Anthem GO Fest Continues Rapid Growth

When the Roanoke Regional Partnership and Roanoke Outside founded the Anthem Go Outside Festival with Roanoke Parks and Recreation four years ago, the aim was to build GO Fest into one of the largest outdoors festival on the East Coast. This year’s festival took a giant step in that direction as record crowds turned out to celebrate the outdoors and the Roanoke Region’s active lifestyle. 

The festival grounds at the River’s Edge Sports Complex were jam-packed from when the festival opened on Friday afternoon to closing on Sunday evening. An estimated crowd of over 20,000 poured into the festival over the three days to enjoy live music, extreme performances, gear demos, races, and activities like the pump track, zip line, and giant paddling pool. GO Fest’s 2013 attendance was estimated at just over 12,000. Aside from the huge local and regional turnout, festival attendees came from as far away as Ohio, Colorado, and Montana, showing GO Fest’s extended reach and nationwide appeal. 

“This was definitely the biggest and best GO Fest yet,” said Pete Eshelman, Director of Outdoor Branding for the Roanoke Regional Partnership. “This festival is a celebration of the outdoors and is designed to connect people to the outdoors, Roanoke’s amazing natural assets, and keep them engaged for a lifetime. Judging by the crowd that came out to GO Fest in 2014, we’re accomplishing that goal.”

This year’s festival saw 95 vendors, up from 75 in 2013, and all with their own unique activities to engage attendees. Parkway Brewing and Starr Hill served beer all weekend long, combining to sell 74 kegs of craft beer, nearly doubling last year’s total of 38 kegs sold. 

With all the positive feedback from the outdoors community, vendors, organizations, and sponsors, Anthem GO Fest will continue to build Roanoke’s outdoors community and expose the Roanoke Region’s outdoor recreation opportunities.