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Downtown Medford blooms with Pear Blossom parade, other events Mail Tribune / Bob Pennell Drummer Ben Weaver, a seventh-grader at Grace Christian School, gets into the music Friday as the middle school band practices for today's Pear Blossom Parade. If you're reading this paper shortly after it hits the doorstep, there's still time to stake out a good spot for the biggest show in town: Medford's annual spring fete, the Pear Blossom Festival. Grab your lawn chairs, drinks and snack foods and head downtown - but be watchful for some 4,400 runners who are participating in five races starting as early as 7:15 this morning in the vicinity of Medford City Hall. The parade starts at 11 a.m. at Central and Court streets. About 150 entries of floats, marching bands, assorted vehicles, kids' groups, animal clubs and others will promenade down Central before turning west on Main Street and continuing past Alba Park. If you can't make it to town, you can still watch the parade - on Rogue Valley Community Television, which is airing the event live at 11 a.m. on Charter Channel 31. (It repeats at 7 p.m. Monday on Channel 9.) Festivities continue at Alba Park with a street fair featuring more than 100 booths of arts and crafts, food, music and children's activities. The fair continues till 4 p.m. Held in conjunction with Pear Blossom are a carnival through Sunday at the Slick Kart Track and Arcade, 1029 Narregan St.; a stamp show today and Sunday at the Jackson County Expo's Padgham Pavilion in Central Point; and the 36th annual Pear Blossom Square Dance at 3377 Table Rock Road. Mail Tribune Home | Ottaway Newspapers, Inc. | Dow Jones & Co., Inc. | Privacy | Contact Us Copyright � 2001 Mail Tribune, Inc.