"We are excited to partner with local pizzerias and businesses to bring the 1st Pizza Fest to LBI!" Long Beach Township posted that on September 8, along with news that the event had changed locations to Bayview Park.
That post went up just five days before the planned date. Pizza Fest still hasn't happened. It is now set for Saturday, October 24, as part of the township's annual Harvest Hayride. Long Beach Township's October calendar now centers on two days that cover a lot of ground. On Sunday, October 11, Long Beach Boulevard turns into a racecourse that starts in Holgate. On Saturday, October 24, a summer event that never got its day joins a fall tradition at a single park in Brant Beach.
How a September Event Ended Up in October
Pizza Fest's path through the calendar fits in a few lines, but each step changed what October 24 will look like.
- August 12: The township's September and October events notice listed Pizza Fest for September 13.
- September 8: The event moved to Bayview Park, and the township published its vendor lineup.
- September 11: The township canceled the Sunday, September 13 event because of the weather forecast.
- September 18: A new notice announced "our annual Harvest Hayride and … our (rescheduled) Pizza Fest" together on October 24, with a rain date of October 25.
The rescheduling was announced a week before the nor'easter that hit the island in late September. The township's stated reason was the earlier forecast for September 13, not the later storm.
What October 24 Now Holds
The township's event page lists Harvest Hayride & Pizza Fest from noon to 4 p.m. at Bayview Park, 6802 Long Beach Blvd. in Brant Beach. The listing includes hayrides, pumpkin picking, pizza and pizza-themed foods, free kids' activities and two local bands. One events site lists the hayride as ending at 2 p.m., so the township's own page is the one to trust for the 4 p.m. finish.
The pizza vendors haven't been confirmed for October. The September 8 announcement named the following food vendors for the canceled date:
- Panzone's Pizza & Pasta
- Flour Child
- Tilly's Surf City Dog House
- Delicias Sobre Ruedas
- Pizza Bagel Bites
- Cinna-Bean Bakery Cafe
The same post listed non-food vendors: Kyky's Facepainting Bus, LBI Sea Shells, Austin 3D, Coastal Creations, Just Bead It, Knotbound and Sandbar Story Shack. The Pickles were booked to play, and a jumbo TV was set up for NFL Red Zone on that Sunday. The October listing doesn't repeat any of those names. It describes the music only as "2 local bands." Think of the September list as the starting lineup, not a promise for October.
One detail from the September notice will still apply. Dogs aren't allowed at Bayview Park. For anyone who walks to 68th Street with a dog in tow, that matters more than the band lineup.
The merger matters because Pizza Fest was planned as a stand-alone Sunday with its own lineup and its own audience. Now it shares four hours with an event the township already calls annual. That makes October 24 the single afternoon this fall when the township's food vendors, bands, kids' activities and harvest events share one park. If weather pushes it again, Sunday, October 25 is the rain date.
The Other Anchor Starts at the Southern Tip
Two weeks earlier, the township's other big October day uses the whole Boulevard. The 54th annual LBI 18 Mile Run and 12K Run/Walk is set for Sunday, October 11, and St. Francis Community Center organizes it. Proceeds benefit the center. Registration on RunSignup showed both distances sold out.
The race goes back to 1973, when it began as a memorial to the Israeli athletes killed at the Munich Olympics. It later also came to honor the victims of September 11. The SandPaper described last year's race as the 53rd, so this year's 54th edition continues an unbroken count.
Here is the race-day schedule from the organizer's race weekend page:
| Time | What happens | Where |
|---|---|---|
| 7:00 a.m. | Runner shuttles begin | St. Francis Community Center to Holgate |
| 9:00 a.m. | Last scheduled bus departs | St. Francis Community Center |
| 10:00 a.m. | 18 Mile Run and 12K start | Roosevelt & Pershing avenues, Holgate |
| 1:00 p.m. | 12K finish line closes | 48th Street, across from St. Francis |
| 2:15 p.m. | 18 Mile finish line closes | Barnegat Lighthouse State Park |
The 18-mile course runs north along Long Beach Boulevard from Holgate to Barnegat Lighthouse State Park. The 12K follows a shorter version of the same route. Shuttles from the finish back to the community center start running periodically at noon. The organizer encourages private transportation and notes that its buses are not ADA compliant.
No 2026 notice about Boulevard closures or traffic has turned up yet. In 2024, the township posted a weekend advisory that described the Holgate-to-Barnegat Light route and asked people to plan accordingly. Until a 2026 version appears, the safe plan for anyone driving the Boulevard is to expect runners from mid-morning until the 18-mile finish closes in the early afternoon.
Holgate, Two Weeks Before the Start Line
The race starts at the part of the township the late-September nor'easter hit hardest. In The SandPaper's October 1 storm coverage, Mayor Joseph Mancini said days of northeast wind and rough surf had taken a toll on the township's beaches, especially in Holgate. In many places there, the dunes have been cut into tall cliffs. Officials began assessing damage across the township's 12 noncontiguous miles.
The organizer's race page and the RunSignup listing both still show the race on October 11. Cleanup is still underway at street level. On September 29, the township asked residents to bag storm trash in black bags, call the DPW to schedule appliance and grill pickup, and arrange private removal for furniture and mattresses. The township's notice has the details.
October 11 Is Also a Last Call
The race isn't the only thing happening that Sunday. In its September 14 roundup of seasonal Shore restaurants, the Asbury Park Press listed Stefano's Restaurant in Long Beach Township as open through Sunday, October 11. The restaurant at 1814 Long Beach Blvd. has posted its fall schedule for 2026 on its own site. The same roundup said Terrace Tavern closed for the season on September 7. A race morning on the Boulevard followed by a last dinner at Stefano's makes October 11 the township's end-of-season hinge.
The Dates Around the Two Anchors
The rest of the township's fall calendar is smaller and mostly runs through St. Francis Community Center at 4700 Long Beach Blvd.
- Saturday, October 10: The annual Spaghetti Dinner, originally set for this date, is marked postponed. No reason or new date has been posted.
- Friday, October 23: Trunk or Treat, 6:30 to 8 p.m. The listing doesn't give a specific venue.
- Thursday, November 12: Harvest Bloom Floral Workshop, 3 to 4 p.m.
- Through Sunday, November 29: The 72nd Annual LBI Surf Fishing Classic runs islandwide. It began August 29.
Trunk or Treat falls the night before the Harvest Hayride and Pizza Fest. For families in the township, that makes October 23 and 24 the busiest back-to-back stretch of the month. Two weeks earlier, October 10 and 11 would have been a similar pair, but the postponed dinner leaves the race as that weekend's main event.
Calendars like this one are part of how the township feels from week to week, and they tend to change after the summer crowds leave. If you own in Long Beach Township and want to talk about how these fall rhythms play into a sale, a purchase or a decision about holding through the off-season, Paula E Brennan is glad to share what she's seeing block by block. Let's Connect.
