First RitzFest overcomes hitches to showcase local talent

RITZVILLE — The first annual RitzFest — a new festival showcasing local musical talent — went off well, all things considered. 

“It was a great day,” said Cory Bartlett, vice president of the Ritzville Festivals Association, which organized the music festival. “The wind finally calmed down around 6 (p.m.) and (we) finished out the show strong … I think the weather turned a lot of people off. We surely would have liked a few more people there. But all in all, the bands had a great time, the vendors made a little bit of money and everybody seemed very happy with the first event.” 

At least 100 people bought admission wristbands at the gate, Bartlett said, and he had hoped for twice that number. The area had been hit with rain and high winds the day before, so seating on the grounds was a little damp. But attendees brought out their own chairs and parked themselves on the grass at the Wheat Land Fairgrounds to hear a succession of local musicians including Andy Rumsey, Sidestep and Two Stones One Bird, as well as Bartlett’s own band, Big Dawg and the Howlers. Food included gourmet hot dogs from The Dog Stop, cotton candy and baked goodies from Sweet Treats Bakery in Ritzville. 

“For the first music festival, I think it did OK,” said Monique Curtis, owner of Sweet Treats. “I think the music was wonderful. I really enjoyed it.” 

“I think it’s a good idea for the community to bring everybody together,” said Stephanie Sanchez, who was looking over Curtis’ selections along with Melody Glass while Two Stones One Bird played a rowdy bluegrass number in the background. 

“I think we need more stuff like this to bring in tourists and put some money into the economy,” Glass said.  

There were craft vendors in attendance as well, including Kris and Jean Richards, owners of Pahattery in Paha, who specialize in pottery inlaid with burnt horsehair, which leaves black winding lines in the white clay. The lines never come out the same way twice, they said. 

“The shading is the smoke from the burning hair,” Kris Richards said. “You never have any idea how much smoke is actually going to bind itself into the piece.” 

“You pull it out of the kiln when it's 1,500 degrees and just set it down, and then you just hold the hair up, and you wait,” Jean Richards said. “When the static and the temperatures strike a balance, it actually sucks the hair out of your hand … I set myself on fire a couple of times because I had a sleeve that hit the side of the kiln.” 

She uses a leather jacket now to prevent that from happening, she added. 

One problem the festival ran into was that it was put together in a bit of a rush, Bartlett said. He had about a month to plan it, he said, and the permit for the beer garden had come through a little over a week before the festival date. He has plans to do things differently next year, he said. 

“Next time … we’ll start the music around 4 o’clock,” he said. “Instead of charging admission, we’re gonna offer free admission and get businesses to sponsor and pick up that cost. (We can run) advertisements, ‘Thanks for sponsoring our event,’ which makes businesses feel good.” 

Scheduling the festival right before the Wheat Land Communities’ Fair and as school was about to begin didn’t help the situation either, he said. Next year the committee will plan to hold RitzFest in July. 

“I think that’ll really open the floodgates for people to come,” he said. 

In the end, though, it was all about the music, and Bartlett said that was right on point. 

“All the musicians did a wonderful job,” he said. “It wouldn’t happen without their involvement and being willing to come all the way to Ritzville … Really, all of them put on a great show.” 

    Jacob Schultz, left, and his brother-in-law Antonio Najera serve up gourmet hot dogs from their truck The Dog Stop at RitzFest Saturday.
  

    The pottery made by Pahattery on display at RitzFest Saturday features lines made by infusing the smoke from burning horsehair into the clay.
  

    Stephanie Sanchez, right, and Melody Glass look over the goodies on offer from Sweet Treats Bakery while owner Monique Curtis looks on. “My husband is diabetic,” Curtis said. “He says it’s like living with a drug dealer.”