Dune Fest 2006

Dune Fest 2006

August 31, 2006
By: Staff report

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For those of you who haven’t made the trip to the Oregon Coast yet, you’re missing out. Let’s forget for a moment that it’s one of two dunes that make their home on the west coast shoreline and simply talk about the beauty these dunes offer. We were amazed at the backgrounds those evergreens provided to the crowd of sand enthusiasts who made Reedsport Oregon their home for a few days.

This was no doubt a great place to spend a week in the middle of summer. Dune fest has become a circus of events that is fun for the whole family. Blue skies and cool winds kept things moving all week, until the haze showed up for the last day of events. With kid events starting on Wednesday and bonfire and DJ dances on Friday and Saturday nights, Dune Fest fans were entertained well past sun down over the weekend.

As this event has grown, so has the sponsor list; Full-bore Innovations and Alba Action Sports returned as primary sponsors while The American Sand Drag Association took care of all the drag racing needs. Guaranty RV became the Championship Sponsor for the 2006 event. For those of you are action video DVD fans, you’ll be happy to know that the Bomb Squad was there shooting video of their freestyle jumpers, one of which pulled off a full 360 loop in front of a screaming crowd.

Some of the highlights were: ATV and UTV racing on an MX style course, drag racing on 300-ft straights, an ATV tug-of-war, freestyle jumps and a brief sand car jumping display. This event has easily become as popular as two other Midwest events; the Snake Hunt near the Little Sahara State Park in Oklahoma and the Highlifter Mud Nationals in Texas, all three of which have seen crowds come from many states away and stay for days at a time.

This event was also a testament to what type of machines are brought to any type of dunes. We saw the newest and oldest of quads and sand rails, dirt bikes and even a couple three wheelers. And of course we saw many golf carts and UTV’s.  There were even a few of those little 70cc 3-wheelers some were using at pit bikes. And just in case you needed a few spare parts or new bling, there were vendors on hand to supply you with just about everything sand related and beyond.

If any of you are curious to know how far people will drive to attend this event, we met folks from southern California, to Canada and of course a few who drove from states further east. After asking around a few campsites, we were a little surprised how many out of state people came, more than half the people we met were from out of state. The question is, will they be back for the 2007 event? Make plans now, it will be from July 31-Aug 5, 2007. Check out the official Dune fest website at www.dunefest.com for a complete list of events from this year’s event and to order a DVD from the 5-days of action.