Students will receive a large-scale welcome back celebration Sept. 11 and 12 with the fifth annual Ribs, Rods & Rock ’n Roll.
Event Coordinator Jody Harnois expects at least 3,000 people to attend the downtown festival this year.
The event will include a music festival, street dance, car show, rib vendors, a beer tent, arts and crafts vendors and the South Dakota Barbecue Championship. All will take place on Main Street.
“We really roll out the red carpet for these students to let them know they are welcome in this community,” Harnois said. “This is a thank you to the students who have chosen to make Vermillion their home.”
The festival will begin Sept. 11 at 5 p.m. with a street dance on Main Street that goes until 1 a.m. and continue through Sept. 12, from 10 a.m. to 7 p.m.
There are six vendors lined up to sell ribs and other fair-type food. Harnois also expects to have about 35 teams competing in the South Dakota Barbecue Championship.
The judging for the South Dakota Barbecue Championship will take place Sept. 12.
There will be winners selected by judges and there will also be a people’s choice award.
For the people’s choice award, attendees will be able to pay a small fee and sample the ribs from every competitor, and then choose a winner.
The competitors come to Vermillion from all over the United States and the world.
Harnois said last year four of the top 10 teams in the world and three former world champions were at the Vermillion event.
“It’s the largest barbecue event in the history of South Dakota,” Harnois said. “It’s like a ribfest with the state barbecue championship attached to it.”
Last year’s event packed eight city blocks on Main Street and drew about 1,500 people for the street dance alone. With extra advertising revenue this year, Harnois expects a record turnout.
Arts and crafts vendors will set up along Main Street, giving local artists the ability to showcase their work.
A beer tent will also be set up, but Harnois said the event is not just about beer, it’s an all ages event.
Harnois said they are bringing in eight different bands to play during the two-day festival.
The west-river band JuddHoos will be headlining the event. Local bands The Golden Bubbles and Avian Sunrise will also be performing.
“It’s almost like a community picnic, with quality music entertainment,” Harnois said. “These guys are some of the best bands in the Midwest that we are brining in.”
Reach reporter Sarah Reinecke at Sarah.A.Reinecke@usd.edu.
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