diverse range. He may play pipes, guitar, keyboards and pennywhistle \u2013 all in a single song. Growing up in Oklahoma with parents as music teachers and farmers with Scottish-Irish roots, McDaniels plans to stay on his current creative path, but dabbles in country and even ambient styles.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cAudience response is what caused us to become Angus Mohr,\u201d McDaniels said. \u201cIt is what keeps us going. It is why we do what we do.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>After losing two members from a disagreement about musical style, they forged ahead with a new moniker, <em id=\"emphasis-c9530c095e81df077987562a513a9bdf\">Angus Mohr<\/em>, by taking the name of a 10th century pragmatist who stopped the Vikings attacking his region by marrying the daughter of a Viking king, thus creating a family alliance.<\/p>\n<p>The four-piece group includes drummer Steve Mossholder, who holds the rhythm steady. Michael Aggson adds edgy guitar on covers of songs by Dylan, Pink Floyd, Johnny Cash and the Ramones.<\/p>\n<p>You might catch them do <em id=\"emphasis-3fc9015a24903f887bac40d39a350286\">Ring of Fire <\/em>or I<em id=\"emphasis-f70b58b041da09ed0b729b6d3a7a915d\"> Wanna Be Sedated w<\/em>ith bagpipes.<\/p>\n<p>Polatty said the band has wanted to play this venue for years and \u201cthey\u2019re really, really excited.\u201d Three stages will feature a variety of Celtic rooted music featuring bagpipes and drums to inspire dancing performers.<\/p>\n<p>Trophies made from weathered willow, created by local artisan Nathenia Roberts, will create lasting memories for the victors. Asked whether there\u2019s ever been any serious injuries to the athletes or participants, Polatty said, \u201cNot a one.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>For Polatty, recruiting volunteers has increasingly been her biggest challenge. Sporting and diverse activities plus family commitments keep potential volunteers on the go. \u201cYou can come up to the front gate, we\u2019ll give you a volunteer T-shirt \u2026 and we\u2019ll find some place to put you,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWe would love to see everybody out and about,\u201d Polatty said, adding that volunteers may call her (505) 419-7526.<\/p>\n<p><em id=\"emphasis-947ea45d338309ef3a9310b363e2f7ba\"><a href=\"mailto:dalbright@durangoherald.com\">dalbright@durangoherald.com<\/a><\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>to 60 vendors are expected to participate in the Aztec Highland Games &amp; Celtic Festival Saturday and Sunday in Riverside Park. (Courtesy photo)du1-i-syn Expect to see kilt-wearing athletes competing in heavy lifting, vendors galore, traditional Scottish music and dance at the Aztec Highland Games this weekend at Riverside Park in Aztec. Proudly, Aztec claims [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":38178,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[],"tags":[28,559,138,29],"naviga_topic":[],"class_list":["post-38177","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","tag-headlines","tag-music","tag-new-mexico","tag-newsletter"],"acf":[],"author_name":"dh_admin","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/38177","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=38177"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/38177\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":83938,"href":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/38177\/revisions\/83938"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/38178"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=38177"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=38177"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=38177"},{"taxonomy":"naviga_topic","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/naviga_topic?post=38177"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}