Boots in the Park brings out fans for music festival
About 14,000 people pack Silver Lakes Equestrian and Sports Park for country cavalcade
On Saturday, country music fans were ready to party.
As they began entering the gates of Boots in the Park at Silver Lakes Equestrian and Sports Park in Norco around noon, they rushed to set up lawn chairs and blankets in the grassy seating area and hurried to one of the multiple bar tents to get that first beer or sweet cocktail to cool down on balmy, yet breezy, 90-plus degree day.
“We came here so we could drink with people,” Amee Brown of Riverside said. She and a group of girlfriends gathered around one of the massive photo op setups as they entered the venue to take their first maskless photo at a concert since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic. The last show Brown attended was Florida Georgia Line with Dan + Shay and Morgan Wallen at Glen Helen Amphitheater in Devore in 2019.
“We love country music and we just really wanted to be around other humans,” she added.
Boots in the Park — with Chris Young, Scotty McCreery, Dylan Scott, Tenille Townes, Leaving Austin and Tim Hurley — is the first major in-person festival to happen in Southern California after the COVID-19 mandates lifted in the state on June 15. With about 14,000 in attendance, it’s also the largest concert to play in the area since early 2020.
As much as many fans were drinking, singing and dancing along, it was definitely a cathartic experience for some. A young fan, pressed
against the barricade to be as close as possible when opener Tim Hurley performed, could be seen wiping tears from beneath her sunglasses once the music began. Her friends teased her for being so expressive and she let out a laugh and said: “I don’t know what’s wrong with me … I’m just happy.”
Being the first big show back, the day wasn’t without glitches. The sound wasn’t perfect, a couple of artists ran late and the food lines were long. Vendors underestimated the insatiable appetite this crowd would have for barbecue as several soldout and the VIP bar eventually ran out of ice and several poplar drink items, sending lanyard-clad patrons into general admission to quench their thirst.
The overall mood, however, never shifted. It wasn’t just a concert, it was a celebration. People were mingling, hugging and laughing. Some wore facial coverings and kept their distance, the new, extended venue setup with multiple blow-up screens for viewing, affording them plenty of space to safely do so. Masks were not required but recommended for those who have yet to be fully vaccinated and promoters were not requiring proof of vaccination for entry.
When headliner Chris Young took the stage at the end of the night, it was a bit like going to church. The sun went down, people joined hands and held them up high, singing loudly along to hits like “Gettin’ You Home (The Black Dress Song),” “I’m Comin’ Over” and his latest, “Famous Friends.”
“American Idol” winner Scotty McCreery got the crowd bouncing with his new song, “You Time.” He also dedicated his single “This Is It” to his wife, Gabi Dugal, who he married in June 2018. Couples swayed along to the sweet song and in the middle of the venue, a man got down on one knee and popped the question to his girlfriend as other patrons filmed the proposal with their cell phones and cheered them on.
The earlier daytime performances were just as fun as the musicians utilized the catwalk to get out into the crowd and connect with fans. Though Visalia-based trio Leaving Austin were late to the stage, blaming a trio of car accidents and traffic on their tardiness, they got right out there and delivered the goods with “She Can” and “Southern Gold.” Vocalist Austin Machado was pulling double duty, singing and autographing just about anything fans were tossing up at him including hats, boots and beer koozies.
Tenille Townes and Dylan Scott were also very playful with the audience, which roared along to their biggest hits, “Somebody’s Daughter” and “My Girl,” respectively.