Roctoberfest: You missed out!

The rain fell upon my windshield limiting visibility to a hundred feet as I entered eastern Kentucky, but it wasn't until I heard, "The National Weather Service has issue a tornado warning with torrential rains and wind gusts up to 50mph in the following counties . . . that I decelerated my 80mph sled.

"Crap! [edited for PG] Another rained out east coast event!" I blurted aloud as I exited onto the Parkway heading towards Slade.

Thirty minutes later, the rain was subsiding, and I was standing barefoot in two inches of standing water attempting to erect our event tent. Thankfully, Nathan from Rock Candy Holds came over for the assist. Afterwards, he showed me their new line of holds.  These guys are coming on strong. Their continual progression with plastic and their fresh shapes provide plenty to be excited about.

Next door to them was the DRCC with their new Halloween Jack-O-Lantern holds that even have a place for a glow stick to illuminate the back.  Just outside the DRCC circus tent was a 60 foot crane. When I inquired, I was told it was for the milk crate stacking challenge. Right then, I knew then this event was going to be different, but only if the rain held off.

As the evening wore on and the small settlements of tents began to look more like a village, and later, a tent city, things started happening. The catalyst for most of the excitement was Timmy O'Neil. Animated, humorous, and quick with his delivery, Timmy got the show going, and he kept the crowd alive. Six hundred bodies took their turns firing water balloons at sponsor's targets or tried to send crap [PG edit] talking antagonists into the drink of the dunk tank, while others mingled under the large event tent watching The Players movie. As the night wore on, the DJ took the crowd on a ride, and young boys took to the dance floor for a shirtless grind fest that scared all the girls away and left the dance floor looking like the audience of the Village People's reunion tour.

The next day began with the low key and informal climbing competition in the Sore Heal Recreation Area, an area that was purchased by the Red River Gorge Climber Coalition with money raised during previous Rocktoberfest events and through private donations. Climbers were given points for the number of bolts they clipped with incentives for routes of harder grades. Most used the opportunity to work off the preceding night's hangover in an effort to get ready for another night of partying. It occurred to me, while climbing at Sore Heal, that much of the point of this event was being lost in the haze of debauchery and carnival acts. So I asked Bentley Brackett one of the events volunteers about Rocktoberfest and how it came to be.

"In 2002, the Red River Gorge Climber's Coalition (RRGC) held the first Rocktoberfest during a period of tension between climbers and the National Park Service. The focus of the RRGCC then was to raise awareness for climbers as a user group within the park. As the RRGCC matured, so did their focus. New climbing areas outside of the Red River Gorge were being discovered, and these areas showed the most promise for new development, allowing climbers to access cliff without having to deal with the Bureaucratic B.S. of the park service. In 2006, the RRGC purchased a tract of land in the southern region of the Red River Gorge. This land would become the Pendlegrass-Murray Recreational Preserve. This tract was purchased with the sole intention of securing access to some of the Eastern Kentucky's finest sandstone climbing areas. This purchase forever changed the event focus of the RRGCC and Rocktoberfest."

Courtesy of John Evans @ Petzl

Three years later, the RRGCC have crafted one of the best community event in the country. This year's event lacked much of the pro-centric elements of previous events. Instead, the emphasis was on community fun. With a water balloon launching contest, dyno comp, dunk tank, a milk crate stacking challenge, funnel cakes, movies, live entertainment, and vendor giveaways and raffles, the 2009 Rocktoberfest was successful for both the RRGCC and all of the community which participated. Make sure to check out Rocktoberfest next year and if you are not a member of the RRGCC, take the time to join the cause. It costs less than it does to feed a starving child in Africa for a month and it is a lot more gratifying.