(soft music) - [Voiceover] The following program is a production of Pioneer Public Television.

This program on Pioneer Public Television is funded by the Minnesota arts and cultural heritage fund with money from the vote of the people of Minnesota on November fourth, 2008.

Additional support provided by Mark and Margaret Yackel-Juleen in honor of Shalom Hill Farm, a non-profit rural education retreat center in a beautiful prairie setting near Windom in southwestern Minnesota.

ShalomHillFarm dot O-R-G.

The Arrowwood Resort and Conference Center, your ideal choice for Minnesota resorts, offering luxury town homes, 18 holes of golf, Darling Reflections Spa, Big Splash Water Park, and much more.

Alexandria, Minnesota, a relaxing vacation or great location for an event.

ExploreAlex.com.

Easy to get to, hard to leave.

(soft music) - Welcome to Postcards, I'm Dana Johnson.

Today, we travel to Detroit Lakes, Minnesota and take a behind the scenes look at WE Fest, one of the largest camping and country music festivals.

Presented in a Woodstock documentary style, we let the people behind the scenes tell the story.

(easy listening music) - [Voiceover] Hello, everybody!

- [Voiceover] Mornin'.

- [Voiceover] Hey, what's up?

- [Voiceover] Who's workin' at WE Fest?

(cheering) I just wanted to thank you for coming and... As I was walking through... Has anybody got shoes like this?

Like, a slipper or a sandal?

Don't wear it to WE Fest.

It's the dumbest thing you can do, wear real shoes.

It's really a long weekend when your feet are sore, sore, sore.

Again, we thank you for taking part and being a part of the WE Fest working family, hoorah.

(cheering) 30 years.

How many of you have been here for 30 years?

Anybody here?

28's good, we got a couple of 30s?

- [Voiceover] 27!

- [Voiceover] 27.

- You're the first contact that they're gonna have as they show up.

And obviously, first impressions mean everything.

I'm gonna start over on this side and I'm just gonna work around.

So, follow with me if you will, please.

Northwoods manager, raise your hand.

Oatfield manager, where are you at?

That's Oatfield.

Directly at the top there.

The next campground is VIP.

Where is the VIP manager?

- [Voiceover] Right here.

- [Voiceover] Right there.

- [Bob] Wait, where's your sign?

Kay, do you see him comin' across with the sign in the back here?

He has a blue sign, or she does.

She's holdin' it up.

Head over to that four wheeler.

Kay, the next spot is gonna be beer.

Back seats.

Lake Sallie.

That's where we're at so far.

Next one is Northwoods.

Northwoods manager, raise your hand.

(brass music) (orchestra music) - Guys, over through here, just remember to get as close as you can to the guy in front of you.

- [Voiceover] Right on, sister.

(cheering) (blues music) - [Voiceover] That's good.

- [Voiceover] Indeed, two, just two?

Vehicle and how many?

Three?

- [Voiceover] Three majors.

- Hi there, you're goin' in?

You have all, everything you need?

- [Voiceover] Wristband.

- Okay, you got your vehicle one, right?

I can't see over there.

- [Voiceover] Right over there.

- Okay.

- I need to have a three-day pass, a general camping pass of each person.

Three-day general admission and an ID from everybody that claims to be 21.

- [Voiceover] How are things goin', good?

- It's goin' good.

- [Voiceover] Yup.

- I didn't realize that adults would have such a big problem with little kiddy swimmin' pools.

Yeah, yeah.

- [Voiceover] Can't get enough water, or?

- No, the definition of big is where the problem is.

I'm limited to, we've been directed to limit to little free form kid pools like in Walmart.

- [Voiceover] Yeah.

- Some of these guys are comin' in with Michael Phelps sized swimming pools.

- [Voiceover] Well, it is the Olympics, you know?

- It is the Olympics, so the spirit's there.

No, it's goin' good.

(upbeat music) - [Voiceover] How many chairs are in here?

- A little over 7,000.

- Yup.

- Yeah.

- [Voiceover] That's all colored chairs?

- All the colors.

- [Voiceover] All the reserved.

- Yup, all the reserved chairs.

- [Voiceover] Reserved chairs.

- Yup.

- [Voiceover] Yup.

- [Voiceover] So how many days does it takes you to set this up?

- Two days.

- [Voiceover] Two full days.

- Two full days.

You gotta lay 'em out and then we, what we're doing right now, we have to label every chair with a seat number.

Yup.

- [Voiceover] And there's a schematic that we follow to find out exactly where every chair goes.

- Yup.

- [Voiceover] We do.

Yup.

- [Voiceover] Tell the van puller.

- Got it.

- [Voiceover] Everything.

- Got it.

- [Voiceover] Thank you.

Thank you.

On the left hand side, please, coming and going, both.

- Oh, oh.

- Everything on that side.

- I can actually fit around here.

- [Voiceover] I know you can.

- Oh, but no.

- [Voiceover] You payin' attention?

Left hand side.

- I been doin' this, I know.

- [Voiceover] Okay, left side.

- Got it.

- [Voiceover] Hey!

- I don't know my right and my left.

- Have fun, have fun, yes!

Good afternoon.

- [Voiceover] Hey!

- [Voiceover] What can I do for ya this today?

- Just shoot to the park.

- Okay, there we go.

Why don't you just go up there and talk to Sheila?

- Perfect.

- Wonderful, sir.

Thank you.

Can I have everything on the left side?

I don't know if I told ya.

In and out on this side.

Everything.

Alright?

Left side.

(cheering) Perfect.

Here we go.

- I'll get ya outta here quicker, okay.

- [Voiceover] Okay.

- If you'd go on the left hand side, please.

- [Voiceover] You bet ya.

- If you would be so kind to be careful.

We got lots of traffic.

- [Voiceover] Okay.

- [Voiceover] Thanks, you have a great week!

- [Voiceover] Thank you.

(upbeat music) - [Voiceover] She's a barricade, whatever it is.

- Okay, now this is Kurt.

Okay?

- [Voiceover] Hi, Kurt.

- You guys are gonna be workin' VIP.

So, you can probably put one right about here so nobody uses that lot.

You have one at the gate already.

And then go get these organized and do your thing.

Okay, so Kurt's gonna organize you guys.

- [Voiceover] Kay.

- 'Cause he's done it before, okay?

And so, whatever Kurt says goes.

You got your yellow ropes?

- [Voiceover] I got 'em, I'll get 'em.

- So, take 'em up there and, explain to him.

- [Voiceover] He's got some.

- Don't lose the radios.

Don't trade the radios with somebody else 'cause your name's on it, they're missin', they're 1,000 bucks.

- [Voiceover] Who's gonna be the parker?

- [Voiceover] Who?

- [Voiceover] Shotgun!

- Mark, we need a radio for Mark.

- [Voiceover] Are we day parking?

- So.

(blues music) - [Voiceover] Back in VIP hospitality, we serve about, our dinners run just around 5,000 people and our lunches, which we're just starting to serve right now, run right around 2,500.

That's the fun part of WE Fest is actually figuring out how to serve 5,000 people from a grass field.

We use a semi trailer as a refrigerator, we fill it twice with food.

We've got another semi trailer that we use as a refrigerator for beer and wine coolers, and it's just, everything's in big numbers.

But that's the fun challenge of it.

- They're lighting up the grill, let the grilling commence.

(applause) - This is what the inside of this one looks like.

We put 40 pounds in there at one time and heat it all up.

And we'll get it up to 165 degrees.

This is all precooked meat that we get from Reinhart and it's good stuff.

They'll enjoy it.

- [Voiceover] We got eight.

- [Voiceover] We got eight in there?

- [Voiceover] Yeah, we're gonna... - [Voiceover] Let's pull these in a little tighter 'cause we gotta be able to get... - [Voiceover] Another one in?

- [Voiceover] Yup.

(drums) - You get it on my hat?

- Yeah, you deserve it.

- [Voiceover] Remember, guys.

I'm here to smile and serve.

You guys are the first people they're gonna see when these gates open, so be happy, welcome them to WE Fest, tell 'em to have fun, alright?

- [Voiceover] Five, four.

- [Voiceover] Two!

- [Voiceover] Three.

- [Voiceover] Two!

- [Voiceover] Two.

- [Voiceover] Seven!

- [Voiceover] One.

- [Voiceover] Nine!

(cheering) (William Tell Overture playing) - [Voiceover] Well there ya have it, ladies and gentlemen, that is a 30-year tradition of playing the William Tell Overture when we open up our gates.

It's kinda half way to playing, all panels are ready to roll, and all of you folks up in the campgrounds know that we're open for business.

And pretty soon, we're gonna have live music on the biggest stage in whole wide world.

Right here at the Soo Pass ranch in Detroit Lakes, Minnesota.

My goodness, are we gonna do a lot... - [Voiceover] We have the wild rice for tonight.

- Ooh, yeah, yeah.

- [Voiceover] Workin' on my Meer-It blob right behind you, which is steak, celery, carrots, and onions.

And then we'll put some sun dried tomato and bacon in there.

- [Voiceover] We cook approximately 300 meals a day, no, per meal.

300.

And that includes all the production.

All the stage people.

Everything that it takes to make this little puppy get up and bark.

- We asked for a family today.

Today on the menu, I've got chicken Marsala.

And a sweet potato that I used some fresh vanilla bean in.

And real maple syrup.

(muffled microphone speech) - [Voiceover] We got a pile of giveaways to do all day today.

And we have some, just fabulous entertainment.

We're gonna start out with a group that's been on our stage now, I think, for the last... - [Voiceover] Hey, everybody with the Luke Bryan meet and greet.

- If you have something that you wanna give him.

- [Voiceover] I want this name for him.

- I will ask, okay?

- Alright, we're doin' it.

Alright, everybody.

(country music) (muffled microphone speech) - [Voiceover] Set 'em right in here and give 'em a little wiggle down, and give a look up, it snaps your photos.

Ready?

However you wanna do it, it's all yours.

And you'll have to wiggle into the, there you go.

- [Voiceover] Nice.

- [Voiceover] And there's water off to the side there and soap to wash your hands, and I got a pen that'll autograph this year.

- We been doin' the merchandise here at WE Fest since 1987.

What are we in charge, I'm in charge of anything that has a We Fest logo on it.

We sell t-shirts, caps, sweatshirts.

We sell the artist merchandise, the different performers bring shirts to the venue, and they check 'em in with us, and we sell 'em for 'em, and then check 'em out at the end of the night.

(country music) - [Voiceover] We have the mechanical bull here.

And we've been coming here for 12 years.

And during the day, it kinda spins around and bucks a little bit, and teases people, but the night time is when everybody comes out and rides.

Ride 'til you fall off.

You ride 'til you fall off, the clock's right behind the bull.

- [Voiceover] What's that?

- [Voiceover] The clock is right behind.

You ride 'til you fall off.

- [Voiceover] What's the longest?

- [Voiceover] There isn't really 'cause of different speed.

(cheering) (upbeat music) - Go ahead, kick it in, Jeff.

We're one, we're in one alarm right now which is not a cruiser alarm, it's just to let us know that our level is up.

- Mary had a little lamb today.

(ice cream truck music) - [Voiceover] What, do you entertain yourself or did everybody out there?

- Oh, everybody.

They just think it's crazy, so.

We fit right in there.

- [Voiceover] We B Green is a recycling program for WE Fest.

And it's to cut down the waste produced by the concert.

We Fest has usually 50,000 to 100,000 people here and they're all having a good time.

And it's important to recycle here because most of our, most of the stuff coming out of here is bottles, and cans, and cardboard.

And all of that going into the landfill, it's just, it doesn't make any sense, so.

And a lot of people notice our recycling and they really care about the environment, so it's great.

- [Voiceover] And our bottom, bottom line goal is to save everything from going into the landfill.

So, we recycle everything that we can, which is now, almost everything is recyclable except some nasty Styrofoam cups.

But otherwise, almost everything is recyclable now.

And our goal is to save that from going to the landfill, which we did the first year, it was hugely successful, and we have continued to do that with the means.

We educate these people to pick up their garbage, to recycle it, and then we have the teams that go around and help them to do that, any hot spots.

And we wanna keep it clean for you, so that's the purpose of the, that's the purpose of We B Green.

- [Voiceover] Hey man, follow the guy in the cowboy hat.

(country music) Alright, good to go, brother.

(muffled microphone speech) - [Voiceover] We are the medical contractor for the entire event of WE Fest.

We have basically two separate operations.

We have an operation out in the campground where we've got multiple four wheelers that are responding on calls out there.

And then we've also got a building MMC over in the music bowl, which is over on the West gate.

And we've got teams that roam, and then we also have, it's kind of set up like a mini emergency room.

So, we've got cots, and medications, and various things to treat people in there, as well.

- [Voiceover] Well, I think, obviously, beer is an important part of any country music festival.

And having the uniqueness of having these barkers, for example, is something you really don't see anywhere else.

It's a difficult thing to do, to produce every year, but it's really part of the culture of WE Fest.

And so, we've kept it for all those 30 years.

♪ Good Lord and the creek don't rise ♪ ♪ My baby's got a song to sing ♪ ♪ While the crickets and the train whistle harmonize ♪ ♪ Doin' that front porch thing ♪ ♪ Clanging out, banging out a feel good tune ♪ ♪ Strumming on my old six string ♪ ♪ Sure can kill these country blues ♪ ♪ Doin' that front porch thing ♪ (country music) (chattering) - Go line the fence, guys, line the fence.

We gotta get outta here, step in the back.

Back it up behind the fence.

Behind the fence, let's go, let's go, let's get it moving!

(cheering) (country music) - Three!

- Three!

(cheering) Make some noise!

- Please welcome, Alabama!

- Please welcome, Alabama!

(live country music) (country music) ♪ One, two ♪ ♪ One, two, three ♪ (epic music) (cheering) - [Voiceover] That's like a quadruple rainbow.

Do you see 'em all?

Did you see the man goin' outside with the lightning cars he put?

Pretty amazing stuff.

Storme Warren, it's good to see you.

See you next year.

- See you next year.

See y'all next year, thanks for havin' me back here in Minnesota, you guys from Minnesota, nice.

(country music) (cheering) (live country music) - Yeah, a little song, I love your love the most.

(cheering) There's only one way to end this.

That's for you guys during this song.

And they go just like.

♪ Oh ♪ (audience chanting) This sound will go ahead, go on just like.

- Yeah.

(cheering) - I can't do that.

- What's that?

(cheering) (live country music) (easy listening music) (acoustic music) - That's all for this week.

For more information, go to our website.

See you again next time on Postcards.

- [Voiceover] This program on Pioneer Public Television is funded by the Minnesota arts and cultural heritage fund with money from the vote of the people of Minnesota on November fourth, 2008.

Additional support provided by Mark and Margaret Yackel-Juleen in honor of Shalom Hill Farm, a non-profit rural education retreat center in a beautiful prairie setting near Windom in southwestern Minnesota.

ShalomHillFarm dot O-R-G.

The Arrowwood Resort and Conference Center, your ideal choice for Minnesota resorts, offering luxury town homes, 18 holes of golf, Darling Reflections Spa, Big Splash Water Park, and much more.

Alexandria, Minnesota, a relaxing vacation or great location for an event.

ExploreAlex.com.

Easy to get to, hard to leave.

(soft music)