Sun shines on Riverfest
Sunny skies gave way to a beautiful day at Riverfest, Saturday. But while hot temperatures kept many adults inside waiting for sunset, children enjoyed the fun in the sun Saturday. Magician Chuck Rygle attracted families to the shade of the trees along Rices Landing lock wall with his magic rings, card tricks and disappearing raccoon.
Parents and children of all ages enjoyed the show, but parents seemed to appreciate the location under the shade best as their children were amazed by Rygle’s magic.
“I set-up in the shade to avoid the heat, I learned that the first year,” said Rygle, who has been performing at the Riverfest for four years.
While people along the lock wall seemed to be coming and going, many people took to the river on boats, inner tubes and rafts and watched the activities from the cool water.
Rygle said kids mostly come out to enjoy the daytime activities while adults usually come out at night to enjoy the live bands.
“It’s too hot for adults. You mostly see kids in the daytime,” he said.
Some of the neighborhood kids did leave their parents behind to enjoy the fun in the sun.
Grace Haywood, 5, who lives near the lock wall said she walked to the Riverfest with her older sister, Sarah, 9, and a group of friends, Kaylie Becker, 10, of Rices Landing and Tori and Sydney Holtschneider, 9 and 6, of Maryland.
The group of girls said their parents would be joining them a little later.
In the meantime they had their face painted, bought colorful bracelets and played games.
“This is so fun,” said Sarah Haywood. “I like how close it is (to her house). I watched them put everything up.”
Brett and Jonni Pelkey of Rices Landing said it was a “little hot” for the two of them, but they braved the temperatures to show their son, Alex, 4, a nice time.
Alex said he rode a pony and played in the balloon jump.
But Jonni Pelkey said the sunshine is better than rain. She said it usually rains during the three-day Riverfest celebration.
“It’s rained every year since I was in high school,” she said.
Debbie Haring, borough administrator, said many people who grew up in Rices Landing look forward to Riverfest and return for the festivities.
“Every year I run into someone I went to school with or someone I grew up with. It’s nice,” she said.
Haring welcomed visitors to the Lock Six Museum.
She said many people stopped in to see the new room recently added to the museum, while others stopped in to escape the heat.
The museum is made up of three rooms, two devoted to the history of the Monongahela River and Lock Six, and a more recently added room devoted to the history of life in Rices Landing.
“Everyone likes it. They think it’s neat to see the way the town was, compared to how it is now.”
By 4 p.m. adults started to gather around the stage watching the Sweet Creek Band perform.
Rygle said he expected the place to be packed by sunset.
“Hardly anything happens in this area, so this is the one thing we have to look forward to,” Rygle said.