Festival in the Park '17: Something for Everyone
It’s quite a lineup for Kasson’s 28th-annual Festival in the Park, set for Aug. 10-13 in and around Veterans Memorial Park.
You could watch blacksmithing demonstrations, go splat! or WHOP! in the belly-flop contest, help lead your team in archery “combat,” and try an obstacle course challenge alongside a local Ninja Warrior in Veterans Memorial Park.
And don’t forget all the food, of course, and bluegrass music by Monroe Crossing, and the big parade (with the Kasson-Mantorville High School Drumline), and ... and ...
“It’s gonna be awesome,” Festival committee member Candy McKern said.
“It’s a nice family weekend,” fellow committee member Melissa Ries said. “We bring lot of people to town. It’s a great way for people to come visit Kasson for the day. It’s such a nice park, and it’s nice to bring people to town. It’s a great thing for the community.”
The many new events and performers include an obstacle course challenge featuring the K9 Ninja, Roo Yori, aka Andrew Yori, a Rochester native who participated in the American Ninja Warrior TV show in 2016 in the Las Vegas nationals.
The challenge, open to those ages 6 to adult, will test participants’ agility, speed and strength on a balance beam, rope climb, ring swing and monkey bars, among other obstacles. Cash prizes will be awarded in six divisions.
The event encourages people be active, said committee member Bruce Ebnet, in charge of sporting events at the Festival.
“To me, it’s a lot of fun watching the kids try to do something they’ve never been before, and watching the parents – they really get into it,” he said. “I like to see people in better shape, rather than be couch potatoes.”
There also will be a seniors’ dance, complete with polkas, two-steps and waltzes, and a helicopter ball drop (a Kasson ambassador in a chopper drops a bag of numbered ping pong balls over the softball eld; kids grab one ball apiece and turn them in for prizes).
Saturday events will include Archery Addiction, team archery combat using Nerf equipment (see www.we-know-fun.com).
New food options include Via Venito Italian Ice “an award- winning gourmet, water-based, fat and cholesterol free delicacy of 24 avors. All with a rich, creamy smooth texture,” according to viavenitoice.com.
“So that one will be kind of a fun, refreshing one,” Ries said.
You can also nd ice cream, cheese curds, onion rings, walking tacos, kettle corn, cotton candy, curly fries with toppings from the “Fry Guy,” ice cream from the Faith in Action group, and mini donuts and pork chops-on-a- stick from O Zone, a town favorite.
The K-M Lions Club will serve up burgers, brats and riblets.
“They give back to us,” Ries said. “They’re just so great.”
The festical also will feature crafts, including jewelry, doll clothes, lawn decorations, hand-made bags and such; balloon animals by Rookie the Clown; and wash off -able face- painting.
“It’s just fun just to see the whole community come together,” said McKern, who has volunteered at each Festival over the years, “and all your work pays off.”