Frontier Finish
35th Frontier Days ends with plenty of entertainmentBy EMILIE NELSON, Messenger staff writer
Article Photos
When Jerry Kehoe gets into his 19th century period costume as a cowboy, he can't get enough of the Wild West shooting action that comes along with his character.
The 70-year-old from Hopkinton is one of 38 members of the McGregor-based Hole in the Sock Gang Wild West re-enacting group making its second appearance at Frontier Days, which also included such notable performers as award-winning Western Music Association Hall of Fame Inductee Michael Martin Murphey.
"I can't play enough," Hopkinton said. "I may be 70 years old, but I could do this every weekend."
Taking their name from an old Saturday morning cartoon, the group, under the direction of one of its original members, Jim Boeke, got its start by re-enacting an Old West-style robbery at Boeke's store, River Junction Trading Co., to help out a town festival in McGregor about 23 years ago, Boeke said.
Since then, the group has held performances once a month
The city of McGregor, located on the Mississippi River, is home to McGregor's Landing, a replicated version of the city in 1857, and similar to Front Street at the Fort Museum. The similarity between their home base and the Fort has made Frontier Days an enjoyable stop for the group, which performs a different show every two hours.
"The setting here is excellent," said Boeke. "It's a historical place that gives us a nice, authentic feel."
Darren Huckins, who plays one of the rebels with the group agreed.
"It's fun," he said. "It works well. We don't have to create a setting here."
Members of the Hole in the Sock Gang represent four states - one from as far away as Indiana - and are all involved for a number of reasons. Some enjoy the acting, others are history buffs and for a few, the love of playing cowboys as a child brought them to the group.
"We all like this stuff," said Robin Thompson, of McGregor. "We've got good family values. We're just a bunch of kids that liked playing cowboys who never grew up."
"Some men like to play golf," Kehoe said with a laugh. "But we play cowboys."
With overcast skies that appeared they would likely dampen the festival, much of Saturday's entertainment was moved indoors to prevent rain from hindering the performances.
"The entertainers have all been adjusting well to being moved indoors," said Charles Clayton, chairman of the Frontier Days Committee.
For comic stunt juggler Tuey Wilson, the move was a welcome one.
"I do a lot of summer festivals," he said. "Many of them are outside, so it's been nice to be indoors today."
Wilson, a full-time professional juggler from Minnesota, was making his first appearance at Frontier Days.
His act includes such daring stunts as juggling fire batons when balancing himself on the top rung of a ladder while wearing the "flaming beanie of death" on his head, and an 11-part combination trick. These are all skills he has been working to perfect for the past 28 years.
"I started when I was in eighth grade by learning to juggle two balls in one hand," he said. "I started professionally about 28 years ago."
As for juggling fire, Wilson said it's something he just "picked up along the way."
"When you start juggling for a living, it's a natural step that you learn to juggle something dangerous," he said.
Taking their name from a last-minute, late-night video recording for a talent show that led to their beginning, the Procrastinators were a crowd favorite as they took their cookware and water jug percussion act across the grounds of the Fort Museum.
"We had an opportunity to perform in a talent show in downtown San Diego about 10 years ago," said Chris Doolittle, owner and founder of the Procrastinators. "We waited until the night before it was due to make the video, and we used kitchen items like pans, bar stools and water jugs as percussion."
The San Diego, Calif.-based group has grown from its original membership of three college students to 70 performers nationwide. Doolittle said that in aggregate the group's 70 members, many of whom are college students or professional percussionists, give about 1,800 performances on 15 sets of equipment in 40 states and Canada throughout the year.
The group takes everyday kitchen items such as pans, stools and 5 -gallon water jugs to make one large musical instrument to produce their unique brand of music. They have agreements and sponsorship with cookware companies and water distributors to get the items necessary to make the drum sets. "It takes about $1,500 to make one set," said Doolittle.
Having been featured at such places as the Legoland California amusement park, the Super Bowl, and more locally, the Iowa State Fair, the group often sets up a performance booth at trade shows to make their existence known across the country.
But Doolittle said it isn't the location of the performance that matters to him and the group.
"'Where we go isn't quite as notable for the gigs we're playing as it is the people we meet," he said. "The audiences here have been great, and the people are nice. It's been a great time."
Bucking tradition from previous years, Frontier Days wrapped up Saturday evening. There will be no Sunday activities this year.
After four years at the helm of Frontier Days, Clayton will be stepping down as chairman. It is his hope that the community will we able to bring the celebration back to what it used to be,
"I really hope someone steps up and can get this back to a three- or four-day event," he said.
Contact Emilie Nelson at (515)573-2141 or enelson@messengernews.net
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prosandcons
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06-08-09 2:53 PM
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I was very dissappointed when i paid my admiswsion to frontier days this year. THere was no attractions like in past years. I am not sure what has happened this use to be a huge thing in years past. We have several people that can contribute to this worthwhile event. This can be a very educational event for us. A BIG THANK YOU TO MR. CLAYTON AND MR.COOK AND THERE STAFF FOR TRYING TO KEEP THIS EVENT ALIVE FOR THE PAST FOUR YEARS. SSomeone please step up and take chrage of this program /event. Fort Dodge webster county agencies. I believe u can take this task on.
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jaybares
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06-08-09 12:03 AM
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Perhaps the Chamber will send busload of recent Leadership grads to Pella. They are young, energetic and eager to learn. By visiting,they may learn how Pella organizes and implements the Tulip Festival-year after year- which attracts bus groups and regional attendees. Perhaps they can strike out on new direction which will serve Fort Dodge well for another 35 years. What are they doing that our community should be doing?
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