The Drumheller Valley will soon be roaring thanks to a new festival in town. In two weeks, DinoFest will kick off a weekend of dinosaur inspired fun. The weekend will celebrate Drumheller’s rich history and connection to prehistory.
The event starts on June 1 at 8 p.m. at the World’s Largest Dinosaur, with entertainment. Afterwards, attendees will be treated to MovieNite, presented by ATB Financial. ATB has just recently become a sponsor for the festival.
“We are thrilled to welcome ATB to this. Having their sponsorship on the movie nights takes the event up another level,” said Seekers Media president Jim Barr. “Now we’ve got another major player can help carry this across the province.”
A huge, three story, screen will be erected in front of the World’s Largest Dinosaur. On Friday the featured movie will be Jurassic Park. The next evening Jurassic Park 2 will be shown at 10 p.m.
Events will continue throughout the weekend at the Rotary Splash Park, on Centre Street, and at the Royal Tyrrell Museum. The festival winds down on Sunday at 4 p.m.
There is a huge variety of events, including pancake breakfasts, barbecues, talks at the Tyrrell Museum, live bands, and more.
The key to having DinoFest be a success is the community involvement.
“It’s really cool to see how the community is rallying around it. It’s coming together,” said Barr. “We’re proud to see the festival is creating opportunities.”
For example, Victor Bustamante, manager for the Tyrrell Museum cafeteria, will be providing popcorn during the movies to raise money for his Ride to Conquer Cancer.Drumheller Valley Secondary School students will help clean up downtown on Friday, June 1, and will be doing a talent show on stage on Sunday.
Nine bands have also signed on to provide live music throughout the weekend, including the Valley’s own Fire Coulee Bandits.
Kids will also have a chance to win an on-set appearance on Nickolodeon’s Dino Dan. In an upcoming edition of The Weekender, there will be a crossword puzzle to fill out. Contestants will have to hunt for the answers in businesses around town.
The festival is looking big this year, but is only a prelude of things to come.
“Things are shaping up to be the festival it needs to be this year,” said Barr. “Basically, we’re getting a good understanding of what we need to have a really good festival this year, because wait until you see what we do next year.”
DinoFest was born out of a desire to increase Drumheller’s prominence as a vacation destination for Albertans. This year, marketing efforts have focused on Edmonton in particular.
The festival, as of Tuesday, May 15, has reached 150,000 people on Facebook and the number of visits to the DinoFest website had tripled in the week prior.
DinoNites, a series of talks by Tyrrell researchers just wrapped up last week at the Edmonton Public Library. On average, roughly 150 people attended the talks per night.
“The goal was two-fold. Throw a great festival and set up for 2013, and plant the seed to get people thinking about Drumheller for their road trips this summer,” said Barr. “What’s exciting is that, even if they don’t come to DinoFest, we’ve still accomplished our goal.”
DinoFest kicks off on June 1 at 8 p.m. at the World’s Largest Dinosaur. For more information visit www.drumhellerdinofest.com or check out later editions of The Weekender.
