There was the music and the appreciative crowd, but for years to come, Rock on the River: Reconnect is going to evoke stories about rain and mud.
The two-night festival at Hollinger Park was plagued by the one thing the Timmins Festival and Events Committee couldn’t control – the weather.
Executive director of sponsorship Norm Dwyer says it wasn’t the negative that you would expect.
“You know, people turned that around, turned it into the cup is half full,” he states. “They thought the mud increased the enjoyment.”
One-hundred-and-forty bales of hay were brought in and spread out by volunteers on Saturday, mitigating the mud for that night.
Dwyer notes, however, that the back half of the ball park is fenced off, and has always been considered a concert venue.
“The only thing is the ground and the soil obviously wasn’t ready for that many people to come onto it and I don’t know if it ever would have been ready.”
About 1,800 people attended each night. Dwyer is hopeful that that brings the event to the break-even point, while expressing appreciation for provincial funding and money from the municipal accommodation tax.