Cooter Fest

     Now in its 8th year, this family-friendly event shell-shocked the nation with some unexpected national attention before its inaugural 2004 run. Ed Helms from The Daily Show With Jon Stewart visited to discuss the origin of the festival’s name, which, depending on who you ask, may or may not involve the soft shell cooter turtle native to the area. There was some controversy that almost cancelled the inaugural festival, which was soon followed by a sort of save the Cooter Festival campaign.

However, the decision was made to move plans forward, and the name Cooter Festival stuck. The rest, as they say, is history and thus began the turtle trek toward today.

The first festival featured guest appearances by Ben Jones, who played "Cooter" on the television series Dukes of Hazzard, and the General Lee was also on hand. There are cooter turtle races, which have become extremely popular, though the races attracted some unexpected media attention a few years back, too. It seems non-native cooter turtles were inadvertently used in the races until City staff realized the mistake. The Florida Fish and Wildlife made it illegal for pet stores to sell red eared slider turtles because they're not native, and the City had to make sure the proper ones (yellow-bellied sliders) were purchased for racing.

Over the years, kayak races, a triathlon and the Miss Cooter Festival and Cooter Idol competitions are just a few activities in the ever-growing events lineup. Along with live bands and activities for the children, new activities are continuously added for a fun filled 3-day event held the last full weekend of October.