Blue Ridge Barbecue & Music Festival Celebrates 15 Years!

CONTACT: Brenda Bradshaw, 828-693-8431

This June 13 and 14 will mark the fifteenth year that the folks from the Polk County Chamber of Commerce in Tryon, North Carolina, have welcomed guests from all over the country to the party they now call the Blue Ridge Barbecue & Music Festival—two days and nights of nonstop fun, music, carnival rides, crafts, fireworks, and championship quality barbecue and all the trimmings!

The Festival is actually a competition that lures cook teams from all across the country because of it’s long history of hospitality, good and fair judging, and the beauty of the environment. It has again this year been honored by Governor Mike Easley, who has issued a proclamation naming the Tryon event as the North Carolina State Barbecue Championship and proclaiming June 13 and 14, 2008, as “The Blue Ridge Barbecue Festival Days” in North Carolina.

According to Dale Musselwhite, Festival chairman, barbecue cooking teams come from all across the country to compete for titles, trophies and cash prizes totaling more than $26,000. “However,” he said, “a very special award is reserved for the highest scoring team hailing from North Carolina. That team wins the ‘Governor’s Award,’ considered a major achievement in a state so rich in barbecue history.”

Harmon Field is home to the event, and annually it’s recreation grounds are transformed into Festival areas such as “Hog Heaven,” where the barbecue cookers vie for fame and prizes; “Kiddie Land” with rides for kids of all ages and carnival games; “The Foothills Craft Fair,” rows of booths where 50 excellent artisans exhibit and sell their handiwork and often even demonstrate their skills; the “Main Stage” area and the “Riverside Stage” area, where music by a broad variety of entertainers starts early and ends late each day; and, last but not least, the “Oval”—aah, the place where unbelievably good food is sold and savored. Guests also enjoy cooking demonstrations, Beach Bingo, and a spectacular fireworks display at the conclusion of each Festival evening.

The 2008 event will be special for another reason. This will be the year of meeting—hopefully perhaps exceeding— the goal of reducing Festival waste by a whopping 75 percent in only three years. The goal was set in 2006 and the “Going Green Initiative” introduced environmentally thoughtful and efficient measures to reduce the amount of waste generated, to salvage recyclables and compost-appropriate materials to reduce the amount of landfill waste. Volunteer environmental educators Katie Breckheimer and Betsy Burdette organized the effort and issued the challenge which all believe will be met in 2008. “We don’t have far to go,” said Breckheimer. “We had a 32 percent reduction in waste in the very first year and went down another 20 percent 2007. We are right on track to prove to other festivals and events that this can be done,” she added.

The Festival runs from 11 am to 11 pm on Friday and from 10 am to 11 pm on Saturday. Tickets are $8.00 per person, and there is no charge for children 12 and under accompanied by an adult. There is a two-for-one discount for seniors on Friday until 5 pm, and special rates are available for groups of 20 or more either day.  Kids enjoy unlimited rides on Friday until 5 pm for only $10.

The Blue Ridge Barbecue & Music Festival is conducted annually under the auspices of the Polk County Chamber of Commerce. Proceeds from the Festival help support Chamber operations and all additional proceeds go to the Polk County Chamber Foundation to be returned to the community through distributions to a variety of programs and projects throughout the county. Funds are generated by a modest admission fee, contestant entry fees and sponsorships. For more information, visit www.BlueRidgeBBQFestival.com or call 828-859-RIBS (7427).