Where to begin

What a great event it was! It lived up to everyone's expectations and probably more, except for the appearance of a little drizzle on Sunday that had no effect on the reenactors. I have been told that the measurable rainfall in Moorpark amounted to only 5/100ths of an inch, but because it rained hard in L.A. and Orange County, our attendance was affected. Although there is no way to know for sure, the Rotary estimates that the weather concerns cost the event 2,000 spectators. As it was, the spectator attendance was approximately 6,500, substantially above last year's 5,000. The "what ifs" without the rain will be for someone else to figure out.

Reenactor attendance was also affected by the rain, particularly for those who had to drive from Northern California and who did not know what the weather would be when they got to the site. Nevertheless, we still had 600 actual combatants on the field this weekend, a new Southern California record. With 15 full-scale cannons, two artillery horse teams, perhaps 35 mounted cavalry, maybe 20 other horsemen on the field, we created quite a spectacle.

Although I billed the Battle of Cold Harbor as "Great Balls of Fire," frankly, I had no idea of the intensity of the battle before it happened. At the safety meeting on Saturday morning, I told everyone that we were aiming for "Glory!" in intensity. Frankly, I think that we exceeded the ferocity of the attack on Battery Wagner depicted in that movie. The reenactors seemed to be pleasantly shocked at how violent it was. The musketry packed behind the "breastworks" on the hill was deafening and nonstop. The pyrotechnics fired in advance and above the Union assault was awesome, according to the public. The smoke and flash made this battle like none I have experienced in my 15 seasons as a reenactor. If you were not there and believe that this is simple exaggeration, you should talk to those who were there. I expect that we can plan on Cold Harbor as being a fixture at all future Moorpark events.

First, thanks to the Moorpark Rotary Club for its wonderful support for the event. Dale Parvin, as usual, came through again in a big way as the Rotary's event coordinator. Lyle Pennington, Scott Moser and Carolyn Schrimpf all did invaluable service in their respective areas that made this event the smashing success it was. Rick and Linnae Brecunier, the ranch owners, deserve our profound gratitude in hosting this event again. Rick was working nonstop throughout the weekend, as usual, dealing the odds and ends that needed attention.

Thanks to Bruce Boxleitner, David Carpenter, Peter Sherayko, Phil Spangenberger, and Sam Gross for coming out and adding a bit of Hollywood to the event. Each of them demonstrated that they knew how to ride "hell for leather" in real life, and their presence was appreciated by the reenactors in camp.

As for the reenactors, thanks to Steve Mata, Jay Paddock, and Steve's staff for once again running the blue side of the field so well. Thanks to Reed Settle for his excellent help on the gray side, and a particular thank you goes to Robert McCrary for his pre-event help in marshaling forces for the event. Dom dal Bello, Bill Schurman, Alan Ginos, Ray Harrell, Dave Kanawah and Landis Potter, the branch commanders, proved once again that they know how to handle very well the pressures of command on the field and to ably execute the scenarios. My very sincere thanks to Jim Mitchum and Ray Chislett who once again helped out with the thankless task of handling registrations on the Confederate side, as did Ray Bryant and others on the Federal side I am sure.

Thanks to Michelle Nosco and the Fort Tejon Heritage Players for their fine music on Saturday night, and to Ginger Alberti for her fine dance calling. The Saturday dinner provided by Chuy's Restaurant prior to the dance, by the way, was a huge success this year.

Once again, Todd Holmes, Don Ancell, Larry Clowers, Ken Frey (and his lady whose name I will apologize for forgetting), added greatly to the program with the historic personage impressions, as did the debaters, John Quimby and Vern Padgett, and dance master Irene Ujda.

Special thanks to Don Worth, the FTHA webmaster, whose efforts with the web page for the event causes great numbers of the public to learn of the event, as well as for reenactors to have access to the important event information.

A huge thank you goes to the men of the Richmond Howitzers who did the pre-event preparation of the battlefield. (I am very pleased to say that the Richmond Howitzers set a new record with 58 or 61 men on the field, I forget which.) Some reenactors who have been to the event for three years still don't know that every structure and object that "decorates" the field has to be erected or put in place each year. Seven days before the event each year, there is absolutely nothing on that field but vegetation. This year the backing for the "breastworks," boulders and split rail fence all had to be constructed or put in place once again by the Howitzers' work party. John Billinger spent countless hours over the last several weeks in helping to prepare for the event, and Landis Potter dedicated four days to pre- and post-event efforts. Joe Galante spent two days on the event. Landis drove 981 miles in shuttling material and equipment to the site before and after the event.

Thanks to the 55th Ohio, 10th Va., and 3rd Engineers for their help in moving and reconstructing the "breastworks" for the Spotsylvania battle. (I hope that I did not forget a unit that was involved.)

As for a few housekeeping measures, if anyone found a Confederate 1st National Flag and pole, please let me know. I have a canteen someone lost. A haversack with a cell phone was reported as missing. If anyone has photographs that they consider really special and would permit their use on the event website or for publicity, please send them to me. I will see that you get credit. I would really like to see a video of the Cold Harbor battle.

This past year, a truly great event at Prado Park near Chino Hills took place. The bar was definitely raised for spring events by this event which took place on ground that looked so much like the grassy fields and ridges at Gettysburg. The event will occur on April 2-3 next year, and this event has the potential to rival the Moorpark event in quality.

Next year, Southern California reenacting takes yet another leap forward with the San Juan Capistrano event on Saturday and Sunday, May 28-29, Memorial Day Weekend. The budget for this event will rival the Moorpark event's budget, and the battlefield and bivouac areas on Rancho Mission Viejo are a dream.

You are all cordially invited to the events at the Antique Gas & Steam Museum in Vista on March 12-13 and July 9-10. Each year, the reenactor attendance continues to increase in Vista. I will be sending out more information about this event in the near future.

For now, however, although the Rotary Club has not officially set the date yet, everyone expects that the event next year in Moorpark will take place on November 5-6. I hope to see all of you there.