RIVERFEST CROWDS, ELECTRICAL CONTRACTING AND MULES: KUDOS TO RIVERFEST ORGANIZERS AND CROWDS

The 1994 Riverfest drew one of the largest crowds ever -- upwards of 75,000 for the two days. But a credit to the people and organizers was the fact it was one of the best behaved.

Friday night crowds were large thanks to ideal weather conditions. A Saturday afternoon thunderstorm chased away Riverfest-goers, but they returned en masse by concert time.

Riverfest organizers proved quick on their feet -- juggling events to compensate for the bad weather.

By the time the Martina McBride concert began late Saturday, the courthouse lawn was covered in people -- elbow to elbow. The crowd exercised remarkable patience in that the fireworks were delayed until after the McBride concert. That's because heavy rains had slowed the fireworks setup Saturday afternoon.

When the fireworks ended, the immense crowd dispersed with patience, politeness and consideration. It really speaks well for the fine people of this area.

It made us proud of Cape Girardeau and the '94 Riverfest celebration.