This summer’s Round Up Revival has been a great success, drawing crowds to the Mad River Green for food, fun and music on Thursday nights for ten weeks - through September 3.
It added another weeknight activity to our roster, showcased local vendors, introduced people to the Mad River Green, boosted the bottom line for vendors and more.
Hats off to the Mad River Valley Chamber of Commerce, 5th Quarter, Sugarbush and all who brought us this weekly summer happening. The Valley Reporter was proud to be the media sponsor.
Not everyone loved it. Social media and Front Porch Forum saw complaints that the Thursday Round Up was drawing business from other local restaurants and asked that it be moved to a different night.
Eric Friedman, executive director of the Mad River Valley Chamber of Commerce, responded, pointing out that accommodating every business’s schedule, when trying to organize a ten-week summer event, would be nigh on impossible.
“Thursday, along with the many other moving parts required to bring the Round-Up back to life. The Valley's summer calendar is like a game of musical chairs: Tuesdays would compete with Back Porch Music at Lareau Farm, and Wednesdays would run up against live music at Mad River Glen. That doesn't leave much unoccupied real estate on the calendar,” Friedman wrote.
Ryan Donnelly, owner of the Hostel Tevere and Deco Bar and Restaurant, took it even further. He took a look at what restaurants are open during the week and shared it. Eight of 21 food businesses are open on Tuesday, compared to Thursday, he found. Then he asked this:
“I don't think the question should be whether we have Roundup. I think the more interesting question is: How can we use Roundup's success to create even more economic activity for the entire Valley next year and beyond?”
Donnelly offered a summer scenario where the Round Up was held three Tuesdays a month and the fourth was Back Porch Music at the Lareau Farm, providing a draw all week long for visitors and locals alike.
He pointed out ways local businesses could market near and far around this idea and shared it in details. This kind of response - forward looking and positive - helps advance the conversation.
