Saint Ubaldo Day
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Saint Ubaldo Day is the Italian-American version of the Italian holiday, La Festa dei Ceri (a.k.a. "La Corsa dei Ceri"), which is held in Gubbio, Italy. Saint Ubaldo Day is held every year at the end of May in Jessup, Pennsylvania. It is always accompanied by a hose company carnival in the same week. Saint Ubaldo Day is the climax of the festivities.
[edit] Procession
Although called "The Race of the Saints," the actual events are more of a procession. Like in Gubbio, the three statues of the saints, Saint Ubaldo, Saint George, and Saint Anthony, are carried through the town by runners who hoist the statues onto their shoulders, supported by pads. The statues are always carried in that order; thus, Saint Ubaldo always "wins" the race, followed by George and then Anthony.
In Jessup, the statues are carried to the bottom of the main street, Church Street, passing off several landmarks. Once at the bottom, the statues are reversed and carried back to their storage facility. In Gubbio, however, the statues are carried into a church. The only plausible explanation for the "race" is when, if upon entering the church the runners from Saint Ubaldo fail to close the doors, Saint George makes it in, and that leaves open the possibility for Saint Anthony to also enter. The "race" in Gubbio is also on a larger scale and more violent than the Jessup version. These two cities are the only ones in the world to host such a procession.
On this day, one can hear the cries of "Viva Sant' Ubaldo" in the streets.
