La Tomatina en Reno

 It was, at the very least, one of the most interesting events on Reno Nevada's 2009 event calendar. And this August, the Club Cal Neva, in association with the American Cancer Society will produce La Tomatina en Reno 2010; The Nation’s Biggest Tomato Fight for the second consecutive year.

                The tomato fight will take place Sunday, August 29, 2010 at 10 North Virginia Street (City Plaza) at 3:00 p.m. Festivities will commence with a street faire and live entertainment on Saturday, August 28, 2010 on Virginia Street between First and Second Streets starting at noon and ending at 7:00 p.m. The street faire will continue on Sunday from noon until the start of the tomato fight. 

                The Club Cal Neva and American Cancer Society are urging attendees to get their tickets for the event early. Tickets can be purchased for $10.00 in one of several ways. Participants can either: 1) pay by credit card by calling the Club Cal Neva at 877.777.7303 (or locally at 775.323.1046), 2) visit the Club Cal Neva’s event page and pay via Pay Pal (a waiver must be downloaded and signed before the event), 3) sign up for the event on Saturday, August 28 at various locations inside the Club Cal Neva or on Virginia Street at the La Tomatina Street Faire, or 4) sign up at the same locations on Sunday, August 29 before 2:00 p.m. Due to an expected crowd of around 5,000 participants this year, the Club Cal Neva is urging attendees to not wait until the last minute to sign up as they may not get in to participate or get caught standing in extremely long lines.

* Must be 14 Or Older
                “Last year we were rushed at the very last minute with ‘tomato throwers,’” said Phil Kenny, vice president of the casino. “This year, if you get your tickets early, it won’t be a problem.”

                With about 10 minutes left before the tomato fight, roughly 1,000 people were standing outside the Plaza fencing waiting to pay, sign the waiver, and get in. This year the Club Cal Neva will have two entry points and a staging area for those who purchase their tickets ahead of time which Kenny said should make it a lot easier for participants to get in.

                Kenny also said that since this event looks to surpass last year’s event with twice as many participants, the Club Cal Neva has sought twice as many tomatoes. Through a generous donation from Del Mar Farms in Stockton, Calif., this year’s tomato fight will use more than 150,000 pounds of tomatoes. That translates to roughly one million Roma Tomatoes.   

                “We’ve been looking forward to this event since about 7:01 p.m. on August 29 of last year,” said Kenny. “Last year was unbelievable. But this year, well, it’s going to even better.”

                “This event is so much fun and we hope that we’ve started a tradition in Reno that will eventually rank right up there with Spain’s event and give other events in the downtown area a run for their money,” said Club Cal Neva Chief Executive Officer Jeff Siri.

For more information on Club Cal Neva’s La Tomatina en Reno, call 877.777.7303 or email denniso@calneva.net.

Interesting Tomato Facts:

•                According to the U.S. Department of Agriculture, Americans eat more than 22 pounds of tomatoes every year.

•                More than half this amount is eaten in the form of ketchup and tomato sauce.

•                Tomatoes contain Lycopene, a carotenoid (plant pigment) that, as an antioxidant, protects against cancer.

•                Have a tomato with your Burger! When a source of Vitamin C (tomato) is eaten with meat or cooked dry beans, the body makes better use of the iron in the protein food.

Ketchup was originally a fish sauce originating in the orient