The first-ever Rock-N-Q on the Planes Fall Festival, a weekend of “Great Music, Great Food, in Great Bend” will be held Oct. 18,19 and 20 at the historic Great Bend Municipal Airport and Expo Complex.
The festival is being organized and sponsored by Destination GB, Rocking M Media, Old School 107.9 Radio, along with nearly 30 local businesses.
“Rock-N-Q can be described as an event with purpose” said Mark Bitter, board member of Destination GB, “the festival will offer people a fun and entertaining weekend, and at the same time bring people from across the country to Great Bend.”
The weekend event brings the first-ever head-to-head Kansas City Barbecue Society National Championship to Great Bend. Here, the top point earners from across the United States will gather to cook off against each other to crown the National Champion.
Following is an open barbecue competition, allowing any team to enter and cook against each other and the Championship Series teams with total payout for the two events being $45,000. “Spend the weekend enjoying championship barbecue,” barbecue chairman Kent Romine said. “Teams will be vending on site.”
The fun atmosphere of food, beverage,and merchandise vendors also features 11 bands great bands performing on a roofed hydraulic stage. Legendary bands such as Foghat, Skid Row, Starship featuring Mickey Thomas, Head East, and Banshee will be joined on stage by Jake Gill, Home Brew, Ten Day Wish, The Dave Holland Band, You Tube sensation Liliac, and the Great Bend Rocks Band Camp. Saturday evening features a special military tribute you won’t want to miss.
So far, people from as far away as California to Virginia have purchased tickets.
“As we build this annual event, the proceeds will go into Destination GB, a 501c3 non profit organization designed specifically for this purpose,” Bitter said. “Destination GB will be used to assist with funding visual improvements in our community, items such as store front renovation match grants, aesthetic lighting and funds to maintain them. Projects which will have an impact on visitors to our city by creating a more attractive, inviting appearance and setting.”
Hopefully it can help give Great Bend an even better opportunity to be considered as a place to live, while at the same time increasing valuations to help maintain our mil levy and property taxes, he said. Being able to accomplish this by bringing in outside dollars to fund these improvements lessens the burden on the local community.
“We have been able to organize a great team of people, businesses, and volunteers to create this first-ever event for Great Bend,” he said. “We are expecting nearly 4000 people this year and we are excited for the potential of growth it holds in the future.”
