Police are ready for Pendleton Whisky Music Fest

By on Wednesday, July 7th, 2021 in Columbia Basin News More Top Stories

PENDLETON – The Pendleton Whisky Music Fest is this weekend. Police Chief Chuck Byram said his officers are ready to keep the peace thanks to the support of organizers Doug Corey and Andy McAnally.

“Andy and Doug are real conscientious about the safety of everybody involved,” Byram said. “They don’t want to be too much of a burden on emergency services, but at the same time they want to provide an income stream other than what we normally have.”

Byram has advice to those who are attending and want to have a good time until the concert is over. He says to remember it’s a marathon, not a sprint.

“You see people come in at 3 o’clock and immediately go cash tokens in,” he said. “They’re two-fisting it out in the heat. That is usually a recipe for disaster for those people. They usually don’t make it through the whole show.”

The concert with headliner Toby Keith is Saturday at 3 p.m. at the Pendleton Round-Up Grounds. The kickoff party is Friday from 6 p.m. to midnight on Main Street.