Fall kicks off with Oktoberfest 2015
Written and photographed by Grace Baines
Fall officially found Savannah with the 32nd annual Oktoberfest on River Street. Known for its lively music and wiener dog races, this year the festival also contended with the days of hard rain from Hurricane Joaquin. Despite the rain people came out in ponchos, using beer as their weather-coping mechanism.
Festivities kicked off at 4 p.m. on Friday, Oct. 2 with the celebratory tapping of the keg and continued until Sunday, Oct. 4, at 5 p.m.
Oktoberfest 2015 coincided with the First Friday Fireworks and Art March. Locals, tourists and students enjoyed the tours of the old style Spanish Galleon, Oom-pah music, bratwursts and the occasional pair of lederhosen.
“I’d never been, it sounded interesting and it was. It was a really good time,” said Jake Harding, a second-year industrial design major from Durham, North Carolina.
The wiener dog race, one of the more famous and popular contests of the event, drew a large crowd. The little, long-torsoed contestants raced down River Street to the sounds of their cheering admirers and a full Rhineland band.
There was also a sausage-eating contest, and even a barrel-rolling contest for visitors to participate in or observe.
Vendors sold crafts and pieces of original art while specialty food stalls — including one that making Bavarian beer pretzels — created what the organizers hoped to be an atmosphere that was fun for the whole family from the oldest of grandparents to the youngest of kinder (German for children).
Along with the close of the festival, Sunday afternoon brought warm sun and live music from the Rhinelanders. The band dressed in traditional lederhosen and Tyrolean hats and were surrounded by accordions and clarinets.
“It’s our seventh Oktoberfest, and it’s the most fun time of the year,” said Robert Taylor, a cordovox player in the Rhinelanders. “It’s just great seeing and meeting everyone.”
Oktoberfest 2015 wrapped up with a rainbow over the last lingering pieces of the festiva. For more information on this and other events on River Street, visit the River Street Water Front Association’s web page.
