OREGON, Ohio — If you're going to attend the German-American Festival this weekend, you're definitely going to have beers and brats on your mind.
But another thing you're going to have to pay attention to at the popular annual festival is the wet conditions of the parking lots around Oak Shade Grove.
The German-American Festival Society owns the surrounding farm fields used as parking for the festival and organizers said while the ground was a bit waterlogged following two consecutive days of rain, they have kept the fields clear of vehicles to not disturb the ground too much.
"We have our east lot and a north lot that as if right now no ones been driving on, so we're hoping that the sun comes out, and dries things up," said Ben Krieger, vice president of the German-American Festival Society
Drying up was the goal inside Oak Shade Grove Friday morning, as volunteers cleared off walking paths, dried golf carts, and laid out dozens of bails of straw all over the saturated areas of the grounds.
"Safety first, we've got to take care of them," said Al Weis, vice president of the Toledo Swiss Men's Club
Organizers said the ground should be drier each day of the festival, so visitors Friday should try to carpool to limit vehicles in the field lots.
But wet weather is nothing new for the GAF, and some organizers said it has been much worse in the past.
"The one year was almost a total wipeout, it rained every day of the festival, and it was pretty nasty out here," Weis said.
"We deal with it every year, it just is what it is. Mother Nature is, you know, going to give her stuff whether we like it or not," Krieger said.
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