Kia Zahrabi and his business partner and good friend Kris Hargrave are hoping the third annual Ponderosa Music & Arts Festival will be the best yet. This year’s festival takes place at the Rock Creek fairgrounds from Friday, Aug. 21 to Sunday, Aug. 23. Above is a picture of one of the many rock bands that played last year’s festival. (Christopher Edmontstone photo)
Kia Zahrabi admits the fledgling arts and music festival he and his good friend Kris Hargrave have organized and sponsored the past two years needs solid support this year or they would consider pulling the plug, but all early signs indicate the third annual Ponderosa Music & Arts Festival is going to be a success.
The small, independent music and arts festival will return to Rock Creek, located 60 kilometres east of Osoyoos, the weekend of Aug. 21-23 on the shores of the gorgeous Kettle River at the Rock Creek Fairgrounds.
“We’re hoping for 1,000 over the course of three days … that’s what we need to break even financially,” said Zahrabi, who grew up on an orchard near Oliver.
“We’ve put a lot of time and money into the first two festivals and we’re fine with that, but now we need to see the festival grow. Everything so far has been really positive and we’re very optimistic the festival is going to get a great response this year.”
Zahrabi notes the festival doesn’t have any major corporate sponsorship and that he and Zahrabi have put up their own money to make Ponderosa a reality.
They both believe the festival has “unlimited potential”, but they need support from music and arts fans from across the region.
“We’re just two young guys who hold full-time jobs and were willing to take some risks to make this happen,” he said. “We think we’re offering something unique and wonderful with a great lineup of bands and artists in a beautiful, small town setting.”
Zahrabi and Hargrave got the idea to organize their own music festival after Zahrabi invited a bunch of musicians and friends to his parents’ orchard in the summer of 2012.
“We had such a great time, we thought we would like to try and put together our own little festival somewhere in the South Okanagan,” he said. “We had both been to the Rock Creek Fair … and thought that would be an amazing site.
“Things just sort of came together after that … and here we are now in our third year.”
Headliners for this year’s festival include, Mounties, The Harpoonist & The Axe Murderer, To Less Gay Love Tekno Party, Fake Shake Real Zombie, Bear Mountain and Gay Nineties.
Other acts include an array of DJs, indie rock bands, electronic acts, and more, from all over the map, including Pumpkin, Honey Beard, Rhoneil, SAVVIE, cAthedrAls, Jaguar, Cam Penner, Tiger Moon, El Garzita, Kandle & The Krooks, High Ends, Harold Nix, Giraffe Aftermath, Lio, and Catlow.
A total of 25 different bands and DJs will perform over three days and two stages.
Ponderosa is not your typical festival as it remains proudly independent, affordable, and fresh as heck, said Zahrabi.
Early bird three-day passes sold out and Tier I weekend packages for $125, which includes music all weekend, camping and access to swimming in the Kettle River, fresh running water, hot showers, morning yoga and pancake breakfast, are almost sold out.
For $25 more, festival goers can secure riverside camping, where the river will be bubbling at your back door.
Other weekend packages include the Rock Star package, where campers get to spend the weekend in a hospitality area with musicians and bands, and booking large Teepees, complete with bedding and furniture, for those who want a unique outdoor experience, said Zahrabi.
Unlike other music festivals, Ponderosa is an all ages event, and everyone is welcome, he said.
“Ponderosa is fit and fun for everyone,” he said. “This summer, ditch the long lineups, the overpriced food, and the sky-high ticket prices and get fresh with Ponderosa.”
The citizens of Rock Creek have been amazingly friendly and supportive of the festival, which isn’t always the case when it comes to music festivals, said Zahrabi.
The local Lions Club will even get involved this year by cooking the food and organizing the pancake breakfasts on Saturday and Sunday.
“We’ve made sure the community is on board from the beginning and we continue to have great support from the community in Rock Creek,” he said. “We don’t want to overload the community with 10,000 people.
“While we would like the festival to grow, our intent remains to provide a unique and intimate music and arts festival in an amazing setting.”
You can purchase tickets or get more information at www.ponderosafestival.com or visiting the festival’s Facebook page.
KEITH LACEY
Osoyoos Times
