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1 year ago
Schuetzenfest 2010, Bow Valley Nebraska
Heard about it a few times, finally went! What a great event!
The Schützenfest (Shooting Festival) is held every 5 years in Bow Valley, NE and started in 1896 when Willibald Schulte and John Noecker organized the first such event in Cedar County. These festivals find their origin back in medieval Germany when shooters competed to show off their marksmanship in archery and firearms.
This day started, as many festivals do, with a parade and games for young and old. The Dunk Tank, the Ring Toss, Minnow Races (!!?) and many other booths attracted the attention of attendees. The wonderful smell of German brats, Hot Dogs, Hamburgers and Indian Tacos filled the air. And what would any German celebration be without beer? That was not missing at the Schützenfest either – of course the contestants would wait for their beer until after the competition!
The main event of the day started with a wooden turkey mounted on top of a 20 foot pole. The goal was to shoot the turkey until it fell off the pole. More than 50 people took turns shooting at the bird using .30-30 caliber rifles, which was a little disconcerting since, from the bleachers it appeared that a major highway was in the line of fire! Upon further investigation, the travelers on the highway were safe and the backdrop of the firing range was a large hill about a half mile away.
The contestants, each dressed in white shirt, pants and hat, marched onto the field of competition led by a drummer and the American Flag. Military service men and veterans were honored, as is the tradition of the Schützenfest which at one time was held for soldiers returning from battle.
The main event allowed each marksman to take one shot in turn and then sent them off to the back of the line. Initial shots were not spectacular and merely “tenderized” the bird. But as the wooden fowl and it’s legs (a thick wooden post) became splintered, pieces started flying off with a well placed shot, and the crowd would cheer! At 100 shots a few splinters were seen, but the bird held fast and showed no sign of giving up. At 200 shots the splinters were frequent and a few large shards signaled again for the cheers of the crowd.
The 225th shot arrived when Dan Thoene stepped up and put a slug into the body of the steadfast bird. This was a well timed shot. Most previous shots focused on the legs trying to weaken that smallest section of wood. This shot tipped the bird backward so that it was looking to the sky! The crowd went wild! But the bird remained. The shooter, in a mock attempt at jolting the bird a little more, jumped heavily on the ground. There was laughter, and then… the turkey fell to the ground! Again cheers erupted and the rest of the shooters immediately surrounded the victor, each trying to get a chance to congratulate the 2010 Schützenfest King!
I’ll definitely be going back to this event again! Too bad it’ll be five more years!
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