Béla Fleck & the Flecktones Belleayre Show Will Be A Benefit Show For Victims of Flood

Highmount, NY - The Belleayre Music Festival is turning its final show of the season into a benefit for victims of Sunday's record-breaking flood. Bela Fleck and the Flecktones - Original Lineup, will play at Belleayre on Saturday, Sept. 3 at 8 p.m. The board of directors of the Belleayre Conservatory, which operates the festival, has decided that net proceeds from season's final show will be donated to assist the flood-relief effort. Chairman of the Board Joe Kelly said that making the concert into a benefit for flood victims was a

Music Festival natural decision for the conservatory. "Our mission is to benefit the Catskill Region. At this moment, there's no better way for us to help fellow community members than by contributing what we can in the wake of this tragedy," Mr. Kelly stated. He said that tickets will be sold as for a normal concert and that additional donations to help defray expenses and thereby increase the size of the donation will gladly be accepted. He went on to say that "several generous donations from board members and others have already been received." "We realize that most people don't have concerts on their mind, at this moment," Mr. Kelly explained. "At the same time, we hope that a week after this enormous devastation, people will be ready for some much-needed relief from the stress of this week's historic disaster. Bela Fleck and the Flecktones produce some of the most stimulating music around and we want people to have their spirits lifted as they help those who have lost so much in the flood." Béla Fleck is arguably often the world's premier banjo player, but his extraordinary musical talents transcend any simple description. As a result, Béla has been nominated in more different Grammy categories than anyone in history (27 nominations and 11 wins). For their first major concert tour in eight years, Bela will be joined by the Flecktones' original lineup of Howard Levy, Victor Wooten and Future Man. When Béla takes the stage with the "Tones," audiences are treated to a sonic adventure that melds superb technical skills, improvisation and the love playing into an unforgettable concert experience. Bela and the Flecktones have garnered a strong and faithful following among jazz and new acoustic fans and they have shared the stage with icons such as the Dave Mathews Band, Sting, Bonnie Raitt and the Grateful Dead.

NH Highland Games Still Scheduled for September 16-19

Lincoln, NH - Despite damage to the main bridge that accesses Loon Mountain Resort from Route 112, Loon is open for all summer activities. Alternate access to the resort is available via South Peak Bridge, located to the west in the town of Lincoln. Sunday’s tropical storm dumped up to 5” of rain over the area, causing the East Branch of the Pemigewasset River to flood, undermining the bridge abutments and closing Route 112/The Kacamagus Highway east of the Resort. The NH Department of Transportation closed the bridge on Sunday evening and state engineers were here on Tuesday to assess the damage and get repair work started. Repair work began Tuesday afternoon, and then a portion of the bridge collapsed early this morning. The collapse did not stop repair work, which continues today. “The good news is that we are open and work has already begun to repair the bridge. We were very fortunate that we did not sustain any further major damage, as did several other resorts and many other areas in New England,” said Rick Kelley, president & general manager. “We’ve had great cooperation and assistance from the Town of Lincoln, the State of New Hampshire, and the utility companies.” There will be no impact on winter operations and alternate plans are already in place to host the upcoming 36th Annual New Hampshire Highland Games, September 16-18. “This is a very important event, both for Loon and the Lincoln Woodstock area, and we are committed to doing whatever it takes to make sure the Games go on as scheduled at Loon,” said Kelley. Loon is open daily for all activities through Labor Day, and hosts the annual Summer Sendoff event on September 3-4 as scheduled. After Labor Day, the Gondola Skyride will be open daily through October 16 and the Loon Mountain Adventure Center, Riding Stables and Segway Tours will be open weekends through October 10.

Yodel Lay He Ho Oktoberfest At Sugar Mountain Resort

Banner Elk, NC - We've got lots of reasons for you to grab your beer stein, put on your lederhosen or your dirndl, bring your appreciation for local folk dancing and head to Sugar Mountain Resort Saturday & Sunday, October 8 & 9, 2011. Not only will the Harbour Town Fest Band provide a festive Bavarian atmosphere to Sugar's 21st annual Oktoberfest celebration, the national award winning Avery Smooth Dancers and the Mountain Laurel Cloggers will get your feet stomping and bring out the country drawl in all of us. Admission, parking and shuttle service are free. Rain or shine the festival will go on!

Take in the beautiful fall foliage, cool, comfortable mountain temperatures, and a weekend full of festival activities from 10 am until 5 pm each day. Be sure to bring the kids because the event is for the whole family.

An array of artisans, craftspeople and festival food vendors open their booths at 10:00am each day. A sampling of this year's country craft fair sale items include: pottery, folk art in glass & wood, books by local and regional authors, stained glass sun-catchers, hair accessories, handmade wooden crafts, custom made furniture, ceramics, polymer clay items, crafted rustic bark, handmade bath & body products, jewelry, home-made baked goods, jams & jellies, kettle corn, funnel cake, crazy fries, local made pasta & sauces and much more.

Bavarian cuisine including bratwurst, knockwurst, sauerkraut, strudel and pretzels will be available starting at 11:00am both Saturday & Sunday. To help wash it down an ample supply of Spaten beer will generously flow each day until 5:00pm. Spaten Oktoberfest beer, created in 1872 and brewed in Munich, Germany, is the world's first Oktoberfest beer. If Bavarian cuisine isn't your preference American hot dogs, hamburgers, soda, and other festive foods will be on hand.

17th Annual Pocono Garlic Festival

Shawnee-on-Delaware, PA - Seventeen years of garlic-y goodness! A local tradition, the Pocono Garlic Festival is happening again on Labor Day Weekend, September 3 & 4. Host site Shawnee Mountain Ski Area is pleased to offer a sampling of the regions’ local farms, food vendors, crafters and entertainers for the Poconos locally-based, premier food festival.

This event is truly all about the garlic and all the garlic featured, sold and used for food preparation at the event is grown and harvested in the Poconos. Local farms providing garlic and produce for the festival include: Knob View Farm, the Josie Porter Farm, Rolling Hills Farm, Fairman Farm, Burdick Creek Gardens, Mapleland Farms, Swarmbustin’ Honey, Mountaindale Farms and Vista Farm.

Over 50 vendors will provide a wide range of foods from simple to sophisticated, geared for the “foodie” with discerning taste buds. The 2011 Pocono Garlic Festival is a platform to showcase the regions most pungent garlic and finest eateries. Delectable delights will range from garlic beef brisket and apple garlic soup to garlic sauerkraut and garlic ice cream. Local artists and crafters will exhibit a variety of hand crafted garlic themed creations and wears at this years two day event. From homemade wood items to pottery to jewelry and even handcrafted soaps, garlic in every form imaginable will be on display.

Main stage performers include returning and zany headliners Zydeco-A-Go-Go, the country rocking Blue Emerald Band and the fiery fiddlers of Burning Bridget Cleary. The mountain stage will feature local favorites including The Juggernaut String Band, the Lost Ramblers, Jazz Juice, Nancy & Spencer Reed and the Len Mooney Duo. The PA Dance Network will also be returning with several dance performances throughout both days. With two outdoor stages, an outdoor children’s area and petting zoo, educational lectures, cooking demonstrations and strolling acts, festival goers will enjoy a wide variety of non-stop live music and “garlic themed” novelty shows and entertainment geared towards the whole family.

Holiday Valley’s Mountain Coaster to Open

Ellicottville, NY - The Grand Opening celebration of the Mountain Coaster at Holiday Valley’s Sky High Adventure Park will be held on Saturday, August 20 at 10AM. The Mountain Coaster is located in the Tannenbaum (western most) area of the resort and is next to the Aerial Adventure Park that opened earlier this summer. According to Holiday Valley’s President Dennis Eshbaugh, “the addition of the Mountain Coaster is an important piece of the whole resort that attracts visitors to Holiday Valley and the region on a year ‘round basis.”

The Mountain Coaster is similar to a roller coaster with cars that ride upon a track. One or two riders load a car and travel 1,865 feet up the hill parallel to the Spruce Lake lift. At the apex the car begins its thrilling 2,490 foot descent zigzagging and spiraling down through the woods. There are 15 curves, 12 waves, 2 jumps and a giant spiral along the length of the ride. The average grade is 15.2% with a maximum of 23.6%. Riders can accelerate or decelerate using handles on the sides of the car.

The coaster was designed, engineered and manufactured by Weigand of Germany and was shipped in 7 containers, each containing thousands of individual parts much like a giant Erector Set. Construction of the coaster was an intense 10 week process, as all of the parts and measurements were metric and the plans were written in German. The crew was led by 2 representatives of Weigand with the Holiday Valley Mountain Crew and 9 additional part-time workers who assembled and welded all of the pieces and then placed them in their exact location according to the plans. Several local contractors supplied concrete work, welding, carpentry work, logging, paving, stone masonry and wiring.

The Mountain Coaster will operate daily through September 5 and then weekends through at least October 9. The coaster will also operate during the winter season. The cost of a single ride is $6 during the summer season.

New Owners at Powderhorn!

Mesa, CO - Andy Daly and the Gart Brothers have purchased Powderhorn Resort in Colorado and are looking to jump start things for the future. Click here for the rest of the article: DenverPost.com