Our Valley - May 2016 by Daily News-Record

May 27, 2016

Our Valley

A Focus On Festivals Plus: The results are in! Best of the Valley winners begin on Page 6.

OUR VALLEY

Friday, May 27, 2016

Harrisonburg, Va.

Our Valley 2016 Best Of The Valley Pages 6-17 Page 4

Page 20

Page 27

Page 33

Editor’s Note

Grottoes Bluegrass Has Family Feel

MACROCK: ‘All About The Music’

Beer, Music Festival Growing Each Year

Red Wing Embraces The ‘Unique’

Dayton Muddler A Test Of Endurance

International Fest Offers Range Of Cultural Experiences

Redbuds At Dayton Festival ‘To Die For’

Doah Fest Offers River View, Yoga, Music And More

Dayton Days The ‘Best Show’

Red, White & Brew A ‘Friendly’ Event

Shenandoah County Offers A Range Of Festivals

First Night In Pictures

Valley Fourth In Pictures

Page 38

Page 40

Page 18

Page 22

Page 30

Page 42

Harrisonburg, Va.

OUR VALLEY

Friday, May 27, 2016

A Party [Or Festival] Ready To Happen Each year, locals and visitors alike travel throughout the Shenandoah Valley to admire its natural beauty as well as to visit the many attractions found within. And, almost every weekend, especially from spring though fall, one thing can be counted on: A festival somewhere in the Valley is being staged. While some of the most popular festivals are one-day affairs, often tied to holidays, others are multiday events featuring music, camping, swimming and, perhaps most importantly, good food and drinks. Among the newest events is one that already has gained quite a name for itself well beyond the region. The three-day Red Wing Roots Music Festival, held at Natural Chimneys Park in Mount Solon, draws about 3,500 fans each day to hear top artists play music rooted in America. The annual event, now in its fourth year, is held in early July and this year will feature more than 35 local, national and regional acts Red Wing isn’t alone in featuring music. MACROCK, which wrapped up its 19th

year in 2016, is known in the music circuits as a premier “do-it-yourself” music festival on the East Coast. What began as a James Madison University student-run event has evolved into a springtime mainstay for a wide variety of musical acts playing at venues throughout downtown Harrisonburg. Each fall, the city is home to one the largest area festivals each year. The International Festival, which now in its 19th year attracts close to 10,000 people annually, lives up to its goal of showcasing the many cultures of the people who call Harrisonburg home. The towns and communities around Rockingham, Page and Shenandoah counties also can be counted on to come up with something new as well as maintain the traditions of the Valley with a host of festivals each year. From redbud trees, to “muddler” obstacle courses and riverfront front-row Austin Bachand / DN-R seats, there’s something for every taste and Sister Sparrow and the Dirty Birds performs at the Rocktown Beer and Music Festival in interest. — Jerry Blair, city editor, downtown Harrisonburg on April 30. Rocktown is one of many music festivals held around the Daily News-Record Valley each year.

OUR VALLEY

Friday, May 27, 2016

Harrisonburg, Va.

Bluegrass Festival Has A Family Feel This Year’s Event Set For Weekend Of Sept. 8-10 By ERIN FLYNN and VIC BRADSHAW

comprised of three Shriners groups: the Waynesboro HillbilDaily News-Record lies Shriners, the Harrisonburg Valley Shriners and the CavGROTTOES — Whenever they erns Shriners of Luray. All fesget the chance, Gary Desper tival proceeds benefit Shriners said the Page County Ramblers Hospitals for Children, a group gladly amble down U.S. 340 for of 22 nonprofit medical centers Bluegrass in the Park at Grand throughout North America that Caverns Park. treat children Now in its with a vari31st year, the ety of illnessIt’s like being with festival assemes or injuries family and friends. bles regional regardless of Everybody knows and national their family’s everybody, and mountain-muability to pay. sic talent anThe Page it’s got that homey nually for County Ramfeeling. three days of blers regularly picking and play festivals Gary Desper, singing. and shows in Page County Ramblers The Ramthe Virginias, blers, DesMaryland and per said, first Pennsylvania, played the but Desper event nearly 15 years ago and said the Grottoes festival is a have been on the bill twice favorite gig. since. They’ll return this year, “It’s kind of small, but the playing the middle night of the people there love their blueSept. 8-10 festival. grass,” said Desper, vocalist The event is a fundraiser for and singer for the band. “They the Shenandoah Valley Shri- support it and support their faners, a nonprofit organization vorite bands.

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Joy Dix (center) of Staunton plays during a casual jam session at the Grottoes Bluegrass Festival on Sept. 12. “It’s just a wonderful experience.” The family atmosphere, he said, is one of his favorite as-

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OUR VALLEY

Harrisonburg, Va.

Friday, May 27, 2016

People Come From All Over East Coast Bluegrass

FROM PAGE 4

The family feel isn’t restricted to the audience, though. The Page County Ramblers have local roots. Clifford Shifflett, vocalist and banjo player, is a Rockingham County native and lives in Page County. Bassist Mike Caplinger lives just south of Grottoes in Crimora. “It’s like being with family and friends,” Desper, who lives in Marshall, said of playing at the Grottoes festival. “Everybody knows everybody, and it’s got that homey feeling.”

assist Rick’s BBQ & Catering with its food tent, assistant Scoutmaster Jim Milham said. Rick Truslow, owner of the Waynesboro business, asked the Scouts because he knows they’re always looking for donations and are local. “I like seeing local people help out instead of outsiders,” Truslow said. Milham said a portion of the funds earned at the tent will support the troop and the trips its members go on. “It’s a worthwhile event and a lot of people come out,” he said. “I’m excited by the opportunity to raise funds.”

Music And More

The bluegrass festival was taken over Fans don’t just come from the by the Shriners seven years ago. Calvin and Brenda Shenandoah Valley for Lawson, owners of Lawthe festival. son Entertainment, held Peyton Yancey, presEverybody’s really the festivals twice annuident of the Harrisonpersonable, from ally for about three years burg Shriners, said before then, taking over people from up and the Shriners to the from Grand Caverns down the East Coast bands and also the Park. take in the festival, patrons. Everyone is The Lawsons, Calvin with many traveling said, sought out bigfrom Pennsylvania, just there to have a ger-name bands to headNew York, North Cargood time. line the event and boostolina, Maryland and ed marketing efforts, West Virginia. Nathan Garrison, which led to increased The crowds, Nathan director of tourism and attendance. Garrison said, are enparks for Grottoes This year’s festival thusiastic about the lineup includes bands music and their supfrom North Carolina, port of the Shriners’ Maryland and Missouri. cause. “Everybody’s really personable, from The Goldwing Express, based in Branson, the Shriners to the bands and also the Mo., are the Show Me State act returning patrons,” said Garrison, Grottoes’ direc- to Grottoes after playing last year. Festival attendees also can participate tor of tourism and parks. “Everyone is in activities the caverns offers, includjust there to have a good time.” ing hiking, fishing and miniature Three-day tickets, which cost golf, Garrison said. Many enjoy $60 per adult ($50 in advance), the South River, which winds or $30 one-day tickets can be TICKETS: through the park. purchased for the festival. “It’s a good time to enjoy Campers pay an extra $25 Three-day tickets yourself in nature,” he said. to bring their camper and The most popular activmust buy a three-day tickare $60 per adult ity, Garrison said, is exploret. ($50 in advance) ing the caverns, which allows Fundraising for the Shrispectators to see “a different ners’ hospitals doesn’t end world.” at the ticket office. Yancey said For ticket information, visit the festhose attending the festival can participate in raffles to win compact discs do- tival website, www.bluegrassingrottoes. nated by the bands or items contributed com. by other patrons. Contact Vic Bradshaw at 574-6279 The festival also provides a fundraisor vbradshaw@dnronline.com ing opportunities for other area organiContact Erin Flynn at 574-6293 or zations. This year, the 20-member Boy Scout Troop 81 based in Crimora will eflynn@dnronline.com

Far-Flung Fan Base

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Dorsey Hotstetter of the bluegrass band Milford Station plays the bass during the Grottoes Bluegrass Festival at Grand Caverns on Sept. 12. Austin Bachand / DN-R

Mark Your Calendars! Bridgewater Home Auxiliary

47th Annual Fall Festival Saturday, September 17, 2016

Rockingham County Fairgrounds

Harrisonburg, VA

Join us from 7:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. Breakfast and Lunch served. Auctions and shops offer a variety of wonderful treasures

OUR VALLEY

Friday, May 27, 2016

bestEats best Downtown Restaurant:

Local Chop & Grill House best Food Truck:

Mashita

best of the

best Happy Hour:

Local Chop & Grill House best Ice Cream: Kline’s Dairy Bar best Late Night Bites (Tie):

Billy Jack’s Wing & Draft Shack and The Golden Pony best Mexican Food:

El Charro Mexican Restaurant best Mixed Drinks:

Local Chop & Grill House best New Restaurant:

Ruby’s Arcade best Outdoor Dining:

Joshua Wilton House best Pasta:

Vito’s Italian Kitchen best Pizza:

Bella Luna Wood-Fired Pizza best Place To Blow Your Diet:

Kline’s Dairy Bar best Place To Be Seen:

Local Chop & Grill House best Place To Take A Date:

Local Chop & Grill House best Place To Take Your Family:

Local Chop & Grill House

Valley 2016

best French Fries:

Local Chop & Grill House

Harrisonburg, Va.

best Vegetarian:

Little Grill Collective best Vineyard:

Bluestone Vineyard best Wings:

Buffalo Wild Wings best Appetizers:

Local Chop & Grill House best Asian Food:

Taste of Thai best Atmosphere:

Joshua Wilton House best Bakery:

Heritage Bakery and Cafe best Barbecue:

Flavor Savor BBQ best Breakfast:

Little Grill Collective best Burgers:

Jack Brown’s Beer and Burger Joint best Cheap Eats:

Jess’ Quick Lunch best Coffee:

Black Sheep Coffee

best Entertainment

best Karaoke:

Valley Lanes best Live Music Venue:

Clementine best Local Artist (Tie):

Kelly May Brown and Mike Davis best Local Cover Band:

Hackens Boys best Local Original Band:

Hackens Boys best Museum/Historical Site:

Explore More Discovery Museum

Heritage Oaks Golf Course best Hiking Trail:

Appalachian Trail best Park:

Purcell Park best Place To Bike:

best Handcrafted Art:

OASIS Fine Art & Craft best Tattoo Shop:

Alley Cat Tattoo best Thrift Store:

Silver Lake

best Veterinarian:

best Place To Relax:

Edith J. Carrier Arboretum

Massanutten Animal Clinic best Wine Shop:

Purcell Park

Downtown Wine and Gourmet

best Place To Take Visitors:

best Women’s Apparel:

best Place To Run:

Downtown Harrisonburg

The Yellow Button

best Place To Walk The Dog:

Purcell Park

bestCulture

best Route For Scenic Drive:

best Gallery Space:

Skyline Drive best Yoga Studio:

The Nest

bestShopping bestRecreation or bestServices best Golf Course:

The Studio

Gift & Thrift

Joshua Wilton House

International Festival

best Salon:

best Place To Fish:

best Place To Celebrate:

best Festival/Community Event:

James McHone Jewelry

best Day Spa:

Smooth Day Spa best Downtown Shop:

The Yellow Button best Dry Cleaner’s:

Classic Cleaners best Florist (Tie):

Blakemore’s Flower and The Wishing Well best Furniture Store:

Grand Home Furnishings

OASIS Fine Art & Craft best Radio Personality:

Bob Leweke best Radio Station:

WMRA best Renovation:

The Ice House best Place To Propose:

Edith J. Carrier Arboretum best Place To Spend A Saturday:

Harrisonburg Farmers Market best Use of Taxpayers’ Money:

Harrisonburg Downtown Renaissance

best Improvements

best Restaurant With Wireless:

best Cheap Night Out:

Panera Bread

First Fridays Downtown

best Sandwiches:

best Dance Spot:

Martin’s Food Market

best Thing About Harrisonburg:

Mr. J’s Bagels and Deli

The Artful Dodger

best Gym:

best Steak:

best Entertainment Value:

Planet Fitness

Everybody’s so friendly

Local Chop & Grill House

Clementine

best Jeweler:

Hillandale Park

best Grocery Store:

one Thing To Change:

Traffic

Harrisonburg, Va.

OUR VALLEY

Friday, May 27, 2016

BOV Winners Offer Opportunities For Mini-Vacations By ALEDA JOHNSON

hairsalon.com.

Daily News-Record

Best Winery The chilly spring mornings are beginning to melt into warm summer days, when Friendly City residents long to be away from their stuffy offices and out of their classrooms. It’s almost vacation season. But for those who aren’t able to venture abroad or to new places can take solace knowing there are businesses in the Valley that can turn an afternoon into a mini-vacation.

Best Spa Loyal clients have returned again and again to the calming atmosphere of Smooth Day Spa in Penn Laird, making it no surprise it was voted Best Spa in the Daily News-Record’s Best of the Valley contest. The spa, which has been open for almost six years, is very client-focused and accommodates every guest, even offering a complimentary snack bar with tea and coffee. “People feel at home here, and most of our clients do become friends,” said JohnnaLeah Backus, who owns the spa with her husband. “Most of the time our schedules are full with returning clients because once they come, they don’t go anywhere else.” In addition to the popular manicures, pedicures and massages, the spa offers guests facials, scrubs and laser hair removal. With Backus being a dental hygienist, the spa also offers oral hygiene instruction and maintenance with tooth brushing and flossing services. It’s crucial to make time to treat yourself, according to Backus, because it keeps you feeling healthy. “It’s important to take downtime for yourself because if you feel healthy about yourself and take care of yourself, you will do better with your overall appearance and care of yourself,” she said. Because of the number of regular clients at the spa, Backus recommends new customers schedule

Photo by William H. McGuffin / Courtesy of Smooth Day Spa

A massage table is seen at Smooth Day Spa in Penn Laird. The spa, which has been open for almost six years, is very client-focused and accommodates every guest, even offering a complimentary snack bar with tea and coffee. as least a week in advance for services. For more information or to schedule an appointment, call 4347698 or visit smoothbodycare.com.

Best Salon The Studio in downtown Harrisonburg also understands the importance of customer loyalty. Ally Robertson, manager and daughter of owner Judi Crawford, has been seeing some of the same clients since she was a child. “Several clients would be like, ‘I used to hold you when you were a little girl,’ and then they were there for my wedding,” Robertson said. “It’s really great to have that kind of loyalty.” It’s their sixth year being voted Best Salon in the Best of the Valley contest, and Robertson thinks their educated staff sets them apart from the competition. Desk associates are regularly sent to customer service seminars,

“We spend a lot of money investing in our team to make sure we’re up to date with the latest trends.” — ALLY ROBERTSON MANAGER AND DAUGHTER OF THE SALON OWNER JUDI CRAWFORD

and stylists learn from industry greats like Redken artist Sam Villa and nationally known educator Chris Baran. Nail technician Chelsea Worsham was even featured in Nail Pro magazine this year. “We spend a lot of money investing in our team to make sure we’re up to date with the latest trends,” Robertson said. Currently popular at The Studio are the Balayage coloring technique, created by painting color

onto tresses with a brush for sunkissed looking hair. The spa department has also grown since moving to their Neff Avenue location, and massage therapists even give complimentary chair massages and hand massages while clients are getting their hair washed. Between weddings, anniversaries, babies and deaths, a lot can happen in life, Robertson said, which is why it’s great to be pampered and taken care of for a day. “In this industry, we’re good people to talk to,” she said. “We’re not psychologists by any means, but you sit in that chair, get your hair done and have one-on-one time with someone you know well and have worked with for 20 years. I can’t think of anyone who wouldn’t leave feeling refreshed and rejuvenated.” For more information or to make an appointment, call 434-8188 or visit thestudio-

When relaxation means getting outside to sample what mother nature has to offer, the 20 acres of vines at Bluestone Vineyard in Bridgewater delivers with more than 20 different wines. For the second time, Bluestone took Best Winery in the Best of the Valley contest, which winemaker Lee Hartman attributes to the community’s dedication to the wine. “It’s because people come out and enjoy the setting, being with us and drinking our wine that allowed us to continue doing what we love doing, which is making really great wine out of Rockingham County dirt,” Hartman said. After seven seasons of growing wines, Hartman has created some of Bluestone’s best vintages. Its 2014 Estate Grown Chardonnay took gold at the 2016 Virginia Governor’s cup and was included in the case the governor took home with him. Also popular are the Moscato and Crooked and Weedy, named for the train that ran through the vineyard property in the early 1900s. Hartman thinks it’s important to stop and smell the Rosé every once in a while — of which, he says, Bluestone makes an excellent vintage. “We all need to take some time for ourselves whether for enjoyment or enriching our lives,” he said. “Some people in the area don’t know there’s this really nice vineyard making really nice wine where they can stop and relax and be better for it.” The tasting room is open from 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. Monday through Saturday and 1 to 6 p.m. Sundays. For more information, call 8280099 or visit blustonevineyard. com. Contact Aleda Johnson at 574-6275 or ajohnson@dnronline.com

Friday, May 27, 2016

Porter (right), a tattoo artist at Alley Cat in Harrisonburg, works on a tattoo for Chyanna Varner of Grottoes on May 6. Alley Cat was voted Best Tattoo Shop in the Best of the Valley contest for the third year in a row. Austin Bachand / DN-R

OUR VALLEY

Harrisonburg, Va.

Tattoo Artists Take Craft Seriously At Alley Cat By ALEDA JOHNSON Daily News-Record

An art collector can spend years accruing beloved masterpieces to hang on walls, swapping out classics for newer pieces when the mood hits. But for those who use their body as canvas, like Alley Cat Tattoo and Body Piercing owner Nick Swartz, there’s only so much room to work with.

So Swartz understands the importance of ensuring the art permanently etched on your skin is quality, and the four artists at his shop agree. “Some tattooers will say ‘the customer is always right,’ take their money and then you end up left out in the cold with a tattoo that ends up looking poorly done,” Swartz said. “But because this is a craft we

take very seriously, we understand if a tattoo request won’t look good and express to the client they will get a better one if they do it a different way.” With the dedication to making sure every customer leaves with a beautiful, custom tattoo, it’s not surprising that Alley Cat Tattoo and Body Piercing was voted Best Tattoo Shop in the Daily News-Record’s Best of the Valley contest for the third year in a row. “Our clientele are who keep us busy and on our toes, and that’s who are voting for us,” Swartz See CRAFT, Page 14

Follow the Features Desk on Twitter @DNR_Features. Reporters include @DNR_AJohnson @DNR_smertens To submit an event to our entertainment calendar, email skyline@dnronline. com, or submit online at dnronline.com. Announcements must be received by noon on Friday for publication in Thursday’s paper.

OUR VALLEY

Harrisonburg, Va.

Friday, May 27, 2016

Renovated Ruby’s Offers Food, Fun Eatery Earns Best New Restaurant In BOV Poll Byy SHELBY S MERTENS Daily Dai aily y News-Record

Austin Bachand / DN-R

LEFT TO RIGHT: Cornell Lorson, Michelle Swartley, Allison Yoder and Dan Baker, all of Harrisonburg, dine on wood-fired pizza earlier this month at Ruby’s Arcade, which won Best New Restaurant in the Best of the Valley poll. The industrial-style restaurant is filled with pool tables, shuffleboards, pingpong tables and bowling lanes.

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Ruby’s Arcade, Best of Valley winner R forr B Best New Restaurant, is the embodimen en of what Chris Howdyshell calls iment th he 2 the 21st century dining experience. A Aside from the gooey pizza and ch hea beer, the hip, industrial-style cheap rest sta a restaurant is filled with pool tables, shuf uf eboards, pingpong tables and shuffl ev ven bowling lanes. Howdyshell, maneven agerr of Ruby’s, said mixing entertainmen ment with noshing is part of the latest trend in the restaurant business. “We’re not just a bar; we’re not just another place to get a burger. I think people are going to come here to have fun. I think that’s the 21st century way

of doing business,” Howdyshell said. “You’re not just going out to have dinner, you’re going out to the restaurant, and it’s giving you an experience.” Ruby’s Arcade, situated on Main Street next to it’s sister restaurant, Clementine Cafe, has only been open for two months but has already become a favorite among Harrisonburg residents. “We have delicious, affordable food in a unique ambiance,” Howdyshell said. “We’re a versatile, family-friendly place that’s different.” The building used to be the home of the FairField Center, which moved to its new location on East Market Street. See RUBY’S, Page 15

OUR VALLEY

Friday, May 27, 2016

Harrisonburg, Va.

Local Chop Wins In Nine Categories This Year By SHELBY MERTENS Daily News-Record

Local Chop & Grill House swept the Best of the Valley poll again this year claiming victory in nine categories. The popular chop house was voted by readers as the coveted Best Downtown Restaurant, Best Place to Take a Date, Best Place to Take the Family, Best Place to be Seen, as well as serving up the Best French Fries, Best Steak, Best Appetizers, Best Mixed Drinks and Best Happy Hour. The owners of Local Chop also own The Joshua

Wilton House, which took home three awards: Best Atmosphere, Best Outdoor Dining and Best Place to Celebrate in its first year under new leadership. “It’s flattering,” said Brad Reese, general manager of Local Chop & Grill House and The Joshua Wilton House. “This is our first year with the Wilton House, so we’re thrilled about that, but we seem to do pretty well. We have a good following, I’d like to think anyway.” Local Chop first opened in the historic City Produce Exchange building down-

Construction workers work on the roof of the patio at the Local Chop & Grill House last year. The downtown restaurant swept the Best of the Valley poll again this year claiming victory in nine categories. Austin Bachand / DN-R

town in 2009 and quickly leapt into the spotlight as one of Harrisonburg’s best steakhouses among the other restaurants in Virginia’s first Culinary District. The rustic, upscale yet comfortable restaurant offers a variety of steaks, pork chops as well as chicken and duck breast. There’s also a tofu “steak” for the nonmeat eaters. Diners are able to select their own rubs in addition to an array of sauc-

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their choice of side. Beef is at the heart of the restaurant’s menu, but Reese said head chef Jakob Napotnik has an eye for mixing things up. “We have a fun menu. It kind of bounces around,” Reese said. “You’ll see Asian-inspired, Southern-inspired, occasionally you’ll see an Irish dish, so it’s a broad spectrum of items that we have.” But what separates Local Chop from the rest? Reese said he thinks it’s their strong farm-to-table relationships in the community. “We care about the community, that’s part of our whole theme here with the farmers,” he said. “But I think we try to put a good product out, and I think the locals appreciate it. We try to be consistent.” Reese said the restaurant buys their meat from about 50 local farms from the Shenandoah Valley region. While Reese said the beef on the current menu comes from a farm in Kansas, local farms that Local Chop uses includes Baker Farm in Mount Jackson, Autumn

Olive Farms in Waynesboro, Glen Eco Farm in Linville, Season’s Bounty Farm in Harrisonburg and Shenandoah Valley Organic, also based in the Friendly City. “We do a lot of research to where we get our goods from, but we try to get as much local as possible,” he said. But buying the bulk of your meat locally does have drawbacks, and Reese said it hasn’t always been smooth sailing. “There’s a lot of costs and work that goes into sourcing locally. It’s not as easy as having the US Foods truck show up and deliver all of your goods,” he said. “There’s a lot of invoicing, there’s a lot of going out to the farmers markets making those connections, so it was a challenge opening up.” Now that Local Chop has had time to establish themselves in the farming community, the next obstacle is pricing. “It’s tough with pricing. It’s a challenge because you don’t want to be overpriced,” See CHOP, Page 11

Harrisonburg, Va.

OUR VALLEY

Friday, May 27, 2016

Acquired Wilton House In May 2015 Chop

FROM PAGE 10

Reese said. “There’s a fine line you have to walk to be a value. A lot of local beef and even local chicken is at a higher cost to make.” Local Chop also serves locally brewed beers like Pale Fire, Brothers Craft Brewing and Three Notch’d, as well as local wines from Bluestone Vineyard, CrossKeys Vineyards and Prince Michel Winery. Another challenge the restaurant faces is parking, which is why it offers valet service. It’s an added cost, but a necessary one, Reese said, because there’s only four spaces available in front of the eatery. This year marks the first time Local Chop has won the Best French Fries category, which Reese said was a feat they have been working toward. “We’ve actually been wanting that one for a while,” he said. “We fry our french fries in duck fat. Duck fat is expensive, but that’s what’s kind of unique about it. It adds a little bit of richness to the fry, they’re really great, and we serve it with a housemade peach ketchup.” The restaurant has switched back and forth with Food.Bar.Food for the win in the Best Cocktail category. Reese said the new head bartender Ben Nelson may be attributed to this year’s triumph. “He really just keeps elevating our cocktail program,” Reese said. “He’s really taken our cocktail program and grown it. That was one I was very pleased to see we won.” The three owners of Local Chop & Grill House — Jeff Hill, Joe Ervin and Rodney Eagle — acquired The Joshua Wilton House, a historic Victorian home with both a

fine dining restaurant and inn, in May 2015. A few renovations were made, and the restaurant reopened in August of last year. “It is very much different [from Local Chop],” Reese said. “It’s been operating as an inn and restaurant for a very long time, so we had big shoes to fill following the previous owners. It’s been a challenge for us, but we wanted to make sure that the identities are different.” The menu at Joshua Wilton House is more focused on small plates as opposed to entrees like Local Chop, Reese said. The menu is not as customizable as Local Chop, with the chef choosing the sides and sauces. Reese said he is most proud of Joshua Wilton’s breakfast. “Our breakfast is fantastic, and I think it’s one of our top selling points,” he said. The four fireplaces around the restaurant, along with dim lighting, creates a comfy, cool ambiance, Reese said. The restaurant did win Best Atmosphere. “It’s great for a date night,” Reese said. “If you come in there during the winter, you’ll grab a table with a nice fire right next to you … The bar area is fantastic. We have one of the fireplaces near there as well. I think it lends to that. It’s kind of dim lighting, it’s candlelit.” The outdoor dining space is also serene for diners. “Great patio space out back,” Reese said. “We do twinkle lights during the summer season, so as the night comes, it puts a really good vibe out there.” With a total of 12 Best of the Valley wins this year, the bar has been set high for Reese and his team. “The great thing about setting the bar high is that it makes us all perform at a higher level,” he said.

The owners of Local Chop also own The Joshua Wilton House, which took home Best Atmosphere, Best Outdoor Dining and Best Place to Celebrate. Nikki Fox / DN-R

“In a restaurant, you can’t be stagnant, or you’ll get passed by. You have to keep pushing the next new trend. You have to be a part of setting the trend and not just riding it … [The awards] are just a testament to how strong our team is.” Contact Shelby Mertens at 5746274 or smertens@dnronline.com

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OUR VALLEY

Friday, May 27, 2016

Harrisonburg, Va.

Throughout Changes, Little Grill Still A Local Favorite City Eatery Wins Best Breakfast, Vegetarian By SHELBY MERTENS Daily News-Record

The Little Grill Collective has become a breakfast and veggie-friendly haven in Harrisonburg, winning Best of the Valley’s Best Breakfast and Best Vegetarian Restaurant year after year. The restaurant, which won both categories last year and in many years past, dates back to the 1940s when it was just known as The Little Grill. Changing hands several times over the years, it became a co-op in 2003, which is when the meatless menu items began to emerge. As consumers become more and more drawn to vegetarian, vegan and gluten-free diets, The Little Grill has been there to fulfill that need, according to Camille

Sallette, one of the 10 owners of the worker-owned collective. “We’re always happy that people recognize us as the place to go for vegetarian [and breakfast] food because we try really hard for it to be that place,” Sallette said. While most vegetarian and vegan restaurants offer lunch and dinner menus, a breakfast-focused one is a rarity, Sallette said. Last year, The Little Grill changed its hours from 7 a.m. to 9 p.m. to 7 a.m. to 3 p.m. to focus on what the eatery does best. “I think our pancakes are a big deal. A lot of times, people have a hard time getting gluten-free vegan things, so I think that’s what we’re well known for, [and] not just vegetarian, but catering to people who can’t have dairy or [gluten],” she said. “You can get a full meal without having to worry if it’s ever touched meat or if it’s touched anything with gluten, so

Daniel Lin / DN-R

Little Grill Collective part-owner Camille Sallette (center) answers questions from diners during the lunch rush earlier this month. I think people are really comfortable coming here.” Sallette said The Little Grill had low attendance in the evening, which she attributed to be-

ing farther away from the main downtown hub. The restaurant also prides itself on offering brunch every day of the week, unlike most down-

town restaurants that only serve brunch on the weekends. And while customers can order meat options off the menu, Sallette said the non-meat dishes are the most popular. “Our best sellers are our vegetarian options for sure,” she said. “We actually took a couple of meat options off because they were the lowest selling out of everything.” However, meat can be added to vegetarian and vegan options. Most of The Little Grill’s food comes from local sources such as Edgewood Farm, Season’s Bounty Farm, Shenandoah Valley Produce Auction, Hickory Hill Farm and First Gate Halal Market. The restaurant keeps the names of the farms it uses written on the wall. “We work with a lot of local farmers, and we rotate our menu seasonally every quarter, and we pull from different local places to See GRILL, Page 16

Harrisonburg, Va.

OUR VALLEY

Friday, May 27, 2016

Customer-Driven Approach Pays Off For Gym Owners For Top Gym, Voters Pick Planet Fitness By ALEDA JOHNSON Daily News-Record

Four years ago, Brad Driver and business partner Stacey Jennings were looking to take their business prowess into the fitness arena. Hearing about the Planet Fitness for sale on East Market Street in Harrisonburg, Driver hopped in his car to drive over to call the current owner. On finding the rights had just been sold, Driver and Jennings decided to move their dream to North Carolina, opening three successful franchises there.

But in August 2015, Best of the Valley contest. the Harrisonburg resBeing recognized was idents came full circle validating after all the when they were hard work the again given the pair put into “The most opportunity to their newest purchase the significant thing project. rights to the “We’re in rethat we’ve done East Market cord member... is training the ship territory Street location. J u m p i n g employees to think for the gym, at the chance, and that hapabout the Driver and Jenpened about the customers first.” time we won, nings brought their business — BRAD DRIVER so we’re on a model of excepCO-OWNER AT PLANET high right now,” FITNESS ON EAST Driver tional customer said. MARKET STREET “It seems that service to the location, and all with winning their work has this award and finally paid off. getting this recognition, For the first time, we’re hearing our cusPlanet Fitness on Market tomers say, ‘We like what Street in Harrisonburg you’re doing, and we like was voted Best Gym in the Daily News-Record’s See GYM, Page 17

Photo by Holly Marcus / Special to the DN-R

Brad Driver (left) and Stacey Jennings, owners of Planet Fitness in Harrisonburg, took over the franchise last August. The business won the Best of the Valley vote for Best Gym.

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OUR VALLEY

Friday, May 27, 2016

Harrisonburg, Va.

Owner: ‘We Don’t Want To Directly Copy Anyone’ Craft

FROM PAGE 8

said. “We don’t do a whole lot of advertising anymore like we did when we first started, so we rely on a lot of word of mouth to keep us busy.” The shop won’t tattoo anyone under 18, but Swartz said other than being a mature adult, there aren’t any guidelines to follow when deciding to get some ink. “You have to accept that this is forever, so you can live with what you’ve got,” he said. “I have tats from when I was 18 that I probably wouldn’t get today, but I don’t have anything crude, offensive, an ex’s name or anything.” While some customers

get tattoos because they have special meaning, Swartz insists there’s nothing wrong with getting a tattoo because it’s cool. “The bottom line is everyone gets tattooed to look cooler,” he said. “We were inspired by someone else and thought it would be cool to have that tattooed on us, and there is absolutely nothing wrong with that.” The cool factor of certain tattoos are why symbols such as roses, skulls, panthers and eagles are still some of the post popular designs in the tattoo world. Just walking into the shop, customers can pull inspiration from the

hand drawn American and Japanese traditional-style artwork covering

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the walls — and ceiling in some places — in a tightly packed mosaic. But not everyone sticks to traditional styles, and just like clothing, tattoos can fall victim to fashion trends, which Swartz’s artists try to persuade their customers away from. Two of the biggest trends right now are white and watercolor tattoos. White ink tattoos are less prominent and look like scarring, but white ink isn’t meant to be used by itself, according to Swartz. “White tattoo pigment is used to make fades from darker to lighter shades,” he said. “If you do a tattoo in white, it looks cool in the moment, but it won’t hold up, either falling out or turning yellowish.” Watercolor tattoos blend vibrant colors to create an image similar to Vincent Van Gogh, but Swartz warns the lack of black ink in the tattoos

Photos by Austin Bachand / DN-R

TOP: Art hangs on the walls of Alley Cat as Andrew Conner sits at his desk earlier this month. Two of the biggest trends right now are white and watercolor tattoos. can cause the color to dis- they’re so common anysipate, spread and look way,” he said. “If you’re getting something that’s blurry over time. Following trends also the flavor of the month, means having a less you may get bored two years from now when you unique tattoo. When customers pull go to the beach and see images from the internet, ten other people with a Swartz’s artists are hap- very similar tattoo.” For more information py to work with the customer, using that image about Alley Cat, call 434as inspiration, and create 4700 or visit the shop’s a custom tattoo without Facebook page. copying the old one. Contact Aleda Johnson at “We don’t want to di574-6275 or rectly copy anyone else’s ajohnson@dnronline.com. tattoos, but sometimes

OUR VALLEY

Harrisonburg, Va.

Friday, May 27, 2016

Lunch Hours Start In June Ruby’s

FROM PAGE 9

The transformation from legal mediation center to arcade restaurant took two years, and Howdyshell, a maintenance technician by trade, helped build the place. Ruby’s forte is its wood oven-fired pizza and barbecue. A 12-inch pizza starts at $9.95 with additional $1 for each topping. The specialty pizzas have funky names like “The Bern,” “The Keanu” and “The Swayze.” Burgers are $4.95. The restaurant also serves pulled pork, beef brisket, pork ribs as well as fried chicken and catfish. The appetizers are typical bar food: wings, nachos, mozzarella sticks and bacon hush puppies. The kitchen has its own meat smoker for the freshest flavors. “We smoke meats everyday, which is kind of a big deal in the restaurant world because a lot of people either get their meat smoked from somewhere else and get it brought in, or they have to do it off-site somewhere,” Howdyshell said. The restaurant also has its own made-from-scratch bakery on site where all the bread is made. Ruby’s Deal allows customers to get a large two-topping pizza and a pitcher of Pabst Blue Ribbon for $17.95. Ruby’s bar keeps eight beers on tap and offers $5 specialty cocktails. “I want to be able to … play a game, eat and have a beer [and] $20 should take care of all that — and that’s basically what we’re offering,” Howdyshell said. While board games and cards are free for customers to play, the smaller games

Austin Bachand / DN-R

Ian Heeringa (foreground), 12, of Harrisonburg, bowls while Krista Gwilliam helps Jack Gwilliam, 3, and Camilee Jerlinski, 3, with their game at Ruby’s Arcade earlier this month. cost $5 an hour. There’s an antique organ and antique pool table, which was found in the basement of the former Virginia Theater near Jess’ Lunch. Howdyshell said the pool table is believed to have been built in the early 1900s. Ruby’s has three pool tables available for $12 an hour each. Other games include two shuffleboards — 9 ft. and 14 ft. — two pingpong tables, two foosball tables and darts. There’s also plenty of small hangout areas with comfy chairs. “We’re just trying to be a place you can go to, to do more than just have a beer. You can actually play a game and have fun and watch people play games and eat wonderful food,” Howdyshell said. The bowling machines are antique as well. Howdyshell said the duckpin equipment was purchased from a closing bowling alley in Baltimore. “We have four antique duckpin pinsetters that are the model for ’50s American ingenuity and industrial manufacturing,” Howdy-

shell said. “It’s just a unique experience. There’s not a lot of duckpin bowling in America.” Bowling at Ruby’s costs $20 an hour for up to four people. No shoe rentals required. But don’t expect to see any video games at the arcade. “When we say ‘arcade,’ we mean the old term of arcade,” Howdyshell said. “The original arcades had pool tables.” The venue is available

for hosting birthday parties, business parties and other small gatherings. The restaurant also hosts

various tournaments for pingpong and foosball. Howdyshell attributes Ruby’s success to its widespread appeal. “We had this big space, and we wanted to do as much fun, different stuff as we could. We wanted to make this place unique and fun, and not just for the college kids,” he said. “We’re a place for families, and then when the evening progresses and the families go out, then the younger people come in.” The walls of Ruby’s Arcade were painted by six local artists. Howdyshell said no specific theme was given. “We had no idea what it was going to look like, but it all looks awesome,” he said. “And they all look totally different.” Only one mural’s subject was selected. While the construction crews were gutting the place, How-

dyshell found an old can of cleaner that was used when the building was a garage for cars in the 1930s and ’40s. The can features an image of a smiling man, which Howdyshell had artist Elliott Downs paint on the wall for an industrial-retro vibe. While the restaurant currently opens at 4 p.m., Ruby’s will begin to serve a lunch buffet in June, which Howdyshell said will include pizza, barbecue, soup and salad “under ten bucks.” Lunch will start at 11:30 a.m. “Opening up for lunch is going to be good for us, and we’re excited about it,” Howdyshell said. Next year, Howdyshell hopes Ruby’s Arcade will win “Still Going Strong Restaurant.” Contact Shelby Mertens at 574-6274 or smertens@dnronline.com

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OUR VALLEY

Friday, May 27, 2016

Harrisonburg, Va.

After Longstanding Cash-Only Policy, Restaurant Now Accepts Credit Cards Grill

FROM PAGE 12

get our veggies, our potatoes and other things like that,” Sallette said. The Little Grill offers a variety of omelets, burritos and sandwiches on its breakfast menu, with Mexican and Mediterranean-inspired fusion in certain dishes. According to Sallette, the most popular item on the menu is the ultra-light, fluffy Blue Monkey pancakes, cooked with bananas in the batter along with fresh eggs and blueberries. Other popular breakfast items include the Pesto Potato Boat, which Sallette described as “phenomenal” — complete with spiced fried potatoes, seasoned veggies, muenster cheese and spring pesto — and Seasonal Beth’s Favorite, two scrambled eggs with cheddar and seasoned veggies. For meatless folks, there’s also a veggie omelet and tofu scrambler.

The gravy served with the biscuits is vegetarian as well, Sallette said. The most commonly ordered lunch menu item is the Tempeh Reuben, which is topped with housemade sauerkraut, Thousand Island dressing, onion and Swiss cheese on rye bread, which Sallette said satisfies the taste buds of even the most carnivorous. “I’ve had meat eaters have it, and they love it,” she said. The restaurant also whips up its own madefrom-scratch falafel. The Go Ask Alyce Falafel wrap is another lunch favorite, Sallette said. The Little Grill became a collective after former owner Ron Copeland, who took over the restaurant in 1992, sold it to some of the workers in 2003, which led to the emergence of a veggie-heavy menu. “The people who were working there at the time happened to be mostly vegetarian and mostly healthy

Daniel Lin / DN-R

Diners at the Little Grill Collective enjoy lunch earlier this month. Two years ago the restaurant underwent a makeover, replacing the tables, doors and paint job. The bathroom and kitchen were also renovated. food eaters, so they crafted the menu to be like that, and it’s been like that ever since,” Sallette said. Sallette has worked at several restaurants

in downtown Harrisonburg and has noticed the menus have evolved with more veggie options popping up. “I’ve seen that the

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menus all across the board have changed,” she said. “There’s always a vegan or gluten-free option at most places now unless you’re going to a chain

restaurant, but even then, I think they’re picking up on it too.” The Little Grill, at 621 N. Main St., has been in the same shop since it first opened over 75 years ago. Before turning into a hip restaurant, Sallette said, the building was used as a pool house for the swimming pool that is now a parking lot. Two years ago the restaurant underwent a makeover, replacing the tables, doors and paint job. The bathroom and kitchen was also renovated. The most recent update has been its payment system. The restaurant now accepts credit cards after operating as a longstanding cash-only business. “It’s really changed the accessibility of our restaurant,” Sallette said. “It’s been great. People have been happy about it.”

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OUR VALLEY

Friday, May 27, 2016

Owners Say They Plan To Expand To More Areas In Virginia Market Soon of its infamous “Lunk Alarm” — pushed by emthe changes you’re mak- ployees when a customer ing here.’” is exuberantly tossing While the owners weights or disturbing had to work within the others — Driver insists parameters of the Planet Planet Fitness is a judgFitness franchise model, ment-free zone. they made positive chang“It’s misconstrued es by adding $150,000 sometimes by competiworth of equiptors who think ment and upwe shut down “The business grading the tanpeople, which ning and masisn’t true at model itself sage areas. all,” Driver starts and ends But their bigsaid. “We just with making gest focus was want everyone sure everyone is providing a posto be chill and itive experience comfortable in the casual on how for gym-goers. they’re workenvironment and is ing out, and we “I’m realexcited.” ly obsessed have never rewith what my moved anyone — STACEY JENNINGS customers are from any of our CO-OWNER AT PLANET thinking and FITNESS ON EAST gyms ever.” feeling, and I Jennings MARKET STREET think that apconcurred, addproach is someing the expething which has always rience with their North driven us,” Driver said. Carolina locations helped “The most significant hone their business modthing that we’ve done el. — even more than add“The business moding the equipment — is el itself starts and ends training the employees to with making sure everythink about the custom- one is comfortable in the ers first.” environment and is exDespite the exclusiv- cited,” he said. “We try ity sometimes associat- to build that energy, and ed with the gym because being committed to it has

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FROM PAGE 13

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Planet Fitness in Harrisonburg won the Best of the Valley vote for the Best Gym. After purchasing the rights to the Market Street location, co-owners Brad Driver and Stacey Jennings added $150,000 worth of equipment and upgraded the tanning and massage areas. made a difference to us.” While the $10 a month membership doesn’t provide cardio or yoga classes, members rarely have to wait for equipment and have access to free fitness

instruction from certified trainers. “You can sign up for classes or half-hour sessions with the trainer in groups of five or less, which are designed to

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help you be confident in how to use the gym and how to build a fitness program for yourself,” Driver

said. “We’re about keeping really high experience at a really economical cost.” Always looking to improve the gym’s services for their customers, the duo is looking forward to company-wide changes to the training program that will strengthen their customer base. And they will be spreading their customer-first business model to other places in Virginia this year. “Planet Fitness has approved us for opening more locations, so we will be expanding to more area in the Virginia market soon,” Driver said. “We’re very excited about it.” For more information about the Market Street location, call 246-0309. Contact Aleda Johnson at 574-6275 or ajohnson@dnronline.com

OUR VALLEY

Friday, May 27, 2016

Harrisonburg, Va.

MACROCK Festival ‘All About The Music’ By PETE DeLEA

out big record labels and big company sponsors. “I’ve held a belief that you can do it HARRISONBURG — Every April, music yourself,” said Harper Holsinger, a Fort Defiance High School and James Maditakes over downtown Harrisonburg. From a hip-hop group performing at son alumnus, who led the festival three the The Artful Dodger to an indie rock times during its 19-year run. “You can do band playing at the Little Grill Collective, it all yourself without a corporate influthe Friendly City turns into one big music ence.” Still, the founders of the festival festival. never meant for it to become an The annual MACROCK fesannual Harrisonburg traditival, which just wrapped up tion. Their plans had been its 19th year in 2016, is for it to rotate among known in the music cirYou can do it all colleges throughout the cuits as a premier “doyourself without a mid-Atlantic region. it-yourself” music festi“It was meant to be val on the East Coast. corporate influence. a shining example to “It’s all about the people elsewhere that music,” said Mark Harper Holsinger, they can do it,” HolsingFinks, a longtime supformer festival leader er said. “[Organizers] atporter of the festival, tempted to pass it on but who books bands for the no one would take it on.” event. When it began, bands perStarting Up formed in JMU campus buildings, In 1996, James Madison University including Godwin Hall, and, occasionalstudents at WXJM, the campus radio ly, at student homes. station, started the festival, officially After about a decade on campus, the known as the Mid-Atlantic College Radio festival hit a snag. Financial troubles Conference. They did so with the belief plagued the student-led festival, and gothat independent music can thrive with- ing into 2007, the festival was $15,000 Daily News-Record

“

Austin Bachand / DN-R

Plattenbau from Berlin, Germany, per forms a set at The Artful Dodger for the 2016 MACROCK on April 1. in debt. Holsinger said because it was considered a JMU club, profits were not carried over from year to year. As a result,

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OUR VALLEY

Harrisonburg, Va.

Friday, May 27, 2016

Committee With Mostly Students Books Headliners MACROCK

FROM PAGE 18

He then led an effort to move the festival off campus and remove the “club” tag. A decision was made to move MACROCK to downtown Harrisonburg. “Moving it downtown allowed us to roll the money over,” Holsinger said. At about the same time, downtown was transitioning into an entertainment and dining destination. More businesses and restaurants were opening, creating more venues for the festival to use. “It’s certainly boomed,” Holsinger said. “It was a no-brainer idea to move it downtown. Having those available spaces didn’t exist in the past.”

Back To The Music With the financial troubles behind them, the festival resumed in 2008, allowing organizers to focus on the tunes. “Music has always been part of my life,” said Holsinger, who played percussion in his high school band. Each year, a committee made up of mostly JMU students books a few paid headliners. The remaining bands apply to be part of the festival. Each group sends a three-song demo and the committee scores it withEvery year, it’s a out looking at the band’s whole new group with name. The festival receives a new set of eyes. more than 100 applications each year. The committee reviews each one and selects Mark Finks, about 50 to 60 each year. festival supporter “It’s interesting seeing how each committee eyes tackling that,” Finks said. “Every year, it’s a whole new group with a new set of eyes.” While these performers — most of whom aren’t signed to record labels — aren’t paid, they receive the kind of invaluable exposure that can create buzz within the industry. “It’s promoting bands on a stage that normally

“

Austin Bachand / DN-R

The crowd dances to Buck Gooter at the Golden Pony for MACROCK on April 1. About 50 to 60 bands play each year. wouldn’t get a chance to,” Holsinger said. Finks, who used to book bands for the now-closed Blue Nile restaurant, manages Court Square Theater, one of the venues for MACROCK. He’s attended the conference since 2000 but has been helping book bands for the festival since 2008. While MACROCK gives a boost to downtown businesses, Finks said one of the biggest impacts the festival has is on the college students organizing the event. “I’ve had a lot of friends who went on to work in the music industry,” he said. “Some play in bands … some of them have gone on to have careers in music. “It’s kind of their first real experience out of college in an industry they went to join. It shows them you can make money doing the things you like.” Contact Pete DeLea at 574-6267 or pdelea@dnronline.com

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OUR VALLEY

Friday, May 27, 2016

Harrisonburg, Va.

Beer, Music Festival Growing Each Year By NOLAN STOUT

would be a great place to do it.” Ludwig said the event sells out every year and “it’s really been wild because HARRISONBURG — Good times, good there’s so many craft breweries in Harrisonburg.” music and good beer. But the music is a big part of the festiThat’s how organizers describe Rocktown Beer and Music Festival. The Harri- val, too, he said. “We’ve really been upping our music sonburg event marked its seventh installgame,” Ludwig said, adding that nationalment in 2016. Tim Brady, co-founder and general ly touring acts have joined the festival. “A manager of Pale Fire Brewing Co., and lot of beer festivals out there you don’t see Aaron Ludwig, who owns Jack Brown’s the caliber of music. We hand pick all the Beer & Burger Joint and Billy Jack’s beer ourselves and we hand pick all the Wing & Draft Shack in downtown Harri- music ourselves. We take the music just as seriously as we take sonburg, came up with the beer.” the idea for the festival, The seventh installwhich began in 2011. We hand pick all the ment of the festival was Brady said organizbeer ourselves and held April 30 at Turner ers pride themselves on we hand pick all the Pavilion. Featured muthree aspects of the fessical acts included Daytival. music ourselves. We ton-based Bryan Elijah “We have the best take the music just Smith and the Wildbeer we possibly can,” as seriously as we hearts, Major and the Brady said. “We have the take the beer. Moonbacks and Sister best food from HarrisonSparrow and the Dirty burg downtown restauBirds. rants we possibly can. Aaron Ludwig, Katie Yount, director And we have the best owner, Jack Brown’s of events for Harrisonmusic we possibly can.” Beer & Burger Joint burg Downtown RenaisLudwig said the two sance, said the festival started the festival after is the organization’s bigseeing “that craft beer was definitely starting to make a mark” gest event of the year. “The spring event is our staple event, on Harrisonburg. Brady said the festival brought two it sells out every year,” Yount said. “It’s just that time of year when people are just popular activities together. “We looked around and we loved great itching to get outside and go to festivals.” music and we loved great beer,” he said. See BEER, Page 21 “And we just thought that Harrisonburg

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Austin Bachand / DN-R

Beer is poured into a souvenir mug given out at the spring 2016 Rocktown Beer and Music Festival on April 30.

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35 Breweries Bring Two Beers Each festival’s expansion to a second one held in September starting in 2014. “We would get comments on Facebook She said the festival helps boost downand our social media … and people said, town businesses and restaurants. “They come and they eat out at the ‘It would be awesome if we had this once a restaurants before they attend the festival,” month,’” Yount said. To allow for future growth, organizers Yount said. “It helps to bring in regional and surrounding citizens to see all what down- are considering moving the festival from Turner Pavilion to a larger green space. town Harrisonburg has to offer.” Brady said the festival has The event gives ticket garnered statewide attention holders the chance to taste 10 “It’s just a in the craft beer industry, and beers or ciders. Ludwig said really good “for the weekend it puts all 35 different breweries bring time regardless eyes ... on Harrisonburg.” two beers each to the event. Ludwig said enthusiasm is He said the focus on beer is of how many unique to the festival. always high and “people email times you go.” “We make it a requirement,” right after one festival ends Ludwig said, “for a beer rep to asking when the next one is — AARON LUDWIG OWNER, be on-site during the festival to so they can put it on their calJACK BROWN’S be able to talk about the beer endar.” BEER & BURGER JOINT people are sipping on.” The festival is always changing, he said. High Demand “Every year, it’s a differBrady said the event has wildly exceeded ent surprise,” Ludwig said. “It’s a differexpectations. ent lineup. It’s a different lineup of beer. “When we first started out,” he said, “A There are beers that may be debuted at lot of people were not optimistic that down- the festival that might not be out there on town Harrisonburg would be able to support the market. a large cultural event.” “It’s just a really good time regardless of But the event has grown so much that how many times you go.” organizers set a 3,000-person cap, which Contact Nolan Stout at 574-6278 or Yount said is consistently met. nstout@dnronline.com She said an increased demand led to the

Beer

Austin Bachand / DN-R

Arleigh Kincheloe, lead singer of Sister Sparrow and the Dirty Birds, performs at the Rocktown Beer and Music Festival on April 30.

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Harrisonburg, Va.

Red Wing Festival Embraces ‘Unique’ By VIC BRADSHAW Daily News-Record

Daniel Lin / DN-R

Nori Carter, 8, of Harrisonburg, hula hoops at Natural Chimneys Park in Mount Solon during the 2015 Red Wing Roots Music Festival on July 10. The year’s installment of the event is scheduled for July 8-10, with more than 35 local, national and regional acts scheduled to perform.

MOUNT SOLON — As the years and miles on the road stretched on, Trent Wagler of the Americana act The Steel Wheels said he and his bandmates began to long for a festival the band could call its own. When he told his idea to Jeremiah Jenkins, he found a kindred spirit. Thus began the Red Wing Roots Music Festival, a three-day event at Natural Chimneys Park in Mount Solon that draws about 3,500 fans each day to hear top artists play music rooted in America — folk, blues, bluegrass, Cajun, Western swing, Americana and other genres.

The fourth annual festival is scheduled July 8-10, with more than 35 local, national and regional acts slated to perform. Tickets are on sale now. “We wanted Red Wing to be very unique to our area and unique in scale and style,” said Jenkins, managing partner of festival producer Black Bear Productions, “and I think we’ve been able to achieve that.” Wagler said The Steel Wheels, based in Harrisonburg, played lots of good festivals as the band toured America and Canada. As they returned one year from MerleFest, the annual tribute to Doc and Merle Watson held in Wilkesboro, N.C., the idea See UNIQUE, Page 23

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Named A Five Best Va. Summer Festival Unique

FROM PAGE 22

of establishing a festival in their backyard took hold. “It’s a beautiful festival, family friendly, and a festival I’d say really has changed the community in many ways and made it better,” he said of MerleFest. “I said, ‘What if we did something like that right here?’” After only three years, Red Wing made a list of this year’s five best summer festivals in Virginia chosen by the Richmond Times-Dispatch. The concept from the event’s main organizers — Wagler and bandmates Brian Dickel, Eric Brubaker and Jay Lapp, and Jenkins and Black Bear partner Michael Weaver — was a festival offering top acts performing the type of music they loved. It could be a roots smörgåsbord for existing fans and an entree to the music for others. The music isn’t the only attraction, though. Natural Chimneys Park is highlighted, too, with bike rides, hikes, runs, yoga and other offerings. Hence Red Wing’s tag line: “Great music. Great outdoors.”

Music Draws Crowd While the festival offers opportunities to enjoy nature, music is the main draw. Wagler, who grew up in Kansas and came to Harrisonburg in 1997 as a student at Eastern Mennonite University, said band members talk with Jenkins throughout the year and have input into the musical lineup and how the event is run. Jenkins, who has more than 15 years of booking experience, brings his ideas to the table, and he and Weaver pull everything together.

“We talk a lot about who to get and people’s schedules and what we did last year and what we want for this year,” said Wagler, who sings, plays the guitar and banjo and writes songs for The Steel Wheels. “We talk a lot about what’s going on with the music there all three days.” The Steel Wheels, obviously, are on the bill. Wagler described them as “truly an Americana roots band” that mixes old bluegrass, blues, country, Cajun and other genres. The festival is designed to have a similar mix. “We want it to be an extension of all the music that influenced us, not just bluegrass, not just a folk festival,” he said. “The roots of American music go really far and really wide. But we’re not going to be everything for everybody. You have to have a certain type of curation.” In addition to the host band, this year’s event will feature performances by Dawes, Shovels & Rope, The Lone Bellow, Aoife O’Donovan, Steep Canyon Rangers and Drew Holcomb & The Neighbors. Robert Earl Keen, Trampled by Turtles, The Devil Makes Three, The Del McCoury Band, The Sam Bush Band and Preservation Hall Jazz Band are among the acts that headlined the first three years. Headliners might be the big draws, but Jenkins said he tries to maintain quality all day, each day. “Red Wing has incredible music from moment it begins to the end,” he said. “I’m excited to showcase some of the [lesser-known] artists I love, or The Steel Wheels love, phenomenal musicians out there playing gigs for 400 to 500 people. We like to introduce

Daniel Lin / DN-R

North Carolina-based folk duo Mandolin Orange performs during the 2015 festival on July 10. our audience to those people as well.”

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Staunton-Based Group To Perform Again Unique

FROM PAGE 23

West Virginia and Maryland for a number of years, but others might have come to know the act from appearance at every Red Wing to date. They’re on the bill again this year. Frontwoman and guitarist Molly Murphy said the largest audiences the band has played for were at Red Wing and Nelson County’s LOCKN’ Festival. “We’ve established a little bit of a reputation in the Americana band circuit,” she said of Red Wing’s influence. “I don’t know if we’ve gotten more gigs from it, but it’s nice to have an established connection with a prominent Americana venue as more and more people are becoming aware of Red Wing, how special it is.” The band, she said, owes more to Red Wing. Though they didn’t know it, there was a competition at the local roots stage at the inaugural festival and they won enough studio time at Harrisonburg’s Blue Sprocket Sound to record “Minor Sunshine,” their second full-length compact disc. Natural Chimneys, Murphy added, is “a really special place” for The Judy Chops be-

cause it’s where the band formed. She was the park’s activities director and her husband proposed to her there, lead guitarist and vocalist Bill Howard was the park manager, and percussionist Jess Bergh worked at the visitors center. Wagler, 36, said he hopes Red Wing opens the world of music to children brought by their parents. “I never believed I could write a song before I started hanging out with people who wrote songs,” he said. “Hopefully, [Red Wing’s] legacy will be people wanting to be part of music. “We have kids who are 10 years old who have been at the festival for [three] years. When they see The Steel Wheels or Yarn or other bands and come back to see Red Wing, the world of music is a lot larger for them than it was for us growing up.”

Getting Started While Steel Wheels members shape each festival, Wagler calls Jenkins “the brains” of the event. The 39-year-old Norfolk native came to Harrisonburg in 1995 as a James Madison

University student and eventually earned a master’s degree in theological studies from Harvard Divinity School. Despite that degree, Jenkins was drawn to music. He’d booked acts for venues and events for years, starting his first production company in 2000. He returned to Harrisonburg in 2007 as the general manager of Clementine Cafe, booking the venue. He also booked the former Mockingbird Music Hall in downtown Staunton, which featured roots music, and Harrisonburg’s Court Square Theater as well as large events such as the Rocktown Beer & Music Festival and Valley Fourth in Harrisonburg. “Ultimately, people choose the temple or the tavern,” said Jenkins, “and I like the tavern better.” Once the festival became more than just an idea, it needed a venue that fit with the feel the founders wanted to create. Choosing Natural Chimneys was, well, a natural selection. “It’s absolutely beautiful. It’s a great park,” Jenkins said. “We wanted people to explore what’s so beautiful and lovely about the Shenandoah Valley.” The park’s size also was optimal. Red Wing’s creators didn’t want their event to

Harrisonburg, Va.

get too big. “We didn’t want to follow the course of other festivals and scale year after year,” Jenkins said. “We wanted to have high-quality music and activities but on a scale that allowed neighborliness and kindness. We knew [Natural Chimneys] would keep us to the right size for what we wanted to accomplish year after year.” Added Wagler: “Sometimes a great festival can grow to the point that it’s not great anymore.” Getting use of the park required approval from Augusta County officials. The organizers worked with the parks and recreation department, which manages the park, and public safety officials to ensure a safe event. After everything was arranged, Jenkins said the Augusta County Board of Supervisors signed off unanimously. The park hasn’t just been good for Red Wing. Kelly Rourke, Augusta County’s Natural Chimneys coordinator, said Red Wing’s been good for the park, as festival organizers “have done a fantastic job” and attendees have returned to camp on nonfestival weekends. “There’s more name recognition for the See UNIQUE, Page 25

Harrisonburg, Va.

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Friday, May 27, 2016

Park Seeing Benefits, Too Unique

FROM PAGE 24

chimneys now,” she said. Wagler said Natural Chimneys is the perfect location for Red Wing. “Place makes such a difference for where you listen and experience something,” he said. “In other places, it wouldn’t have been as memorable.”

Event For All When it comes to place, Natural Chimneys Park makes a unique venue. Two main stages bracketing the “music meadow” and two side stages are erected in an open area near the North River. Recreational vehicle and tent camping is allowed, but you need to act early to get a spot. This year’s spaces were sold out by early May. The size of the main concert area allows festival-goers to feel like they’re part of a sizable event while still having an up-close-and-personal experience. Wagler said The Steel Wheels play 15 to 20 North American festivals annually and are headed to Denmark for the band’s first European festival this summer. “Once you get 4,000 people in there on Saturday, that’s not a small-feeling group. That’s a big crowd,” Wagler said. “But for 4,000 people, it’s pretty intimate to see the Preservation Hall Jazz Band or Dawes or Shovels & Rope.” Jenkins said it’s not unusual for there to be 600 children running around and playing during the event, and attendees range in age from 1 to 80. That, Wagler said, was the goal. “There’s a multiple generational feel to this festival,” he said. “At many of the festivals we have played, you get a sense that it’s catered

to one group or another. “We wanted this to be family-friendly. We wanted kids running around. We wanted college students to feel welcome. We wanted to have alcohol but not a lot of problems.” Jason Rhodes, 39, said he and his family haven’t missed a Red Wing festival and won’t this year. Along with his wife, Laura, 11-year-old Miriam and 9-year-old Adam, he camps at the event even though he lives just south of Harrisonburg. They take their bicycles and go for family rides around the campgrounds. They’ve attended other nearby festivals, but Rhodes said no other he’s been to has the same feel as Red Wing. “It’s just a really unique space,” he said, “and a really unique group of people that show up.” Myriam Assaadi, a 21-year-old James Madison Daniel Lin / DN-R University student from McRaleigh, N.C.-based bluegrass group Chatham County Line performs on the Southern Stage at the third annual Red Wing Roots Lean, said she attends about three North American music Music Festival in July 2015. festivals each summer season. Last year was her first Red Wing experience; she was one of the more than 100 volunteers who helped run the event. Being in a wooded area is unique because most festivals are held in fields, she said, and the chimney rock formations add to the experience. Red Wing’s size made her list as a plus because people can move around and enjoy the full experience. “There’s a sense of community,” Assaadi said, “that you may not get at a larger festival, like Bonnaroo.” Last year’s festival was such a positive experience that Norfolk’s Ron Wray and his wife, Gayle Paul, are coming back this year. The retired arts adminThank you to our faithful customers that voted Bluestone the Best Vineyard of the Valley. istrator and public school See UNIQUE, Page 26

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Harrisonburg, Va.

Organizers Not Seeking Larger Venue Unique

FROM PAGE 25

teacher frequently goes to concerts, but Red Wing was his first festival. He found everything about it — the craft beer and food vendors, the park, the number and quality of the performers, it’s size — appealing but was especially thankful for the help provided by staff and volunteers. “They were very good trying to accommodate me so I had the best experience,” said Wray, 67, who has mobility problems due to medical issues. “With my disability and in general helping us as campers, they were really, really good, and I appreciate that.”

Quality Focus The Red Wing Roots Music Festival can grow a bit, as most of its shows haven’t sold out and Wagler said it might be possible to accommodate slightly larger crowds by rearranging the festival area. But Jenkins and Wagler said they won’t move the event away from Natural Chimneys in search of a larger audience. “We want to continue doing what we’ve

already been doing, in a way,” Wagler said. The musician said it’s gratifying to hear fans say their Red Wing experience was exactly what the founders had in mind. “What’s great for us at this point,” said Wagler, “is to see that what we set out to do and what people say they love about the festival are pretty close to the same things.” He’d like to see the festival impact on the community continue to grow, through increased musical exposure and outreach efforts. For example, Eric Brubaker, The Steel Wheels’ fiddle player, is teaching a fiddle workshop during the June 27-30 Shenandoah Valley Strings Camp at Eastern Mennonite University, and students will have a chance to join the band and play on stage July 8. For Jenkins, quantity of anything won’t be the way to measure future Red Wing festivals. Instead, quality is the key. “It’s not going to get bigger,” he said, “it’s just going to get better.” Contact Vic Bradshaw at 574-6279 or vbradshaw@dnronline.com

Bonnie Paine of Coloradobased folk group Elephant Revival performs at the 2015 festival. Daniel Lin / DN-R

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Friday, May 27, 2016

Dayton Muddler A Test Of Endurance By RYAN CORNELL Daily News-Record

DAYTON — Everyone seems to have their own opinion of the most challenging section of the Dayton Muddler. Some participants think the run through Cooks Creek is the toughest part of the obstacle course, while others say it’s the trek through a mud pit. Marathon runner Wade Robinson, the owner of Rhodenizer Construction in Dayton, said he has the most trouble scaling the hay bales on the course. “There’s nothing to grab a hold of,” he said. “Plus you’re coming out of the water and you have mud on you.” Robinson, 48, donated a cargo net for this year’s and last year’s Dayton Muddler. Runners in the obstacle course climb up one side of the rope net and down the other side using its footholds and handholds. Dayton Mayor Charles Long, who’s run

in the Muddler for three years, said he thinks the cargo net is the most difficult part. “It’s a straight vertical about 15 feet in height,” said the 49-year-old Long. His partner in organizing the event, Dayton Police Chief Daniel Hanlon, takes a different view. “What’s challenging for me truly is the run,” he said. “The obstacles are not.”

The Run Down The Muddler is no walk in the park. Competitors run a grueling 3.2-mile course encountering various obstacles along the way, such as crawling through mud pits, climbing across monkey bars and over walls, hauling cinder blocks and feed sacks and racing down two 150-foot water slides. At one station, runners climb into a Dumpster-sized container filled with ice Austin Bachand / DN-R

See MUDDLER, Page 28

Jen Moyers (left) and other “muddlers” push through a mud pit on Aug. 1.

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Harrisonburg, Va.

Runners Of All Levels Welcome To Participate Muddler

FROM PAGE 27

water. To make it to the other side, participants submerge themselves and swim underneath a divider in the middle of the container. At another spot, runners are sprayed with droplets of water and zapped by wires hanging down over the course, Hanlon said. “It’s more psychological than anything,” he said. “I got hit in the leg with it last year.” Hanlon said they were receiving so many complaints in previous years from runners who weren’t feeling any shocks that they decided to up the voltage last year. “We didn’t have that complaint last year,” he said. If the obstacles aren’t tough enough, a new addition to this year’s Muddler might be. The Omega Course will take participants on a 13-mile bike sprint looping around Dayton before finishing at the start of the Muddler. As soon as cyclists jump off the pedals, they’re racing on foot in the normal 3.2-mile course. Despite the intimidating feel of the Muddler, Hanlon said, runners of all levels are welcome. “You can be a workout beast and run it as hard as you

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Paul Julian carries a cinder block as one of the obstacles during the 2015 Dayton Muddler. Austin Bachand / DN-R

can and be really tired at the end of it,” he said. “Or you can roll off the couch with your Häagen-Daz and walk through it.” Participants may run individually or in groups of four or more, and can choose to run in a less grueling and shorter Youth Division course, which is geared toward children ages 10 to 15. “It’s truly a community event,” Hanlon said. “I think everybody that runs it has a sense of accomplishment.”

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A Course For A Cause A miniature version of the 10-mile Tough Mudder, the Dayton Muddler fielded about 200 runners when it began in 2012. More than 500 competitors took part in last year’s race, and Hanlon and Long expect about 600 to turn out to 2016’s, scheduled for Aug. 6. “It’s popular because we make it fun and motivating,” Long said. It also helps a cause. All proceeds from the race, plus any additional donations, go to support wounded veterans. In its first three years, the race benefited the Wounded Warrior Project, a national nonprofit that aims to engage

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‘We’re Always Going To Be Supporting ... Veterans’ Muddler

FROM PAGE 28

and empower post-Sept. 11 veterans in part through helping to fund prosthetic care. Last year, proceeds from the Muddler went toward Virginia Veteran and Family Support, an extension of the state Department of Veterans Services that was formerly called the Virginia Wounded Warrior Program. The program serves veterans coping with the impact of military service and deployments, addressing traumatic brain injuries and stress or trauma-related conditions such as post-traumatic stress disorder. Hanlon said this year’s Muddler likely will support Boulder Crest, a retreat for veterans and their families in Bluemont. “We’re always going to be supporting in some facet, veterans who have had some injury of mind, body or soul,” he said.

“Muddlers” slide down a 150-foot water slide during the 2015 event. This year’s is scheduled for Aug. 6. Austin Bachand / DN-R

Sponsors, Volunteers Needed More than 60 volunteers are needed to help the event go smoothly, Long said, including 45 to man the course. Volunteers include military veterans and Turner Ashby High School football and volleyball players, who cheer on and help participants struggling with obstacles. “A big thing with people coming from outside the area, they just want to complete the course. They don’t care how or how long it takes,” Long said. “When they know they have assistance, that’s a big help.” Hanlon said they’re also in need of sponsors who can offer donations or supplies to lower the operating costs of putting on the course. The more money it costs to pull off the event, he said, the less that is directed toward charity. To sign up as a volunteer or sponsor or register for the event, contact the Dayton town office at 879-2241 or email

townofdayton@daytonva.us. A website listing the frequently asked questions and course map for the Muddler is at daytonva.us/muddler/ourcause. Preregistration is $60 for an individual and $30 for youth ages 10 to 15. The Dayton Muddler isn’t the only adventure course that sends competitors through the mud and water. Other races, such as the Mad Anthony Mud Run in Waynesboro in February and the Mud Dog Run in Wood-

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stock in April, use challenges similar to the Muddler. “We’re not shy about helping other events get started,” Hanlon said. Long said he’s always looking for ways to add to the course. “How do we make it bigger and better each year and more motivating?” he said. Contact Ryan Cornell at 574-6286 or rcornell@dnronline.com

Friday, May 27, 2016

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Harrisonburg, Va.

International Fest Offers Range Of Cultural Experiences BY PETE DeLEA Daily News-Record

HARRISONBURG — On one September Saturday each year, Harrisonburg’s Hillandale Park transforms into a cluster of world cultures. Austin Bachand / DN-R From eating Indian Julio Cazon (right) of Bolivia plays the pan flute during the 2015 International Festival at Hillandale food, wearing a poncho to salsa dancing, the InPark on Sept. 26. The event will hold its 19th celebration this fall. “Every year, our attendance ternational Festival has would surge. Some years it grew by the thousands. It’s a lot of people to get into a park,” said entertained and educated Vaunda Brown, a former festival director. Shenandoah Valley residents for 18 years. “You’re tasting it, you’re wearing it, you’re creating it. You’re feeling it,” said Vaunda Brown, a former director of the festival.

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“Watching the camaraderie happen is so much fun.”

Grass-Roots Movement The festival, which now attracts close to 10,000 people annually, started with just a few people trying to live up to the city’s slogan, “The Friendly City.” About two decades ago, a group of people were sitting around a table during an international potluck discussing how the community could learn about the different cultures that make up Harrisonburg. From that discussion, sparked the International

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Festival, which will hold its 19th celebration this fall. The event has grown from a few hundred people to an overflowing crowd that now requires satellite parking and shuttle buses. “Every year, our attendance would surge,” Brown said. “Some years it grew by the thousands. It’s a lot of people to get into a park.” Organizers say the festival, now organized by the Fairfield Center, has led to friendships among a variety of ethnicities. Vladimir Rossashanky was among the group that started the festival. The 49-year-old migrated to the United States in 1990 from Kyrgyzstan, a country of 6 million in central Asia that had been a part of the Soviet Union before its breakup in the early 1990s. “People in other countries ... they are fighting. But here, they are together,” Rossashanky said. “It’s made Harrisonburg a more peaceful place.”

World On Display Hillandale Park on South High Street serves as a large classroom for people to learn about other cultures after months of planning, and with the help of more than 100 volunteers each year. More than two dozen See INTERNATIONAL, Page 31

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Food Always The Big Draw To Event International

FROM PAGE 30

countries are typically represented, from Mexico to the Philippines. “It’s become a landmark event. It’s because they are finding beauty in the many different cultures in the area,” said Boris Ozuna, who is in his second year directing the festival. “We all have curiosity about other cultures. We’re all meant to be multicultural human beings.” The festival provides a chance to learn where other people came from, what they eat, what they wear and even how they dance. Food is always the big draw, Ozuna said, with the festival getting a large number of applicants from vendors each year. In 2015, there were 20 operating at the festival. In most years, visitors can expect to see dishes from local restaurants, including Bowl of Good, Taste of Thai and El Sol. “We try to have a diverse international cuisine,” said Ozuna, adding the festival usually has cuisine from India, South Korea and Central and South America Music also is a big component of the festival. “You will have a Mexican performance that always opens the festival and it clos-

Members of the James Madison University Chinese Student Association perform a traditional Lion Dance during the 2014 International Festival at Harrisonburg’s Hillandale Park. Jason Lenhart / DN-R

es with a Kurdish dance,” Ozuna said. A few years ago, the festival added a fashion show. “It was a way for people to show their clothing … to see the colors,” he said, adding that many are very creative. “It’s not a Halloween party but it’s very artistic.” Mohammad Kareem migrated to Harrisonburg about 20 years ago from north-

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ern Iraq, a region dominated by Kurds and their culture. He said stepping into the festival is an amazing feeling. “It’s like you’re traveling to a different world but you’re in Harrisonburg,” said Kareem, 62.

that “different world,” organizers say they have noticed a difference in the community. “It helps community members learn about the different cultures,” Brown said. “That understanding leads to acceptance and a greater appreciation for

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Fosters New Friendships special moment where people from different cultures one another. It has made come together in unity. “One time I saw a little our community a truly Kurdish girl in her cultural Friendly City.” Not only have na- clothing, but she was weartive-born Americans ing a poncho representing the Mexican learned about culture,” Brown different cultures, “You know said. immigrants have all the work “Every year, learned about imthere would be you’ve done migrants. Those involved with is well worth pure joy that the festival said it. You can see would bring tears to your eyes. it’s not unusual “You know all to see Filipinos the friendships form.” the work you’ve hanging out with done is well Kurds and Iraqis — VAUNDA BROWN worth it. You can or Hispanics with FORMER FESTIVAL see the friendKoreans. DIRECTOR ships form. We “We have a lot meld together so of friends from different cultures now,” very well.” Kareem said. Brown said every year Contact Pete DeLea at 574-6267 or pdelea@dnronline.com she notices at least one

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Redbuds At Dayton Festival ‘To Die For’ By ERIN FLYNN

ation. The group gathered to brainstorm how it could encourage people to check out some of Dayton’s DAYTON — Throughout the spring businesses. “We realized there were places and summer, redbud trees line the streets of Dayton, their heart-shaped on Main Street that people needed leaves catching the eye of their ad- to know were there,” she said. After seeing the mirers. success of Dayton “The buds Days, a festival that are just to die We realized there takes place in the for,” said Jane were places on fall, the merchants Braithwaite, owner Main Street that association decided of Braithwaite Stuto create a spring people needed to dios in Dayton. event that showed Braithwaite is know were there. off businesses and one of the many artwork. Dayton residents Jane Braithwaite, Because the who have grown co-founder, redbud trees are fond of redbud Dayton Merchants seen flourishing trees, which can Association throughout town be found throughand in the surout the Shenandorounding areas, ah Valley. It was through that appreciation for this the group decided it was only fittree that led to its namesake festival. ting to name the event after them. “The town with the redbuds is just gorgeous,” said Shelia Helsley, A New Season Seven years ago, Braithwaite the town’s event coordinator. and her husband, John, helped start the Dayton Merchants AssociSee REDBUDS, Page 35 Daily News-Record

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Daniel Lin / DN-R

A redbud blooms during the 2016 Dayton Redbud Festival. The April event started with seven vendors seven years ago and has since expanded to 25 food vendors and 120 crafters lining Dayton’s College Street.

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Photos by Daniel Lin / DN-R ABOVE: Greg Tissinger, owner of Tripple T BBQ, drops a batch of fries for customers during the Dayton Redbud Festival on April 16.

RIGHT: Visitors to the Dayton Redbud Festival make their way up College Street as they check a variety of vendors and displays.

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Helsley said new vendors participate in the festivals each year. “Some will come to Redbud for the first time and they just love it,” Helsley said. “We’re always looking for new vendors and for new things.”

Redbuds Remain Popular

The Shenandoah Valley Civil War Dancers lead a dance during the 2016 Dayton Redbud Festival on April 16. Daniel Lin / DN-R

‘It’s A Beautiful Time Of Year To Get Out In The Town’ Redbuds

FROM PAGE 33

Dayton began supporting the festival, which celebrated its seventh year on April 16, four years ago. Helsley said it’s meant to introduce visitors to the town. “It’s a beautiful time of year to get out in the town of Dayton,” she said. Councilwoman Shelley Newman, who handles the event’s logistics, said the festival has achieved its goal. Newman said Dayton has become a place of interest for young couples, with the events held throughout town helping it to become known as an “up-and-coming place to live.”

Continuous Growth What started out as an event with seven vendors has since expanded to 25 food vendors and 120 crafters lining College Street as of the 2016 festival. It continues to grow each year with thousands of peo-

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ple traveling from all across the Shenandoah Valley to take part in the festivities. “It’s a nice experience to be a part of and to see it grow,” Braithwaite said. Newman said it hasn’t just grown in the number of participants, the variety of activities also has increased. In addition to vendors, there also is a beer and wine garden, face-painting, a bounce house, pony rides, ducky races, carriage rides throughout town and performers, Newman said. “There’s something for everyone,” she said. “It’s hard to not find something you’re interested in.” The festival serves as introduction to potential vendors, as well. Helsley said many of the vendors at the Redbud Festival also have tents at Dayton Days. Other than completing an application, which are sent out in December, vendors must pay a fee for the space. It costs $75 for a 15-foot-by-foot-30 tent, and $125 for a 30-by-10 tent.

While the number of vendors and activities have increased over the years, there’s been one signature mainstay of the festival: the estimated 300 packets of free redbud seedlings, which have been offered since the event started seven years ago. Braithwaite said the event’s officials decided to offer the seeds because the event was originally scheduled closer to Earth Day and Arbor Day. “We were just involved in working with the ecology of the area and [wanted to] make things prettier,” she said. The seeds, which are purchased from Turner Ashby High School’s Future Farmers of America chapter, continue to be one of the more popular aspects of the festival, Newman said. Braithwaite said the seeds have been offered to the festival’s attendees since the beginning. “The redbuds are beautiful and everyone wants one,” Braithwaite said. “It was just a win-win all around.” The redbud seeds not only support a local organization, but also encourage people to participate in the festival. “Giving away the redbud tree is a wonderful draw to people. [This year] we had some nice businesses and sold all but two trees,” said Braithwaite, who added that the last samplings already have been claimed. Contact Erin Flynn at 574-6293 or eflynn@dnronline.com

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Doah Fest Offers River View, Yoga, Music And More Kevin Beecher of Higher Mountain Glass LLC shapes a bottle at the 2015 Doah Fest. Daniel Lin / DN-R

By RACHEL CISTO Daily News-Record

HARRISONBURG — Four years ago, Josh Turner and his relatives decided to host a music festival on 287 acres of family land near Luray. “We went to a lot of festivals, and we thought, ‘Why don’t we try to do this? It doesn’t look hard,’” he said. Together with his uncle Keith Sessler, affectionately known as “Mean Uncle Keith,” and his close friend Ivan Carpio, Turner held the first Doah Fest in the summer of 2013. “It definitely wasn’t as easy as we thought,” said Turner, partially because none of the organizers had a background in event planning. The trio lives closer to D.C., so the family farm, bordered by the South Fork of the Shenandoah River on one side and Shenandoah National Park on the other, had always been their escape. “We wanted to offer that escape to others,” Turner said.

Music On The Water The property’s location allows Doah the chance to do something that few other festivals can replicate: river sets. “It was just an idea we had,” Turner said, “and the community loved it.” One of the festival’s stages is set up facing the river, allowing guests to float on the South Fork while listening to live music. The first year Doah Fest offered river sets, Turner said only one band played facing the water. This year, there are four groups scheduled to play river sets. Turner said one of Doah’s selling points is the wide variety of acts and activities offered during the festival, which this year is set for July 15-18 . Turner said when booking musical acts, organizers look at local and East Coast bands, and try to avoid big, national names or “conventional festival acts.” “We really try not to lock in on one genre,

either,” he said. “It was really important to us from the beginning that we had a lot of variety.” Turner said many acts that appear at Doah Fest don’t play many other festivals. “We try to bring in acts we think are talented that people may not have heard,” he said. After the sun sets and the main stages quiet, Doah Fest offers participants another opportunity to dance at “The Grove.” According to the festival website, The Grove features DJs and dance music, and hosts a “silent disco,” billed as the “Doah Fest After-Party.” Silent disco participants receive a set of headphones and can switch between two live DJs who are feeding their mix directly to the headsets. Attendees also can gather around the large community bonfire after dark to take part in a jam session or drum circle.

Live Art Turner said the organizers also try to spotlight local artists during the three days of festivities by inviting them to come showcase their work. “We ask them to create as much of the art as possible during the festival,” he said, and attendees are encouraged to take part. “It really creates a sense of community.” According to the festival website, this year’s offerings include everything from sculpture to performance art to body and face-painting. Previous years’ offerings have included the creation of a life-size woolly mammoth sculpture by Maryland-based artist Nena Depaz.

Yoga At Doah Doah Fest partners with Alexandria-based 532Yoga to offer yoga and meditation sessions to participants each morning. Turner said the idea to offer yoga sessions See DOAH, Page 39

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‘Music Is Good, The River Is Gorgeous’ Doah

FROM PAGE 38

came out of seeing it done at other festivals. “It really adds flavor to the festival,” he said. Ginny Loving, an instructor at 532Yoga, said she sees a variety of skill levels at the festival, and she modifies the class accordingly. “A lot of what I do uses levels. We start with a basic pose and just keep adding levels,” said Loving, adding that participants are welcome to stay at the level that’s most comfortable for them. “It’s not uncommon to look around my class and see everyone doing their own thing.” Loving said 532Yoga hosted workshops at the last two Doah Fests. Last year, she taught the workshops and loved it. “The music is good, the river is gorgeous, and the vibe is awesome. It’s almost a little like Woodstock,” she said. “It’s just so much fun.” Turner said adding the yoga and mindfulness sessions also better reflect the group as a whole. He said the organizers wanted to include the workshops to expose participants to new experiences. “Hopefully, they walk away having learned something or met new people,” he said, “or maybe having tried something they wouldn’t have otherwise.”

Giving Back Doah Fest also encourages attendees to give back, and works with two charities — Hungry For Music and Project Shelter — to enable them to do so. Turner said the partnership with Hungry

Friday, May 27, 2016

Photos by Daniel Lin / DN-R

LEFT: Raymond Baccari shows his music instrument/art piece in his booth at Doah Fest outside For Music came about organically when the Luray on Aug. 1. charity’s founder attended the festival. Hungry For Music provides musical in- ABOVE: Ida Stretch performs for the crowd on the South Fork of the Shenandoah River during the struments to underprivileged children, some- 2015 Doah Fest. thing Turner said seemed like a good fit for a music festival. Festival-goers can bring gently used musical instruments with them to the grounds, and Hungry For Music will distribute them to schools or music programs for children whose families can’t afford to rent or purchase an instrument. “It’s great to give back in a way that works closely with what we’re doing,” he said. Doah Fest’s other charitable partner, Project Shelter, provides camping gear to people in need. According to Project Shelter’s website, campers can order gear online prior to the festival and pick it up on the grounds, similar to a will-call ticket. After the festival, participants can keep whatever gear they’d like and return the rest. The returned gear is sent to disaster relief, homeless outreach or refugee organizations. Turner hopes Doah Fest promotes two things close to all three of their hearts — happiness and activism — in the best way possible. “We want to give [attendees] as much space as we can and make them as safe as we can,” he said. “We really want this to be a place in the Valley where people can come and enjoy themselves.” Visit doahfest.com to purchase a ticket, which guarantees a campsite and access to the sets and workshops. Contact Rachel Cisto at 574-6272 or rcisto@dnronline.com

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Dayton Days The ‘Best Show’ By RYAN CORNELL Daily News-Record

is, if she’s not sold out by noon. Several of her customers visit her booth every year, she said, traveling from all over the East Coast to see the show. “Everyone looks forward to Dayton Days,” Kirby said.

DAYTON — Jeanne Kirby knows her way around a craft show. Each year the Grottoes resident and craft vendor sets up shop at six to eight shows around Largest Event Of The Year Dayton Days, held annually the Valley. But, Kirby says, one show on the first Saturday in October, rises above the rest: the annual is the town’s largest event of the Dayton Days autumn celebra- year. Hundreds of arts and craft tion. vendors selling everything “It’s the best show that from handmade jewelthere is,” she said. ry, woodwork and “The people in Daybaskets to ceramton know how to ics and clothing put on a craft The people in line Main, Colshow. They Dayton know how lege and Mill have, as far as streets and to put on a craft I’m concerned, the historic written the show. Daniel Harbook on how rison House. to put together Jeanne Kirby, The free-to-ata craft show.” craft vendor tend festival also Kirby, 62, a features live music vendor of silk flofrom local acts and a ral designs, wreaths variety of food trucks. and centerpieces, has been When the festival started coming to Dayton Days for more in 1979, it drew about a dozen than 20 years. She brings about 100 pieces to vendors and fewer than 1,000 the festival and typically leaves visitors, according to Shelia with maybe a half-dozen. That Helsley, who’s organized the

“

Michael Reilly / DN-R

Phil Evans (left), owner of Woodturnings by Phil, speaks with Stacy Steggerda (center) of Mount Sidney and Tammia Ketron of Mount Crawford during the 2013 Dayton Days Autumn Celebration. annual event for the past 15 years. In recent years, about 400 vendors and more than 25,000 visitors have filled Dayton for the festival. “Vendors tell me they do better on that one-day craft event for Dayton Days than they do in all their other festivals put together,” Helsley said. “That’s why it’s such a success and that’s why so many people want to get in.”

The 37th annual Dayton Days celebration returns to the town in 2016 on Oct. 1. The daylong event begins at 8:30 a.m. and runs through 4 p.m., though dedicated shoppers are known to start earlier and finish later. “They come with their checkbook in one hand and their Christmas wish list in the other,” Helsley said. Helsley, who lives in Edinburg, said part of what sepa-

rates Dayton Days from other shows is the quality of its crafts. The festival is open strictly to vendors who create their own products. Merchandisers — vendors selling wares by companies such as Mary Kay and Tupperware — are prohibited from the event, she said. Helsley said a team of volunteers spends the day patrolling See SHOW, Page 41

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Festival Postponed Last Year Due To Flooding In Valley Counts said. For more than 20 years the couple booths to ensure they’re only selling has created and sold wooden swings, handcrafted items and playing nice with footstools, shelves and kids’ tables and chairs at Dayton Days. their neighbors. George Counts, 60, said “A lot of policing goes on,” he’s enjoyed meeting new she said. “They’re not aware “If you look people and seeing the same of it, but we try to find if at other craft customers return to his booth there is going to be a probevents, there year after year. lem. And if there is a probare very few His wife said her favorite lem, their names are going that make it 37 part is when shoppers tell to be taken off the list and her they can buy the items at they won’t be asked back.” years.” Wal-Mart for a cheaper price. — SHELIA HELSLEY “And then they come back ‘Highlight Of Their Year’ ORGANIZER, the next year and say they Dayton residents George DAYTON DAYS want to apologize because it and Ann Counts have a rule AUTUMN CELEBRATION didn’t hold up,” she said. when they’re setting dates Dayton Mayor Charles on their calendar. Long considers himself a fan “We can’t go anywhere the first weekend of October,” Ann of the festival.

Show

FROM PAGE 40

Long, who’s participated in the event for more than 12 years, described it as the “focal point for Christmas shopping.” “All the [vendors] I talk to say Dayton Days is the highlight of their year,” he said, “just because of the time of the year and what we do as a town to accommodate them.”

A Festival First Mother Nature had other plans for the festival in 2015. For the first time in the history of the event, Dayton Days was postponed — due to flooding in the Valley — to the following weekend. Organizers had to cancel and re-

book everything, including portable toilets and buses. About 75 vendors who couldn’t make it to last year’s rescheduled date received vouchers to attend this year’s. “We had such a beautiful day [the next weekend],” Helsley said. “Vendors told me over and over, ‘Thank you so much for not canceling it altogether.’” Helsley already has begun working on some special flourishes for the 40th annual Dayton Days celebration in 2019. “That’s going to be a big deal,” she said. “If you look at other craft events, there are very few that make it 37 years.” Contact Ryan Cornell at 574-6286 or rcornell@dnronline.com

Photos by Austin Bachand / DN-R

LEFT: A scarecrow silently stands sentry as people browse crafts for sale during the 2015 Dayton Days Autumn Celebration on Oct. 10. ABOVE: Visitors walk under the banner welcoming them to the 2015 Dayton Days Autumn Celebration.

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Red, White & Brew A ‘Friendly’ Event By NOLAN STOUT Daily News-Record

BROADWAY — Red, White & Brew may sound like a Fourth of July festival but don’t be deceived. The 2016 installment of Red, White & Brew was set for June 4 in Heritage Park on Turner Avenue in Broadway. Red, White & Brew is sponsored by Blue Ribbon Nursery, the town of Broadway and the Broadway Hometown Partnership, which was established in 2001 and promotes the town. CeCe Dodd, executive director of BHP, said the event is held early to set it apart from Independence Day celebrations. “There are a lot of other events right around the actual holiday itself,” Dodd said. “We don’t want to take away [from those].” It’s set for the beginning of the summer, Dodd said, which can kick off the festival season. Broadway Councilman Chad Comer is a BHP board member and volunteers for the organization. Comer said having the event earlier helps attract volunteers who might be out of town around July 4. Organizers hope to attract between 3,000 and 5,000 people this year, a jump from last year’s 1,000. Comer said advertising on social media has helped the event grow and “it’s just evolved into a larger event.” Town Manager Kyle O’Brien, who serves on the BHP board, said the festival will only continue to improve. “It’s still a learning process for everybody as we move forward,” O’Brien said. “I don’t think we’ve really established that benchmark yet because it’s so new.”

Daniel Johnson of Broadway holds his son, Lucas, on his shoulders as they watch fireworks shot from Broadway High School during the Red, White & Brew Festival at Broadway’s Heritage Park on July 11. Daniel Lin / DN-R

Community Event Dodd said many attendees come from the town itself. “It’s affordable for the family to come and a lot of our customers are within walking distance,” she said. “They know they can bring their children and families and be in a safe, friendly atmosphere.”

Mayor Tim Proctor said BHP is the “driving force” behind the festival and attendees appreciate having it in town. “These types of events are very popular up and down the Valley,” Proctor said. “It’s a good chance for the people of time to get together and enjoy the evening.” Dodd said Red, White & Brew is spe-

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cial to more than Broadway. “The hometown partnership started it as another event for the community to have,” she said. “[They] thought it would be great to have something up in the north end of the county.” See FRIENDLY, Page 43

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Small Town-Feel Brings People Back To Festival Friendly

FROM PAGE 42

O’Brien said the festival brings people from outside Broadway “who, hopefully, spill over into town and to our businesses.” Dodd said the small town-feel brings people back. “It’s the hometown atmosphere, the community, the friendliness of it,” she said. “Everybody has a great time dancing in the park to the live music.” O’Brien said the relatively new festival gives Broadway an opportunity to showcase the town and the park. “It wasn’t that long ago when the park was really just an overgrown area of brush and weeds,” he said. “It’s local bands, it’s local breweries and wineries. So it obviously has a local flavor.”

Comer said the festival allows people to reconnect and “it’s really a great thing for our community.” “It’s kind of like socializing with people you haven’t seen for a while,” he said. Comer said the event is the town’s largest and people come because it’s “well-run,” but one thing really excites people — “it’s the food.”

Planned Events The 2016 event starts at 4:30 p.m. and bands will play through the night. Live music and beer and food trucks also will be on tap as well as activities. Dodd said games and crafts will be available for children. Bluestone Winery of Bridgewater Crosskeys Vineyard and Charlottesville-based Three Notch’d Brewing, which has a Harrisonburg location, Brothers Brewing and Timber-

ville-based Old Hill Cider will be on location. The Young Oldman Band and Randy Black and Soul Dressing will be performing. Admission is $10 and attendees can choose a stainless steel pint glass or wine glass to try out beers. This year’s event won’t feature fireworks, Dodd said. Residents can, however, see fireworks at the Fireworks and Family Fun Day on June 25. O’Brien said the festival allows residents can relax and have fun. “[It’s] a Saturday afternoon to come sit down in the park and enjoy some food and drink and enjoy some good music,” he said. “It’s just a good time.” Contact Nolan Stout at 574-6278 or nstout@dnronline.com

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Shenandoah County Offers A Range Of Festivals By KELLY CLARK Daily News-Record

Want to celebrate shopping, horse racing, food, wine or military history against a picturesque agricultural backdrop? Then Shenandoah County in the summer and fall is the place for you. The county’s festivals range from the historical to the commercial, but all attract thousands of visitors and residents alike to the area.

Racing Brings New Events One of the county’s more unique events is the Wine and Trotter Festival at the Shenandoah County Fairgrounds in Woodstock. The festival pairs wine tasting and harness racing for a one-of-a-kind weekend. This year’s festival, which is moving from June to the first weekend in October, will feature 10 county wineries and more races than last year. “There used to be three or four,” said Tom Eshelman, the fair’s general manager. “Now, there are six or eight.” The festival started in 2013 as a way to bring the sport

Daniel Lin / DN-R

Angela Hutchinson of Elkton carries a lawn ornament while she browses through selections at the Route 11 Yard Crawl in New Market on Aug. 8. back to the fairgrounds, where it has been documented as far back as 1917 and perhaps longer. “We’ve found old fliers and circulars from 1896,” Eshelman said. “There’s been racing on our grounds for 99 years.” In part because of the fairgrounds’ history, harness racing is turning into more than a twice-a-year event in the county.

The fairgrounds signed a multiyear lease with the Virginia Equine Alliance in early 2016 to host sanctioned harness racing at the track, newly dubbed Shenandoah Downs. This year, races will start on Sept. 10 and run every weekend through Virginia Stakes Racing Day on Oct. 9. “There will be parimutuel betting and horses from all over the country,” Eshelman said, adding that the VEA races have inspired the creation of two new annual events at the fairgrounds. The county’s inaugural Food Truck Festival will help kick off the VEA races on Sept. 10 and Sept. 11. See FESTIVALS, Page 45

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Friday, May 27, 2016

GermanFest Replaced By ‘Gathering’ Festivals

FROM PAGE 44

Additionally, horse-racing fans can enjoy the MicroBrew and Chili Festival on Sept. 24 and Sept. 25. The fair association is still considering ideas for events to fill the rest of the VEA racing schedule. Eshelman said he hopes the races will attract plenty of visitors looking for a good time. “We get the public to do some things that are fun and exciting, plus watch harness racing,” he said.

‘Gathering’ New In 2016 One longtime Shenandoah County festival celebrating the Valley’s history won’t return in 2016. GermanFest is usually held in September at the Hottel-Keller Homestead in Toms Brook to celebrate the legacy of German immigrants who helped settle the Valley. Last year’s event was rained out and this year’s iteration has been called off, according to Karen Cooper, president of the Shenandoah Germanic Heritage Museum. “We want to revamp it,” Cooper said. “We may or may not do an activity in the fall.” Instead, the homestead hosted a two-day military-focused event called “The Gathering” on May 21 and May 22. Stonewall Jackson Chapter 9 of Disabled American Veterans sponsored the event. Veterans groups, historical re-enactors and military bands educated the public on military history and greeted Valley veterans. “If they need help deal-

Daniel Lin / DN-R

Mike Smythers of Lovingston examines the engine of a 1965 Mercury Comet for sale at the Route 11 Yard Crawl on Aug. 8.

ing with the [Department of Veterans Affairs], they can talk to the service officers,” said organizer Tom Cooper, Karen’s husband. “They are really top-notch.” Cooper said part of the reason to host the event was to provide help and hope to older veterans dealing with financial and mental hardships, including post-traumatic stress disorder. “If you wore your armed forces cap 30 or 40 years

ago, you would have been shunned and called a baby killer,” Cooper said. “Now, people come up and shake your hand and thank you for your service, and that brings back memories that [veterans] thought they had taken care of.” Cooper said “this is the first time we’ve tried this” but it might return if successful. The event’s proceeds will be split between the Hot-

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tel-Keller Homestead and the Disabled American Veterans. “The [local DAV] chapter only gets money when they’re going to Golden Corral and asking for donations,” Cooper said, adding that the chapter still gave veterans more than $4,000 for rent assistance and other help last year. “If we can make more than $2,000, we should be in the black,” Cooper said.

Shopping Nirvana Of all Shenandoah County festivals, the Route 11 Yard Crawl is by far the largest and bestknown. The daylong August event stretches from New Market to Stephens City in Frederick County and features yard sales, sidewalk sales and flea markets hosted by area residents and businesses. The event draws 2,000

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to 3,000 shoppers from around the country looking for antiques, books and other items. Cheri Wright, executive director of the county Chamber of Commerce, said she hopes for even more during this year’s crawl on Aug. 13. “The hotels are already starting to get booked,” she said in early April. “We have 6,000 [likes] on Facebook.” Wright said the county is trying to gather vendors into larger clusters with easily accessible parking to make the crawl safer and more unique. “Every town has that one spot,” she said. “The big places are Family Drive-In [in Stephens City], the New Market Flea Market and the Edinburg Flea Market. Massanutten Military Academy will be big this year.” Wright said the county’s tourism department launched the crawl in 2005 to draw more visitors to the area. “I consider it a first date,” she said. “They come here, they fall in love with it and they keep coming back.” Contact Kelly Clark at 574-6290 or kclark@dnronline.com

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Harrisonburg, Va.

First Night

>> in pictures

ABOVE: A man holds his daughter on his shoulders as he hugs his wife at the finale of the 2015 First Night Harrisonburg celebration on Dec. 31. LEFT: Gene Wu, 6, writes his resolution on the New Yearâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Eve resolution clock in Court Square on Dec. 31. FAR LEFT: Kayle Intemann and Bastian Wieck, both of Statesboro, Ga., kiss as they watch the fireworks on Dec. 31.

Photos by Austin Bachand / DN-R

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Austin Bachand / DN-R

The final antique vehicle in the 2015 Valley Fourth’s Get Outdoors and Get Moving Parade drives down South Main Street on July 4.

Valley Fourth >> in pictures

Austin Bachand / DN-R

The crowd at Turner Pavilion in downtown Harrisonburg watches the 2015 Valley Fourth fireworks at the end of the celebration.

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