Winners: 31st Annual NC Holiday Flotilla

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WRIGHTSVILLE BEACH, NC – Named one of the Top 20 Events by the Southeast Tourism Society in 2013, the North Carolina Holiday Flotilla celebrated its 31-year anniversary in Wrightsville Beach over Thanksgiving weekend.

An estimated 50,000 visitors, gathering on water and land, cheered the parade of yachts and motorboats, each decorated with a holiday theme and thousands of glittering lights. The flotilla followed a 4-mile route through Motts Channel, Banks Channel and the Intracoastal Waterway, passing the judges’ viewing stand at Blockade Runner Beach Resort.

A panel of judges, including John Boy, of John Boy and Billy’s Big Show, carefully selected the winners, all competing for $10,500 in cash prizes plus holiday bragging rights. Text voting continued this year, with Crowd Favorite and People’s Choice Awards determined by spectators.

The evening ended with a stunning 21-minute, 4,000-round fireworks display by Zambelli International, illuminating the night sky, and showering the waterway with sound and color.

Fall weather conditions were favorable with mild wind, clear sky, and fall temperature in the upper 40s.

2014 winners include:

Category: Best Overall
Captain: Mike Spivey
Vessel: Angler Management
Theme: Good Tidings to You, Turtle
Photo courtesy Beth Watson Hedgepeth

Category: Peoples Choice
Captain: Ava and Scott Werstlein
Vessel: No Name
Theme: Furtilla
Photo courtesy Brad Austin Butler

Category: Crowd Favorite
Captain: Skip Wilson
Vessel: The Bottom Line
Theme: Yellow Submarine
Photo courtesy Ned Leary Photography and Will Page Photography

Category: Best Powerboat 31ft. and over
Captain: Bob Bleecker
Vessel: J&B
Theme: Salt Life Santa
Photo courtesy Beth Watson Hedgepeth

Category: Best Powerboat 23ft. – 31ft.
Captain: Eric Burns
Vessel: Chuck Norris
Theme: Sleigh Surfing
Photo courtesy Ned Leary Photography and Will Page Photography