Thank You for a Great SnowyGrass 2025! Survey link at the end.
- nadinesartandmusic
- Sep 15
- 6 min read
Updated: Sep 18
SnowyGrass 2025 has been dubbed HailGrass by some of our dear friends with a good sense of humor! We have, of course, in the past been named RainyGrass and SoggyGrass--as RockyGrass itself has occasionally earned. We consider that good company!
Y'all are so resilient!!
On Thursday, just as we had gotten the festival canopies in place, ready for load in for
Country Rhythm Oufit to play Campy Hour. In a short burst, lasting only a few minutes, our greenroom / stage area for Campy Hour was destroyed as were several canopies in the campground. The VIP tent had not been staked, so it lifted off the ground, but several volunteers grabbed onto the poles and saved it. What to do? Well--we pivot, of course! The band positioned diagonal on the stage, and the audience sat under the VIP tent and enjoyed a fun performance!
On Friday, just before SnowBelt was scheduled to play, our production company said, oh--
we can't start the generator if there is ANY rain. We said, huh? It's a festival in the
mountains. That's not a thing! Our volunteers and even non volunteers kicked into gear and covered every electrical plug with plastic so the show would go on. (Yes, that's a surprising take on the weather.) Thank you, Neil Smart, for being the Nadine Whisperer in such circumstances and for being the BEST Emcee, even if you did call us RockyGrass! (No offense taken--we LOVE RockyGrass!)
SnowBelt, Thunder & Rain, and Blue Canyon Boys had great sets after the outlets were secured! And no--it is not lost on us that Thunder & Rain may be a little suggestive! (They are aware of the accusations--ha!)
We want to mention that Pete & Joan Wernick and Charlie Stevens had a successful Wernick Method Jam Class in the Shelter. What a privilege it is to have legends in Bluegrass guide folks on jam techniques, furthering the culture of the jam circle!
Saturday morning, several folks enjoyed the harmony workshop with Blue Canyon Boys and Fiddle with Bruce.
Sometime on Saturday afternoon, Wildside 4x4 took some of the artists and volunteers for a fun ride!
The fun weather retuned with a vengeance on Saturday evening, towards the end of the Blue Canyon Boys set. It escalated quickly and BCB grabbed all their gear and exited the stage to the greenroom tent area that had been replaced by canopies borrowed from Paul Rennix. Thank you, Paul! It hailed, thundered, and poured with a lightning show! Meanwhile, in the camp, there was a river that formed where there shouldn't have been a river! Jason Hicks got the notion that maybe Bruce Molsky and Tony Trischka might be willing to play their set in the Bluebird Shelter. They said, sure! It is said that Jason stood on a tiny island, beckoning one and all to head to the shelter!
Top left from Laurie Hutton's video. Other pics by Richard Johnson
After securing their camps, people trickled into the shelter where BCB finished their set to a drying, grateful audience. When they finished, Bruce and Tony arranged 2 stools and a set list. The questions arose--Do we play a full 90 minutes in here? I said, feel out the vibe and see what happens. The room filled and spilled out, packed with attendees, dogs, and fellow musicians who became quiet, attentive, and in awe of how something so special was unfolding in front of them. The full 90 minutes flew by, and many said this was their favorite part of the festival, and can we do this again next year. Ha! Can we??
The squeaky wheel gets the grease, so of course we mention the artists who had to run from rain, but the audience thoroughly enjoyed dryish performances by GirlGrass, Thunder & Rain, Pete & Joan Wernick, and Slocan Ramblers earlier in the day!
Left to Right-GirlGrass (Liz Patton), Thunder & Rain (Richard Johnson), Slocan Ramblers (Richard Johnson), Pete & Joan (Barb Davis)
Sunday morning started off right with a banjo workshop with Tony Trischka. The rest of the day had beautiful weather, and great performances by Tonewood and Chain Station. Bruce and Tony got to play on a real stage! The River Arkansas were a great change of pace, getting some really great compliments from Bruce and Tony from the back of the fest! Estes Park locals could be proud of our hometown band, Chain Station with a stellar performance! The festival closed out with another energetic performance by Slocan Ramblers who invited me up for the encore song! What a privilege that was for me! And I want to thank my bandmates in Lost Penny for a great performance at the start of the day on Sunday. They put up with my distracted performance, but I think they had fun!
Before they left, Bruce and I, then Tony and I, took rides on the golf cart around the grounds. It's a tradition Bruce and I started in 2023, and it's become a special ride for both of us. Now, Tony and I have started it too! They are brave to ride with me!
We want to give a big thank you to our Sponsors, Volunteers, Artists, and all of you who attended!
Without funding from sponsors early in the year, we would not be able to book artists with confidence. All festivals have upfront costs such as band deposits, productions deposit, venue rental, shirt and sticker orders, snacks for artists, licensing, and supplies and materials such as canopies and other items in the amount of about $20,000. This right about the amount we receive in total cash sponsorship. It's a tight system!
Our remaining artist and rental fees rely on the purchase of tickets and bar sales. Advance sales help us breath easier to get to the home stretch, and then we hope for walk up sales to call it success to cover all of the expenses!
Let's take a look at our sponsors who made SG 2025 possible!
Our presenting sponsors cover a large amount of our upfront expenses!
Snowy Peaks Winery
Riverpointe Vacation Condos
Our fiscal sponsor, Chase the Music
These folks help cover the rest!
Earthwood Galleries
Wildside 4x4 Tours
Village Bagels
The Country Market
Richardson Team Realty
Bird & Jim
Egg of Estes
Rams Horn Village
Visit Estes Park
Estes Arts District
Animal Lane Studio
Murphy's Resort
Donors
Thanks to Colorado First Realty for providing up with a truck for transport and storage!
These folks took care of hospitality for artists!
Estes Park Condos hosts our traveling artists in luxury accommodations.
Catered meals were provided by Casa Colina @ Trailborn Rocky Mountains, Poppy's Pizza and Lonigan's / Estes Park Brewery
OZO Coffee kept us caffeinated in the green room area hosted by Doc and Joyce Whan
Cafe Mess took care of some of us for coffee and breakfast
Media sponsor help get the word out!
Rocky Mountain Channel --Watch the SnowyGrass Documentary!
Estes Park News
KGNU
Visit Estes Park
Unseen but essential!
Rocky Mountain Dumpsters
Estes Ice
Bar Sales help our budget! Thank you to these folks for product donations!
Oskar Blues Brewery
Snowy Peaks Winery
Abbott & Wallace Distillers
A Big Thank You to our hard-working volunteers! What beautiful, smiling faces you have--and such a willingness to go the extra mile, all with a sense of humor and patience with me. We literally could not do the festival without our 40 something volunteers and over 200 shifts! You all showed yourself quite competent and caring in an emergency situation, it did not go unnoticed by all parties. A special thanks to Dr. John Meyer for lending his expertise.
Finally, thank you if you have ever supported SnowyGrass with the purchase of a ticket, merch, or a donation. We need an audience to give us reason to exist and persist. The fear in making a thank you post is that it's guaranteed we will forget to thank some, and in quieter moments will the the pang of knowing we missed. Please know we do appreciate you!
Want to keep supporting? We have a few shirts still available! You can order HERE.
Finally--We want to know your thoughts about a date for 2026!
Please take a look at this SURVEY!
Thanks again! Hope to see you soon!
-nadine
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