(Caloosa Belle/Danika J. Hopper) The Oak Grove RV Park team with the coveted first place trophy.

Plenty of this season’s snow birds flocked to the LaBelle Downtown Revitalization Corporation’s (LDRC) First Annual RV Games. The Games kicked off with a tricky Euchre tournament, and moved on to Petanque, Pickleball, Cornhole, and the last battle of the day, Poker. Teams battled each other throughout the day for the title of RV Resort Grand Champion, and the right to take the coveted RV Games Cup trophy back to their RV park for the year. There was, of course, some delicious barbecue being served up by Pig In or Pig Out, as well as a variety of vendors set up around the perimeter of the games.

(Caloosa Belle/Danika J. Hopper) Dave Lyons, Mayor of LaBelle proclaimed January 25, 2019 as Snow Bird Day.

Mayor Lyons arrived amid the Petanque action, and with microphone in hand he announced, “I, David A. Lyons, Mayor of the great city of LaBelle, Florida, do hereby proclaim January 25, 2019 as Snow Bird Day, and ask our citizens to recognize Snow Bird Day as a day of lighthearted fun for the surrounding RV parks. Let the games begin!” Everyone applauded the Mayor’s proclamation. The friendly rivalry then began to really heat up with the start of the Cornhole competition.

The teams rallied on through the Games, as spectators cheered for their favorites. Soon, the winners of the 1st Annual RV Games became clear as Oak Grove RV Park was awarded the championship trophy. While LaBelle Woods came in second place, and Glades RV Result took third, the determined looks on each team’s faces said they would be back for the rematch. The night ended with the coming together of all competitors at a fun and lively concert. Friends both old and new, gathered and recalled the day’s activities, while some discussed new strategies for next year’s games.