Emily Plihal
Local Journalism
Initiative Reporter
Who doesn’t like a weekend filled with race boats, princesses, superheroes, laser tag, and beer gardens?
Peace River Rotaract held an event on the weekend of July 5-7, playfully themed Plaid Days and dubbed River Days, to coincide with the annual jet boat races on the Peace River. The three-day event was well-received by residents and visitors to the area, and the Rotaract team is hoping to hold the event again next year.
“Honestly, the weekend went amazing and even better than we expected,” says Rotaract president Louise McDonald.
“It was hard work but the smile on peoples’ faces all three days was so worth it. Amazing weather, wonderful people, businesses participating, and community spirit,” she adds.
The three-day event featured events for the entire family, starting with a karaoke contest in honour of former Peace River resident Darren Gach, beer gardens with live music, a market, food trucks, many children’s activities.
“Our estimate is above 3,000 attendees throughout the three days but easily could have been more as it is an event that people filter in and out of,” says McDonald.
“We couldn’t have asked for more for our first-year hosting Rotaract River Days.”
McDonald explains the jet boat races already bring a lot of people from out of town to the community, and the Rotaract team felt it was a great chance to showcase their town and businesses.
“We have a beautiful Riverfront Park that is loaded with people during the boat races,” she says.
“When there is a break in the races or if people only want to watch for a bit we also provided other things to do.
“We want those boaters and their families to come back again and say, ‘Wow, that was a fun event!’, not just for the racers but their families as well.”
McDonald says next year the jet boating World Championships are being held in town, so they may switch up the event a little. They’re hoping this can be an annual event for years to come.
“Friday night the Block Party was a huge hit, and the band (Kikbak) was great, and people really enjoyed the music while having a drink in the beer gardens,” she exclaims.
“The Art Hub put on a Battle of the Brushes which was very cool as well.”
Saturday’s events included the Mann’s Landing Market with a variety of vendors, many food trucks, bouncy castles, laser tag, and a foam party wrapping up the day.
“Sunday was quieter but still the community members came out strong,” says McDonald.
“The pancake breakfast was busy followed by a flood of princesses and superheroes.”
“While Mann’s Landing Market was a success, the actual location wasn’t ideal as the ground was very uneven and not easily accessible for those with mobility issues or wheelchairs so that is something we need to consider for next year,” she notes.
“We could use a few more bouncy castles as the lines were long, but other than that for our first year as a small non-profit group of volunteers we are very proud of what we accomplished. It was a wonderful weekend of bringing the community together.”
McDonald says they are excited to host another weekend in Peace River next year.
“The buzz throughout the weekend’s events was evident and many people came up to our members thanking us for such a wonderful event,” she says.
“There were tons of positive comments on our Facebook posts and general forum posts and we have heard such wonderful feedback from the community so far.”
