On-site campers at the Brown County Fairgrounds included Dan and Marlene Braulick of rural New Ulm.

“We began coming here since Heritagefest was held here. When they began allowing camping on the fairgrounds, we came out to camp,” Braulick said.

“We grew up with old time music. I still like it plus rock and roll. I like the variety of music here now,” he added. “They’ve got country, disco and rock and roll night.”

Braulick said he and his wife went to Winstock Country Music Festival with good friends Denise and Paul Kuehn a couple times.

Staff photo by Fritz Busch A couple hits the NUVERA stage dance floor Thursday as Bavarian Blast begins at the fairgrounds.

“It’s easier coming here with campers. It’s more relaxing. You don’t have to worry about driving,” said Braulick. “A lot of the campers are from out of town. We’ll meet lots of new people.”

Other campers included the Olson family from Minnetonka. Jenna and her two sisters said they’ve been coming to Bavarian Blast for a number of years.

“We’re back again. We always camp in the same spot,” said Jenna. “We’ve been here for so long, we have friends. Everyone knows us and reserve a camp spot for us.”

Alpensterne is their favorite band.

“They know us, come to our camper and hang out with us,” Jenna said. “I like all the music, the Narren and gnomes and stuff.”

Corn and bean farmers Gene and Alice Wimmer of Mapleton, Iowa, 15 miles southeast of Sioux City, pulled their trailer to New Ulm.

“We usually come here every year,” said Alice Wimmer.

“We used to go to polka festivals all over,” she added.

“When people got sick during the pandemic, lots of festivals went away, but not all of them.

“We saw Barefoot Becky (& the Ivanhoe Dutchmen) at the Amana, (Iowa German-American) Colonies in May,” Alice said. “We used to go to Mitchell, S.D. Corn Palace and Ellsworth, Wi. polka fest.”

“We like Barefoot Becky and Mollie (B and Squeezebox), Leon Olsen and Larry Olsen. We’ve dance to them,” she added.

Another group of campers from Le Center, New Prague and Northfield were also camping.

“We like the size of Bavarian Blast,” said Dick Esser of Kilkenny. “We come for the tribute and polka band and food too. This is a well organized event.”

Wayne and Helen Zuelch of Le Center said they like New Ulm native Jay Kalk of Minneapolis, known for his Johnny Cash tribute band Church of Cash. Kalk will perform 6 to 7:30 p.m. Sunday with a Jimmy Buffet tribute band, Parrothead Paradise.

“We’ve known Jay for a long time. We got to know Mollie B and Ted (of Squeezebox) well too. Some of our group has traveled with Mollie B and her band. We like their Sunday morning church service and the Sunday parade here. We’d like to see Christa Bohlmann the Blue Ringers too,” said Esser.

A group of five people from Wagner, S.D. said they drove five and one-half hours to New Ulm to see Bavarian Blast for the first time. They appeared to be thrilled to hear country music from Heidi and the Good Ole Boys Thursday night.

Friday entertainment begins at 11 a.m. with The Concord Singers on the NUVERA stage. Squeezebox and Mollie B follow at noon before the Alex Meixner Band and the Alpensterne take stage.

Evening bands are Stephen Paul at 8 p.m. Shane Martin follows at 10 p.m. with Alabama band tribute “Songs of the South” until midnight.

KNUJ Polka Hall music begins with Brian Bruggen & the Mississippi Valley Dutchmen at 11 a.m.; and the Leon Olsen Show at 1 p.m.