Kidsfest a blast despite wet day

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This article was published 10/06/2012 (5052 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

Through rain or shine both mail carriers and the annual Kidsfest deliver — and the festival-goers faced both types of weather on Saturday.

But executive producer Neal Rempel said the Kidsfest has a 30-year history of dealing with weather and people who come to the festival know they can escape the rain by staying inside the tents where the entertainment is held.

“People kept coming, even through the rain,” Rempel said on Saturday.

“They know the performance tents are under cover. And we just sent more entertainers in after the shows were supposed to end. We just had to adapt.

“We are really prepared for the weather.”

Saturday morning saw dark black clouds move through Winnipeg, pushed by strong winds and followed by rain.

Some parents and kids came prepared for rain. Others didn’t and either rushed home or bought some protective equipment on-site. The festival’s general store tent was doing a booming business on rain ponchos and umbrellas while the rain came down, but by early afternoon, with blue skies and the sun blazing down, sales of those items had dried up.

Keri Latimer, along with her five-year-old daughter, Hazel, and four-year-old son, Oscar, were in the former camp, all wearing rain ponchos brought from home.

“We thought it was going to rain so we dressed like this so now we want it to rain,” Latimer said laughing.

She brought her kids to the festival this year because they had such a great time at their first one last year.

“The bear is my favourite,” Hazel said about one of the various mascots wandering around the site, while Oscar chimed in “I like Mr. Johnson,” referring to someone who was with kids entertainer Fred Penner last year.

Nearby, Rob Hadath watched as his two-year-old son, Owen, had fun stomping through a mud puddle left behind by the morning rain.

“We didn’t have any rain gear with us so we had to go home to get it when it started raining,” Hadath said.

“But now we have it and it’s hot and sunny.”

Hadath said Owen had been having fun at a dinosaur show and was getting ready to listen to kids entertainer Jake Chenier.

Four-year-old Alicia — who was taken to the festival by a friend — also liked the Dinosaur Petting Zoo, provided by a troupe from Australia.

“It was fun — it was scary,” the wide-eyed child said.

Quickly changing gears and chronicling her day so far, Alicia said she also had fun at another tent where “I made a puppet.

“I got a rainbow (face-painted) on my cheek. It rained.”

The Kidsfest, also known as the Winnipeg International Children’s Festival, began on Thursday and wraps up today. First shows begin at 11 a.m.

Today features several entertainers, including Fred Penner at 1:45 p.m., Al Simmons at 12:30 p.m. and 4 p.m., and Chenier at 12:15 p.m., and 3:30 p.m. The grand finale kicks off at 5 p.m.

Tickets are $16 apiece, $56 for a family of four, and free for kids under two.

kevin.rollason@freepress.mb.ca