By CHERYL ROMANO/Lincoln Chronicle
WALDPORT — Live blues music, prime food and drink plus bike fun rolls into Waldport on Saturday when the fourth annual “Beach Bike & Blues” festival hits town.
While minus the bicycle road races that accompanied the first three festivals, this year’s BBB still has wheels — the local Green Bike Co-Op will be on hand with a bicycle obstacle course and pedicab rides.
“This is just a fun festival for everybody,” said Tom Fullmer, executive director of the Waldport Chamber of Commerce, which organizes and promotes the annual event. He expects crowds to reach about 2,000 this year, gathering in and around the Alsea Bay Bridge Visitor Center & Museum.
The festival runs from noon to 7 p.m., with free admission — and a suggested donation of $5. Leashed dogs are welcome; the site is ADA accessible.
The long-range forecast is for partly sunny skies with temperatures in the mid 60s, which is why the festival was moved from its original dates in May. It was named “Beach Bike & Blues” because it coincided with a major, two-day bicycle race. However, chilly, heavy rains the first three years convinced the chamber to move to September.
“We had built up so much equity in the festival name that we kept the ‘Bike’ component by partnering with Green Bike Co-Op,” Fullmer said. A nonprofit arm of Seashore Family Literacy, the co-op will be on hand with an outdoor bike obstacle course for children and adults, a stationary bike competition, and pedicab rides to the front gate from surrounding parking lots.
Blues, drums, visitors from 18 states
Musical performances will take place under a large tent in the parking lot of the visitor’s center. Times and performers are:
- 12:15 p.m.: Paul Schuytema’s Old Time Blues
- 2 p.m.: Whole Lotta Louis
- 3:45 p.m.: PDX Preachers Blues Band
- 5:15 p.m.: The Sonny Hess, Lisa Mann, Kelly Pierce Trio
A special performance will close out the festival at 6:30 p.m., when students from the local Angell Job Corps offer a 30-minute African drum session.
“This has really grown to be a Lincoln County event,” Fullmer said. “We have sponsors and volunteers from all over the region.”
A bigger net is cast by the festivalgoers themselves — last year’s rainy event drew attendees from 18 states, according to Fullmer.
Heading the sponsor list is Pioneer Connect. The headline sponsors are Rogue Brewing, Pepsi, Bigfoot Beverages, the city of Waldport, Lincoln County, the Green Bike Co-op, Dahl Disposal, Newport Grocery Outlet and South Beach Manor Memory Care.
