Bang-Up Forecast Sees a Sparkler of a Day Outdoors

Would-be holiday revelers got a scare Monday as they woke up to overcast skies that threatened to put a damper on the Fourth of July.

By midmorning, however, the sun had burned off the clouds and, in a performance expected to be repeated today, produced a near-perfect though slightly windy day.

“It’s beautiful, not too hot and not too cold,” said Cheryl Wright, 37, of Westminster, watching her children brave a ride at the Fountain Valley 4th of July Fiesta, a five-day carnival and celebration at Mile Square Regional Park. “It’ll get them in the mood for the Fourth.”

Forecasters predict highs today ranging from the upper 60s on the coast to the lower 80s inland with early morning low clouds and patchy fog burning off by midday to yield a mostly sunny afternoon.

“It will be a pretty good Fourth of July,” predicted Curtis Brack, a meteorologist with WeatherData Inc., which provides forecasts for The Times. “I wouldn’t be doing any fireworks early in the morning, like shooting them off into a fog bank, but otherwise it should be great.”

On Monday, though, fewer Orange County residents than usual seemed to be getting in the mood for the Fourth. Attendance at Mile Square Regional Park was about average for a normal weekday, officials said. And ticket sales for the annual fiesta put on by the Fountain Valley Chamber of Commerce were running 10% to 15% below the 30,000 sold last year.

“People are out of town,” said Richard Harris, an event organizer. “This year [the Fourth] falls on Tuesday and people are taking advantage of the long weekend to get away.”

But those attending the festival--featuring food, rides, booths and live entertainment--seemed to be enjoying the day.

“It’s gorgeous,” said Michael Zielinski of Huntington Beach, sitting on the grass with his two sons, ages 1 1/2 and 3. “As long as my boys are having fun, that’s all that matters.”

*

Brigitte Lind, 22, a nanny from Denmark attending the event with three children in tow, had but one complaint and it had nothing to do with the weather.

“The food is pretty bad,” she said, pointing to a half-eaten hot dog. “You could use this bun for a hammer.”

And Marie Weed, 38, said that watching her children ride the “Sky Diver,” a contraption resembling a Ferris wheel in which riders make a 360-degree turn, was making her own stomach queasy.

“I don’t like carnival rides,” Weed said. “They’ve been on the same ride over and over, but I get sick just looking at it. They have stomachs of steel.”

Visitors interested in more sedate activities tended to congregate at the other end of the park to engage in such traditional pastimes as picnicking, fishing, flying kites and watching their kids in the park playground.

“It’s very relaxing,” said Jerry Mazenko, 41, a design engineer spending the day with his 65-year-old father and 7-year-old son. “It’s father, son and grandson; I’m just letting the little guy burn off some energy and getting caught up with my dad.”

Debi Yoachum, 39, in the park with about 15 relatives for the annual family picnic, expressed similar sentiments.

“We were looking for tadpoles and couldn’t find a one, the ducks didn’t like us, so we came back to the table,” she said. “I’m having a good time.”