MOORPARK : City Peeks Back at Wild West Farming Days

Larry (Nevada) Smith hoisted his pistol into the air and fired a shot, triggering an ugly--but bogus--gun battle on a back lot in Moorpark.

The Wild West action, part of the Moorpark Country Days celebration on Saturday, was fake, thanks to Smith’s team of stuntmen and rounds and rounds of blanks. But based on the shouts of “cool” and “rad” coming from the youngsters gathered near a replica of Dodge City, the crowd’s appreciation was far from phony.

“It’s great to see what happened in the past,” said 11-year-old Moorpark resident David Rodgers, who sat on a hay bale as gunfire pounded in the background. “I like the fights, the people jumping on each other and the people falling down.”

With its pepper trees and 1930s-style street lights, Moorpark’s High Street appeared trapped in a time warp Saturday, a vision of the city’s small town past. Cars were shut out, leaving horses and crowds of residents to rule a four-block stretch that slices through the historic downtown.

“This year the celebration is a reminder of our farm heritage,” said Debi Ryono, the festival’s chairwoman, adding that city slickers from Los Angeles used to day-trip to Moorpark to picnic under the pepper trees. “It used to be a destination point.”

Moorpark became a destination point again Saturday, as visitors streamed in from all over Ventura County. They listened to the Air National Guard Band of Southern California blast military tunes across the city’s center. And they watched a parade with more than 60 entries roll down High Street, with the Kiwanis Club of Moorpark’s float taking home the sweepstakes prize.

But some, like Jon Gold of Thousand Oaks, enjoyed some of the festival’s more unusual attractions. Somewhat of an arachnid-phile, 11-year-old Jon was studying the spiders and insects on display at the Moorpark Mosquito Abatement District.

“I like black widows and tarantulas,” said Jon, peering at the glass cases containing the spiders and big bugs. “They’re exciting. But I wouldn’t want to be bitten by one.”

Others, like Gary Womack, came to the celebration to sample the eats and mingle with fellow Moorpark residents.

“It’s about neighborhood and camaraderie,” said Womack, a 44-year-old engineer, as he downed a carne asada taco. “Everybody comes together.”

The neighborly sentiment was not universal: Police had to stop a scuffle among three high school classmates. No arrests were made.

But many agreed Country Days was a good way to stop the clock and get back in touch with their Moorpark roots.

“I’ve lived here all my life and this is a great chance to see everyone again,” said Miss Moorpark, Becky Bryan, a 19-year-old sophomore at the University of the Pacific. “Moorpark is growing, so you don’t get to see everybody like you used to.”