The Town of Midland's last summer festival is the union of two favourites: The Tugboat Festival and the Rib and Beer Fest at the Town Dock Friday through Sunday.
"This is our first year partnering with Rib Fest and having a small midway. There is a lot more happening than what we've done in the past," said Nicole Major, tourism and special event planner for the Town of Midland.
Last year the Northern Heat Rib Series partnered with Tall Ships "and it was really successful. They are very excited to come back and partner with one of our events," Major said.
The Rib and Beer Fest will have its own stage with live music all weekend. Beside the Rib Fest will be a midway with rides and games.
There will also be live music on the pier Friday night, Saturday and Sunday as well as buskers. In adjacent David Onley Park, there will be many artisans and vendors.
“There is lots of exciting things happening," Major said.
Fifteen tug boats are registered for the festival. Their events include tug races, the tug push contest, tug demonstrations and a light parade on Saturday at 9 p.m.
"It's always a highlight of the festival. It's a lot of fun," said Major.
The tug boats come from all over Georgian Bay and Lake Huron and one is coming from Montreal. Many of the tugs coming to the festival have been at festivals in the past.
Paul Gaynor, an organizer of TugFest for many years and owner of the Prescotont tug, applauds the town for adding more to the traditional festival.
"We are pretty excited about having the rib fest, midway, music and TugFest all together. There will be place to sit and watch and the boats," Gaynor said.
The Town is hoping to draw 15,000 to 20,000 visitors to the festival and to shop at stores, visit local attractions and stay in local hotels, said Major.
"We hope to keep people here for the weekend. It's a fun, family event for people of all ages."
The festival opens Friday at 4 p.m. The Rib Fest and midway run from 4 p.m. to 11 p.m. Live music on the pier runs from 6 to 9 p.m.
Then on Saturday the festival opens at 10 a.m. with the vendors and buskers. The midway and Rib Fest starts at 11 a.m. The tug races go at noon. The event runs until 11 p.m.
Sunday follows the same time frame to open with tug push events at noon and tug tours later in the afternoon. The event runs until 7 p.m.
For a schedule of events visit the town's Tug Boat Festival web page. The Northern Heat Rib Series has its own entertainment schedule at it website.
