Music festival makes public safety a priority
Deputy Ron Eckert of the Flathead County Sheriff's Office on duty Sunday. Increased law enforcement presence was a positive improvement for the Under the Big Sky Festival this year. (Kelsey Evans/Whitefish Pilot)
The “watering hole” was a popular spot at the Under the Big Sky music festival last weekend in Whitefish as temperatures soared amid a summer heat wave.
Emergency medics on site said that they were staying busy caring for some of the estimated 20,000 concertgoers who gathered at Big Mountain Ranch for the fifth annual festival. Many Flathead County Sheriff’s Office deputies were working, in addition to security guards, festival staff and volunteers.
Law enforcement said that the Outriders Present production crew did a great job executing the three-day event that featured headline artists Miranda Lambert, Billy Strings and Turnpike Troubadours.
“Every year, the production team has made more and more efforts to work with us in planning and coordinating public safety, so we went in well prepared,” said Corporal Charles Pesola of the Flathead County Sheriff’s Office.
“We dealt with typical calls of service … it’s hot, and alcohol was served, so we had a few standard minors in possession, disorderly conduct. Overall, we only arrested four people, which is a great statistic for the weekend,” Pesola said.
Pesola estimated that numbers were lower than anticipated, which helped with management.
Tiffany Mitschke, a Whitefish resident who’s attended the festival every year, said that in general the event is “getting better and better every year” with overall amenity improvements. However, Mitschke still worries about the size of the festival for Whitefish.
“We’re a tiny, tiny town – we just don’t have the infrastructure to support this many people,” she said.
In a statement, Outriders Present said they are “incredibly grateful to the Flathead Valley for its ongoing support.”
“We want to thank all our tireless first responders, Flathead Electric for their exceptional efforts this year in ensuring we have power, our after-party venue partners, the amazing musicians who have come to the Valley from all over the country to perform, as well as all our incredible local artists. Most importantly, a big thanks to all the fans that make Under the Big Sky possible every year.”