By Amber McIver-Traywick

The Surveyor

Berthoud Oktoberfest will take place on Saturday, Oct. 5, in Fickel Park from 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. The event will include music, beer, vendors, German food, children’s activities, and more. Bring your blankets, lawn chairs, lederhosen, and love for this fun cultural experience.

The festivities will kick off at 11 a.m. with music by John Stehle Jr.s Rocky Mountain Dutch Hop Boys. Dick Zavodny Band will take over from there, providing music throughout the rest of the day, performing polka and German music. Colorado German Dancers, a cultural dance troupe, will also be performing traditional folkdances at 1:30 and again at 3.

There will be several contests in which attendees can participate as well. This includes a Lederhosen and Drindl Contest. For those not up on their Bavarian fashion, those are the traditional folk costumes worn by men and women in that region of Germany and Austria. Children and adults are able to compete, and no sign-up is necessary. Just mosey up to the dance floor when the announcement is made at 4 p.m.

There will also be a pretzel-eating contest for kids in kindergarten through fifth grade beginning at 3:30 p.m., but you have to sign up beforehand at the Berthoud Chamber of Commerce booth in order to participate.

For the adults there is the always entertaining “Bavarian strength” contest, involving how long one can hold up a beer stein. The entry fee to show off your beer-hoisting abilities is $25, but you get a 25 oz. beer stein full of beer and bragging rights for an entire year should you be the man or woman who prevails against all others.

The Berthoud Fire Protection District (BFPD) will raffle off two scooters with helmets for a boy and girl ages 8 to 12. Sign up for the raffle by visiting the BFPD tent by the fire truck.

Sixty–five vendors of all varieties will be set up around the park for attendees to peruse, along with traditional German food offerings including brats, kraut and pretzels.

What would Oktoberfest be without beer? If you want to enjoy a brew or other adult beverage, make sure to bring your ID, as everyone will need to present an ID to be served.

Food and factory-sealed beverages in bottles or cans are allowed, but no outside alcohol will be permitted. Cash and credit cards are accepted and there will be an ATM available on site. No pets are allowed at this event except service animals, and identification for those animals is appreciated, according to the chamber website.

New this year will be a “clear bag” policy, a familiar trend for many who attend large public events. The Berthoud Chamber will be handing out free clear bags, sponsored by chamber members, until they run out. A few exceptions to the policy include diaper bags smaller than 24” x 15” x 18” and medically-necessary items that do not fit into a clear bag.

Berthoud’s Oktoberfest was founded in 2011 by Heidi Kerr-Schlaefer, the “mayor” of Heiditown.com, and Becky Hemmann of the Berthoud Weekly Surveyor. For questions about Oktoberfest 2019 and the Berthoud Area Chamber of Commerce, please call the chamber office at 970-532-4200 or e-mail [email protected]/.