Another sellout at Ribfest
Native Illinois rockers REO Speedwagon became the first band to sell out Naperville's Ribfest twice.
Organizers from the Naperville Exchange Club expected to have to close the park Friday and kept a watchful eye on attendance all day. By 4:30 p.m. organizers were already planning the cutoff.
"Our gates are now wireless so we have regular counts on the bar codes on the tickets," Ribfest Chairman Don Emery said. "We try to keep a handle on how many people have left, but there's not a real reliable way to track that."
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Capacity at the Knoch Park site is about 60,000. Organizers closed the park at 7:05 p.m. Friday, 10 minutes before the band was set to take the stage, after estimating they had reached that number. Naperville police officials are ultimately responsible for the decision.
"What we look for is the main walkways to remain open," Emery said.
About 100 people were turned away at the south gate when the announcement was first made. The park was to remain closed during the fireworks show that was set to go off after the band left the stage at 9:30 p.m.
Traffic remained steady all day with long lines forming at the four entrances before the park opened.
"We got here early to get a good seat even though the people we're meeting are bigger fans of the band than we are," said Naperville resident Dave Pekala, who had a spot staked out at 2 p.m. "But we came early for the ribs."
Brendan Waldoch of Geneva was there early enough to get a stageside seat, even though this is the first time he's seen REO Speedwagon live.
"It's definitely worth it to get here early," he said. "My mom has seen them about three times and so I figured I should see them too if she likes them so much."
Some fans that were turned away stuck around to listen to the concert outside the perimeter of the festival after being turned away. They said the sellout crowd is a testament to the band's appeal despite the fact they haven't had a No. 1 song for more than two decades.
"We thought they'd have enough room for everybody," said Sandy Apps of North Aurora. "But I'm not surprised this many people came, that's why we came."
Hootie the Blowfish, Lynyrd Skynyrd and Heart are the only other bands to sellout Ribfest in the event's 21-year history.