But for the couple thousand people who gathered Friday morning at Keenan's Irish Pub on North New Jersey Avenue, it is exactly the way they wanted to kick off their summer at the shore.
New Jersey shore towns ring in summer in a number of quirky ways. In Ocean City, businessmen make their way into the ocean while still dressed for work. In Stone Harbor, they "open" the shore by throwing a key into the water.
North Wildwood places the emphasis on the people who visit. For the past seven years, Keenan's has hosted a summer-starting event called "Eggs with Peg" the Friday before Memorial Day that draws more people each year.
"We're expecting upwards of 1,500 to 2,000 people here this morning," said Scott Keenan, one of the bar's owners.
It did not take long for every nook and cranny of the bar to be filled with people in orange and black, creating an atmosphere that more closely resembled a Flyers rally than the beginning of the beach season.
Keenan said he wanted to have an event similar to Sea Isle City's Kegs and Eggs Bash, which was voluntarily discontinued in 2002, after homeowners along Ocean Drive expressed their displeasure with people acting up and drinking heavily in the morning.
However, no incidents were ever reported as a result of the event, and many people who participated in it remembered it fondly, which is why Keenan said he felt like he was filling the void.
He wanted a name to convey the same idea. Thankfully, his mother, Peg, had a name that kept the memorable rhyme alive, even if it's not entirely accurate.
"Anybody who knows her knows that the last thing she wants to be doing is cooking eggs," Keenan said of his mother, who was greeted with loud chants of "Peg-GY! Peg-GY!" throughout the bar.
A big draw for those in attendance was a live broadcast of "The Preston and Steve Show," a morning radio program that is broadcast on Philadelphia's 93.3 WMMR-FM.
The morning show has done pre-Memorial Day weekend broadcasts at the bar since 2005, the same year hosts Preston Elliot and Steve Morrison and their crew joined WMMR's staff.
Elliot said the "Eggs with Peg" bash is consistently among their top two most well-attended events of the year.
"By 7:30 or 8, it's just full-on madness," Elliot said of the event. "But even though it's loud, it's respectful. It's not obnoxious."
Elliot said the show's staff tries to make sure that even if they cannot up the ante each year that they book a number of guests and hold events that the people will remember.
This year, Jordan Knight and Danny Wood of the 1980s boy band New Kids on the Block - who will be performing in Atlantic City this weekend - were among the guests who stopped by.
The show's loyal listeners came out in droves. Bill Seitz, 23, of Lancaster, Pa., was first in line at 4:15 a.m. He drove three hours to be there with his friends for the event.
"We just love Wildwood," Seitz said. "And we love Preston and Steve, so it was perfect."
Jay Billups, of South Philadelphia, has attended "Eggs with Peg" every year since it began.
"I've been coming here to Wildwood for most of my life," Billups said. "It's just the best way to start the summer."
While many people came from west of the Delaware River, some locals joined in the fun, anxious to see the summer begin.
"I moved here (to North Wildwood) in February," said Andrea Grieser, 52. "I brought the bad weather with me."
Grieser said she was going to get on her boat after the event, but she wanted to hang around Keenan's a little bit longer after experiencing "Eggs with Peg" for the first time last year.
"It's the only time I drink in the morning," Grieser said.
http://www.pressofatlanticcity.com/news/press/cape_may/article_00f68526-6a99-11df-811e-001cc4c03286.html?mode=story
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