With 9,900 acres of fresh water atop the Great Salt Lake flood plain, Willard Bay State Park will act as the official backdrop to ORs annual Open Air Demo on Wednesday, August 10th. OAD attendees will discover smooth sandy beachfront, ample parking, shelter for eating, relaxing and getting out of the sun. And, with a relaxed, outdoor festival atmosphere, including live music, food, beer plus industry friends OAD is a true mixture of business and pleasure.
Willard Bay is the perfect place to demo the newest outdoor products in the environment they were specifically designed for on the trails, in the woods and on the water. The latest innovations from Paddlesports, Trail Running, Optical, Camping Equipment, Nordic Walking, Sunscreen, Water, Accessories, Geocaching and Adventure Companies will be on hand. Over 60 exhibiting companies and 2,000 retailers are expected to participate in this annual pre-show event. OAD will also feature free shuttles, camping, fishing and swimming this year — no drysuit required, so you can jump right in the water.
Here are some highlights of on-site events at this years OAD:
Mountain Hardwear Base Camp Beer Garden New this year -- Mountain Hardwears Beer Garden will have the taps flowing free beer from noon until the end of the demo. Mountain Hardwear athletes will also be on hand and attendees will be able to test their new backpack line and see next season's tents and sleeping bags. Thule-Que Thule is returning to OAD with the "Thule-Que", where good barbeque eats will be available all day long -- just follow your nose to the BBQ area. Magellan® GPS Treasure Hunt Visit the Magellan booth to test the newest eXplorist handhelds or bring your own GPS receiver to search for hidden treasures along a fun and exciting Geocaching course. Great prizes await you, including a chance to win an eXplorist GPS and other outdoor gear. Nordic Walking Gabel SRL 9 a.m., 11 a.m., 1 p.m. & 3 p.m. Discover, with Gabel, the exciting and effective world of Nordic Walking. New Nordic Walking based training programs directly from Europe will be presented by German "master trainers." Remo Drum Circles Whats a Drum Circle? The folks at Remo say - its easy, its fun and its for you, your friends, staff and family. No experience is necessary and Remo will provide hand drums, shakers, tambourines and lots of other fun percussion or bring your own instruments. Yakimas Roots-Racks-Reggae Jam 11:00 a.m. 2:00 p.m. Join the Yakima crew for some island vibes with local SLC band Natural Roots.
Current list of Open Air Demo exhibitors:
Camping at Open Air Demo
Willard Bay has two campgrounds – Willow Creek Campground and Cottonwood Campground. Cottonwood Campground is a full service campground with water, sewer and electrical hook-ups and is $20/night. Willow Creek Campground is a tent campground with culinary water and is $14/night. Both campgrounds have modern restrooms with showers. Reservations can be made from three to 120 days in advance. To make a reservation please call 800/322-3770 from 8:00 a.m. – 5:00 p.m. Monday through Friday.
Complimentary Shuttle Service Convenient & Free
Shuttles will run between the hotels listed below and the Salt Palace from 7:30 11:30a.m. leaving approximately every 20-30 minutes. Attendees will then proceed to Registration at the Salt Palace to either pick up their badge holders and/or register. All Open Air Demo event attendees must be registered for the Summer Market 2005 Show, sign a waiver and get a wristband.
Shuttles from Salt Palace to Willard Bay
8:00 a.m., 9:00 a.m., 10:00 a.m., 11:00 a.m., noon and 1 p.m.
Shuttles from Willard Bay back to the Salt Palace
1:30 p.m., 2:30 p.m., 3:30 p.m. and the last shuttles leave at 4:30 p.m. and 5:00 p.m.
