Logandale Fall Festival To Return For Third Year

Moapa Valley Progress

The Logandale Fall Festival is coming again on the weekend of October 21-23 to the Logandale Fairgrounds and it promises to be bigger than ever! With a variety of country fair-style attractions and small town activities, the festival is aimed directly at families and will have something for every age.
“At its heart this festival is a community event,” said Logandale Fall Festival founder and organizer Rik Eide of Logandale. “No one is excluded who would like to be a part. We want local people to participate, be a part of it and, kind of, showcase this great community.”

Bluegrass Roots
Eide began the festival in 2014 as a way to help local business and bring visitors to town. He hoped to find a way to bring the Logandale Bluegrass Festival back to the community, an event which had drawn huge crowds to the fairgrounds in years past. But the Southern Nevada Bluegrass Society, which ran the previous event, had closed it down in 2010 and had not returned since because of financial issues.
Nearly three years ago, Eide contacted Society officials hoping to help to bring the festival back. They were excited to get involved with the locally-run Fall Festival, he said.

The Society draws top quality bluegrass bands to the event. This year’s Festival will feature 14 different bands. Headliners like Chris Cerna and the Bluegrass Republic, Get Down Boys, James Reams and the Barnstormers, One Button Suit and many more will provide the heart of entertainment to the Fall Festival. The bands will be playing almost non-stop on stage throughout the weekend.
Eide said that the best thing about the bluegrass performers is that they are a very crowd-friendly lot.

The performers are informal and at ease, and they interact with the audience. In the evenings of the Festival, the performers all get together for informal jam sessions that continue well into the evening. Some of the day’s best music takes place in these sessions. The public is welcome to come and listen in.
The musicians will also provide an instrument petting zoo. In this activity, Bluegrass Society members bring out musical their instruments for the public. With a little instruction, the performers let people try their hands at playing them.
“So if after listening to these top groups in the field, kids want to try playing a banjo or a mandolin or a fiddle; well this is their chance,” Eide said. “And they even get a little one on one instruction from the performers.”

Fun For The Family!
But the music is just a part of the Logandale Fall Festival. Eide has worked hard to round up a diverse lineup of other activities to keep festival-goers entertained.

Returning this year will be the Craft & Stuff Show. Vendors and businesses from near and far will gather at the festival for three days of great sales. Pretty much everything goes, provided it is family-friendly. Products offered include local honey and other agricultural products, artwork, woodwork, purses, bags, clothing, hats, sunglasses and much more. More than 50 vendors have already signed up to be a part of the show this year. And the doors are always open for more.
“We really wanted to be open and all-inclusive to any vendors, especially local ones,” Eide said. “So if people have something that they want to sell, there is still plenty of time to register for booth space.”

The festival will also feature its third annual IBCA sanctioned Barbecue Cookoff. BBQ teams from all over the region will come to compete for cash prizes. In past years, the field of competitors has been fairly diverse, Eide said. It has included seasoned and experienced competitors as well as talented amateur teams.
“Last year a local team actually won second place!” Eide said.

Also returning this year will be a Kids Fun Zone. Last year, this area featured an array of bounce houses and other activities for younger children. This year, the Zone will be significantly expanded to include a number of fun carnival rides as well, Eide said.
A new attraction aimed at the kids for this year will be a Small Animals Petting Zoo and exhibit. The local 4H clubs will host this exhibit where kids can come and interact with smaller farm animals.

There will also be a number of agricultural-based attractions at the Festival. A Giant Pumpkin Growing Contest has been going on amongst local gardeners and farmers over the past several months. A grand prize awaits the grower of the largest pumpkin submitted for judging.
Kids ages 12 and under will also have a chance to paint their own smaller pumpkin in their own colorful and artistic way.

Farmers’ Market vendors will be in attendance to offer fresh grown produce from the farm. And a farm equipment display, with items both new and old, will be displayed. Those who have homegrown market-fresh produce to sell, or unique farm equipment that they would like to put on display, can call Eide to get information on how to do so.

New this year, the festival will feature a Rock and Gem show. The raw materials for making jewelry will be on display to the public. Experts will also provide demonstrations showing how lapidary work is done to make beautiful jewelry pieces out of raw stones and gems.

Non-profit status
Eide points out another new facet of this year’s Fall Festival. Over the past year, the festival has received its 501c3 non-profit status. This means that it is better able to give back to the community. The stated purpose of the organization is to support culinary and music programs in the local schools, Eide said.
“We will be making donations back to assist those programs in the schools,” Eide said. “So that is an exciting new development.”

Those interested in showing items at the festival or in having a vendor booth can register at the Fall Festival website at www.logandalefallfestival.com. Or call Eide for information at 702-379-5919.
Tickets will be available at the gate of the event. This year’s festival will span three days. On Friday, October 21, the festival will be open from 3:00 – 9:00 pm and the ticket price will be $10. On Saturday, October 22, gates will be open from 9:00 am to 9:00 pm and ticket prices will be $12.50. On Sunday, October 23, the hours are 9:00 am to 3:00 pm and ticket prices will be $10. Ages 12 and under will enter free.