OOBerfest 2017….What A Blast!

So OOBerfest has come and gone. Even though there were high winds and it rained on and off all week, which was very unusual in this area, this time of year, everyone still had a great time.
What? You don’t know what OOBerfest is? Well, last year when we got together in Quartzsite, AZ in January, during the big tent event, to have a meet and greet for the first time, our guests named it that…OOBerfest. Get it? OOB…Outside Our Bubble? And you, being a reader of our blog are now dubbed our OOBies. And we love our OOBies :) So we decided we would meet up again in Quartzsite. This being our second year for this get together, we had 74 RV’s show up to join us this year! Wow! That felt great and is very much appreciated.
We arrived a few days early to try to stake our claim to our land. Thankfully, some OOBies were already there holding our spot from last year. That was great because as you may know, this is all held on BLM land. So it’s really first come, first serve.

We were able to get in one movie night before OOBerfest officially started. Hoping to get another in during our event, but alas, the winds were just too strong. So we at least had one night. (A lot to setup for one night. Oh well.)

We had some great people come out and we had great seminars set up during our time together. We had a beautiful sunset that was the backdrop to our welcome talk. The following day the hardy soles that came out in cold (again, unusual for this time of year in Quartzsite) got treated to various seminars. Everything from coach weighing and the importance of the correct tire pressure for your weight to tech talks with David and everyone joining in on tips and tricks. During the few days of OOBerfest you had the opportunity to get your coach weighed, all four/six points and get a summary of what your tire pressures should be set at. A great service that Steve & Susan Kass from RV Weight offered at a small charge to our guests.

The evenings were filled with campfires and gabbing. Getting to know each other and making new friends.

The first evening while we were all getting to know each other, one of our guests brought out a pitcher of Sangria. This was so popular it was later dubbed, “OOBer Sangria” and many pitchers were shared throughout the event. So Thank You Kathy for a great memory and for those that are wanting the recipe, here you go!
OOBer Sangria
One of our friends even brought their Hot Air Balloon as they are pilots in Napa Valley! Alas, no rides were allowed. They were helping their granddaughter get her hours in piloting the balloon as she was studying for her pilot’s license. That didn’t stop our guests from enjoying the early morning set up and take off’s, joining in on the chase crews and helping out where they could. Thanks Ken, Diana, Kristy and Grace for the enjoyment and excitement.

Of course Saturday was the opening of the big main tent event in town. Thankfully the weather cleared up that day, the wind had died down throughout the day and it was a nice day to explore the goods for sale that you know you could not resist. Well, some of us could :)

While everyone was out enjoying the day and shopping until they dropped, David, myself and a few volunteers set up some very large bonfires, closer to the staging area, for that evenings entertainment. So when everyone got back from their long days, we all got together for a potluck dinner. Of course with 74 RV’s, we had A LOT of food with a good variety as well. It was enjoyed by all.
And what better way to say Good-bye to our OOBies than to throw a big party out in the desert. So party we did. We hired a band from Phoenix to come in and play a concert for us.
We had 3 large bonfires by the band and 3 outer-ring bonfires going all night long!

Our coach was used as the lighting and staging area. It really worked out perfectly. We have to admit, we were stressing out a bit about the weather all week long. But in the end it really turned out beautiful for that evening’s entertainment.
Oh My! And entertained we were. Thanks to Notes From Neptune for a great concert in the middle of the desert. A different venue for sure for these guys to play.

Everyone, including the band, had a great time. They performed a lot of great songs, including one special request from us for “Purple Rain” by Prince. When they started up the song, everyone broke out their purple glow sticks (that were handed out at the pot luck) and waved them in the air as a special surprise for the band. It was well received to say the least. Grins from ear to ear. So much so that the singer, Thomas, even broke out his phone and recorded all of us waving our glow sticks in the air! An experience like no other.

Their may or may not have been some Tequila involved with the evening festivities.

And apparently we kept BK awake well into the night. He was trying to get a glimpse of the concert but alas, all he could see was the good time had by all.
There were, of course, lots and lots of pictures and video taken of OOBerfest just with our cameras and phones alone. So we created a link for a public album of all the photos that were taken, so that you may relive the fun. We also opened it up so that any of you that were at OOBerfest can upload your pictures as well for all to see what a great time we all had. So PLEASE upload some photos and videos. :)
Here’s the link to the album…

And who knows…
Maybe there will be another OOBerfest….
Someday…
Somewhere.
Until then, enjoy this video that David put together of our gathering in the desert, OOBerfest 2017.

Here is the full concert video for you to enjoy.  1.5 hours of a great night!