Rib Fest was such a success in its first year in McCook, an encore is planned for 2026.
During the July 7 village board meeting, Mayor Terrance Carr said the four-day festival that attracted thousands will be back next year.
“Rib Fest was a success,” Carr said.
“The weather was hot, hot, hot, then it was rainy. We had two ambulance calls for heat exhaustion. No arrests,” Carr said.
Neither ambulance call led to hospitalization, he said.
Last week, before the event started, Carr said, “You have to crawl before you walk.”
On Monday night, he said, “I think we’re done crawling. We’re walking into next year.”
The July 3 to 6 event featured nine rib vendors from around the nation. It was held in the parking lot east of The MAX aquatic center, 4751 S. Vernon Ave. Parking was plentiful.
There were carnival rides, a car show, other food vendors, 11 bands, two large tents to provide shelter and fireworks Friday, Saturday and Sunday.
Promoter John Zapa, who owns Event Wiz Inc., was also happy.
“We had nice attendance considering the weather with the heat (all weekend) and the rain (on Sunday). It was a great start and we’re looking forward to next year,” Zapa said on July 8.
Told by a reporter that Carr is excited about an encore next summer, Zapa replied, “I’m glad you told me. You made my day.”
“We had a lot of people who left here smiling. That’s always appreciated,” Zapa added.
Carr was happy that “everybody went home safe.” Visitors walked through a metal detector at the front gate.
“Some people asked me, ‘Why do you have a metal detector?’ You know what, I want you to come to my town. I want you to have a good time and if you don’t like going through the metal detector, get out.
“Ninety-eight percent of the people appreciated that. The other two percent? You don’t want to put your bag through the metal detector? What are you hiding? I don’t want you here. … My first priority is safety,” Carr said.
Two large trucks strategically parked near the gate prevented anybody from driving through the festival, he noted.
Besides the tasty ribs and other barbecued items, one of the biggest draws of the weekend was Kashmir, a Led Zeppelin tribute band that took the stage Sunday night.
“Weren’t they good? Usually, I don’t get a chance to listen to bands. But because of the rain we had throughout the day, I had some free time. They were good,” Zapa said of the band.
Kashmir, which was formed in 2001, played many of Led Zeppelin’s hit songs during a 90-minute show.
Lead guitarist Frank Livingston, taking on the persona of rock legend Jimmy Page, often strolled through the crowd as he played.
Visitors also voted online for the best ribs with Aussom Aussie BBQ deemed the winner. The owner carried away a trophy that looked to be at least four feet tall.
Looking ahead, Zapa said there may be some tweaking. “There’s always a couple of changes to make it better,” he said without getting specific.