4th annual pie fight at Coventry

SPLAT! was heard all around the Coventry P.E.A.C.E. Park on July 15 around 10:30 p.m. for the fourth annual pie fight. Steve Presser, owner of Big Fun, started the fight in 1982 in his backyard with his close friends. Gradually it evolved into a larger event at the P.E.A.C.E. Park. More than 200 people attended last year. 

Marc’s on Coventry donated 150 pie crusts. Participants just had to supply the whipped cream. The fight lasted about 15 minutes, ending with whipped cream, pie crusts, cans and pie tins all over the place.  Some people were covered head to toe with cream and some were covered with other toppings, such as caramel. All participants stayed around to help clean up, but Coventry sure smelled sweet the next morning.

Presser said, “It is a nonsensical way to celebrate life by throwing a pie in your best friend's face,” which was certainly achieved by the groups of friends in attendance. Word about the pie fight were spread through Facebook, newspapers and posters.

Not only did friends have fun with each other but family members did, too. This was Christy Shumaker of Cleveland Heights' first pie fight and probably last. She said it was a once in a life time experience, but her niece Charlotte, who attended last year’s fight, will definitely be back next year.

The fight not only brought the locals, but also folks from further away. A large group of teenage girls from Solon were covered in whip cream, having the time of their lives.

The pie fight was a great way for people of all ages to bring out their inner child and not worry about how they looked for a little bit. Everyone who participated walked away at the end of the night with a big smile on their faces saying how much fun they had.

Anna Schade is a Heights Observer intern and senior at John Carroll University.