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First Steamboat Mountain Music Festival one groovy day
The first ever Steamboat Mountain Music Festival was a joyful day of sun frolicking fun with a diverse blend of mostly local talent on display.
Part of Edgewater’s 100th birthday celebrations, the music festival featured headliners Chris Coole, John Reischman and the Jaybirds, Maria in the Shower and former Columbia Valley resident Mark Koenig.
However, packed between the headliners were L8TE, who kicked things off at 11 a.m. on Saturday, July 7 on an elaborate stage positioned in the northeast corner of the Edgewater Elementary School grounds.
Steamboat Mountain Stardusters, Combo Akimbo and Beard’s Creek followed, with valley newcomer Bob Benvenuti appearing at 1 p.m. Local lass Abby performed a ‘tweener’ set before Marty and Eli Beingessner hit the stage at 2 p.m. – as more and more people continued to saunter onto the school grounds, some packing tents and shelters, while others lugged lawnchairs and picnic baskets. The large school field and the spectacular backdrop of Steamboat Mountain and the Columbia River Wetlands is a brilliant setting for a music festival and kudos to School District No. 6 for allowing use of the property.
Also serving as tweener acts were Mickey Maione, The Dos Equis, The Kootenay Legands, Paige Fuller, George Thierbach II (reading Jack Thompson’s poetry) and a Tribute to Gord Askey, before final act John Reischman and the Jaybirds took to the stage at 9 p.m.
Prior to the headline acts, the Halfsacks performed a 50 minute set, as did The Dry Gulch Ramblers at 7:50 p.m.
Renowned valley MC Bill Cropper did yeoman’s work keeping the festival flowing.
At the back of the school were booths offering crafts, snacks and event t-shirts, by Local View Design of Invermere, and a most popular stop was Pip’s General Store’s drink stand.
About the only complaint heard about the festival was the lack of a beverage garden, and it was a mild one at best as patrons understood the restrictions placed on the organizers.
A fascinating aspect of the show was the number of entertainers who held strong ties to Edgewater Elementary School.
Marty Beingessner related a story about how he first picked up a guitar at the school. “Just right back there,” he smiled, then jabbed a thumb at Edgewater musical icon Mickey Maione who was munching on a sandwich in ‘the green room,’ “but it was this guy who really taught me.”
Maione said his recall of that was teaching Marty a short song and a few chords. Marty took his lesson home, and to school, and worked on it for a number of days.
A short time later, he played it for Mickey. “That was his last lesson,” he laughed. “He could play it better than me!”
Local View Design owner Steve Mantyka shared a story about how he first met Marty Beingessner on the school grounds when he showed up from Invermere/Wilmer for an inter-school sports event. Others around the venue related stories, old and young, of their experiences in and around Edgewater, which turned 100 on Sunday, July 8.
Ian Cobb/e-KNOW
