Norfolkans will have the chance to celebrate much-loved German traditions at this year’s Oktoberfest.
Many of the events are behind the Norfolk Area Chamber of Commerce building at Seventh Street and Norfolk Avenue downtown.
This year’s festivities will bring new events and attractions, including a virtual reality truck, a kids’ cornhole tournament and new bands. A bucket pong tournament will also return after a multi-year absence.
“We’re feeling really good about Oktoberfest this year, especially since the weather will be in the 70s,” said Austen Hagood, president of the Norfolk Area Chamber of Commerce. “It’s perfect weather for Oktoberfest.”
Doors open at 4pm on Friday 23rd September, with polka music and beer kegs kicking off the festival. Food trucks will open soon after, with a handful of local restaurants serving their much-loved meals, including Divots, Uncle Jarrol’s and Tu Casa.
On Friday at 7 p.m., the memorable “mega screen” will be front and center. Since this week is a bye week for the Cornhusker football team, Nebraska volleyball will play on Friday and Saturday at 7 p.m. The men’s and women’s masskrugstemmen (beer keg) competition will be held after the Husker volleyball game.
Friday night will close with a performance by the Rude Band, who will play a variety of songs from different genres. Afterward, North Fork Area Transit will offer free rides to festival-goers from midnight until 2 a.m.
Saturday’s events will begin with the Norfolk Lions Club parade. The route will begin at Fourth Street and Elm Avenue, travel south to Madison Avenue, then west to Fifth Street and end up traveling north to Walnut Street near Norfolk High School. There are 21 bands scheduled to perform in Saturday’s parade.
“The parade is one of the biggest events of the year and we look forward to serving the community,” said Wilson Long, president of the Norfolk Lions Club.
At noon, polka music, beer kegs and food trucks will start serving up the festival grounds after the parade is over. The rest of the day will feature events for the kids to enjoy, including the new cornhole tournament and bounce houses.
Saturday night will close with a new band called Boundless, playing a mix of all genres. North Fork Area Transit will once again offer free rides to festival-goers from midnight to 2 a.m.
As always, competitions will be a big part of Norfolk’s Oktoberfest. On Friday there will be a bucket pong tournament at 6 pm
On Saturday, there will be a big wheel race at 1 p.m., the wiener dog races at 2:30 p.m., and the adult tournament starting at 5:30 p.m.
“In general we see very good participation. The community supports the event very well and they enjoy it,” said Don Wisnieski, Oktoberfest Chairman Emeritus.
He is also known as the “soul of Oktoberfest” as he was one of the people who started the event about 10 years ago. Oktoberfest first started as a fundraising event for the chamber, but has since become a core event for the community, according to Wisnieski.
