The Great Gulfcoast Arts Festival is sponsoring its design competition to select the official GGAF poster for 2008. Creative artists of all ages are encouraged to submit their designs. Entries should be appropriate for replication for posters, silk screened T-shirts and other GGAF promotional items. Judging criteria will include viability of sales potential and submissions should be thematically related to the Arts Festival and the region.

The selected design will be announced May 26 on the GGAF website at www.ggaf.org. The selected artist will receive a $1,000 cash award, and the selected poster will be reproduced for sale during the Festival. Only 250 signed copies of the poster, which have become a regional collector's item, are available for sale each year.

Guidelines and examples of past poster designs are available at www.ggaf.org. Design entries must be received by noon, May 16, 2008. Entries need to be mailed or delivered to ARC Gateway, 3932 N. 10th Ave. Pensacola, Florida 32503. This year's Great Gulfcoast Arts Festival will be Nov. 7, 8 and 9 in Pensacola’s Seville Square.

The 5th Annual Outside Art Fair (OAF), is presented by the Arts Council of Northwest Florida. This local art show and sale features the works of over 100 local artists. The outdoor event is free and open to the public. The OAF event has in past years drawn upwards of 5,000 people and this year's fair, scheduled to be held on May 17th & 18th in Bartram Park on Bayfront Parkway will be no different. For more information, please visit the Arts Council of Northwest Florida's website at www.artsnwfl.org or call 850-432-9906.

The first King Mackerel event of the season is just a few short weeks away and getting closer by the minute. The 2008 Miller Lite Mack Attack is set for May 23 and 24 in Perdido Key, Fl. The mandatory Captain's Meeting will begin at 6:30 p.m. Friday, May 23 at Hub Stacey's at the Point, 5851 Galvez Rd., Pensacola and registration closes at 9 p.m. The scales will be open at Lost Key Marina and Yacht Club, the host site for the event, from 3 to 7 p.m. Saturday, May 24 and the awards will be presented at Hub's at 6 p.m. Sunday.

The Mack Attack not only signals the beginning of what promises to be a stellar season of fishing along the Gulf Coast, it also provides several unique features to set it apart from the crowd. King Mackerel, Cobia and Amberjack will be the target species and all boats registered before May 19 will be eligible for a free artificial reef courtesy of Pensacola Reef Builders.

Set at Perdido's Lost Key Marina, located at 10045 Sinton Dr., Pensacola, the Mack Attack is unique in location alone. Add kayak and pier divisions as well as bonus awards for the top lady and junior anglers as well as a target weight bonus and categories for single-engine boats and vessels 23 feet and under in length, and you have one of the most entertaining events on the water. The public is invited to attend the weigh-in and get a chance at great prizesand giveaways as well.

Entry forms and tournament brochures are available throughout the Pensacola area at most bait and tackle stores. All event proceeds will benefit Covenant Hospice. For more information, contact tournament director Brad Sauers at (850) 723-8834 or e-mail him at bradsauers@bellsouth.net.

Pensacola, The City of Five Flags, is throwing one of the longest parties in history to celebrate having the longest history in North America. To commemorate its 450th anniversary, the city of Pensacola is inviting the entire public to a 450 day celebration kicking off at 5pm on May 23, 2008. This marathon party will last all the way through to August 15, 2009, marking the date that Pensacola was founded when Spanish sailor Don Tristan de Luna arrived here, six years before St. Augustine. Shortly after establishing the settlement, a hurricane destroyed supplies, eventually causing the Spanish to flee the area and not return until the 1600s.

Celebrate Pensacola, Inc., a non-profit organization managing the celebration, is planning numerous special events and programs such as parades, art exhibits, heritage walks, historical reenactments, educational programs, a Spanish wine festival and possibly a visit from Spanish royalty. The street party will be held on Palafox Place surrounding the fountain at the Escambia County Courthouse. The all-American event will feature free hot dogs, Coca-Cola and music by the Pensacola Civic Band, and Celebrate Pensacola will unveil its plans for the 450-day celebration. In addition, the signature 450th poster will be unveiled, and Jay Clune and Margo Stringfield will discuss their new book Historic Pensacola. Attending dignitaries representing Spain include Santiago Cabanas, consul general of Spain in the United States, and Maria Davis, honorary vice consul of Spain. The 450th celebration will culminate on August 15, 2009 with a national birthday celebration.

Find more facts and information about the 450th at CelebratePenacola.com. For more information about the Pensacola Bay Area or to request a visitor guide, call the Pensacola Bay Area Convention & Visitors Bureau at (800) 874-1234 or (850) 434-1234 or go online to www.VisitPensacola.com.