Charity Week Planners Set Sights on $100,000

Awine tasting, a chili cook-off, an ugly dog contest and a pig race--there will be something for everyone this weekend at Shoreline Park when the annual Long Beach Grand Prix Charity Week begins.

The festivities, designed to raise money for charities during the days preceding the Long Beach Grand Prix, start Saturday and are scheduled to include a 10-kilometer race and a celebrity golf tournament before ending next Wednesday with a black-tie ball.

Sharrie Dyer, executive director of the Long Beach Grand Prix Benevolent Assn., said she hopes to raise $100,000 for worthy causes in and around Long Beach this year. “This is the first year we’ve made a prediction,” Dyer said. “You’re not supposed to, that’s (the) superstition. But this is the city’s 100th anniversary, and we’re going for it.”

On Saturday, automobile aficionados may attend a classic car show at Shoreline Park. The show, also called the Concours d’Elegance, will feature 75 foreign and American cars that range up to $1 million in value. A safe distance from the classic cars, revelers will be able to sample the finest that 65 wineries and 25 restaurants have to offer. There will be live entertainment and an auction of rare wines.

At 7:30 Sunday morning, the celebration continues with the 10-K race beginning and ending at the Queen Mary. A West Fest, scheduled to begin at 9 at Shoreline Park, will feature one of the nation’s largest chili cook-offs.

Teams from across the United States will bring their spicy concoctions to vie for a “Best Showmanship” title. Things will get hotter at noon with a Mini-Indy Celebrity Race, followed by a Miss Chili Pepper and Mr. Hot Sauce contest.

Later in the day, a dozen piglets dressed in silk racing suits will compete in three heats of four each, with Long Beach area community organizations backing their favored porkers. Competing for the attention of animal lovers will be a group of 20 dogs, certified as ugly by their owners and a screening panel of judges. Previous ugly mutt winners have graced magazine covers, and one even appeared on the Johnny Carson Show.

Tickets for the wine tasting and car show Saturday, as well as the West Fest on Sunday, are available from the Long Beach Grand Prix Benevolent Assn. ((213) 436-7727) and from merchants participating in Charity Week.