SCHEDULE
Please select an event for more information, or see all of our events.
FRIDAY, AUGUST 11TH
4:00 PM Vendors, Arts & Crafts
5:00 PM Harley Hill on Cherry St
6:00 PM Carnival
6:00 - 8:00 PM Flatbed Four
6:30 PM Sweet Corn Eating Contest
8:30 - 9:30 PM Mo’s Garage
9:30 PM Fireworks
10:00 PM - 12:00AM Mo’s Garage
SATURDAY, AUGUST 12TH
7:00 AM - 12:00 PM Fireman’s Pancake Breakfast (@ Fire Station)
8:00 AM - 9:30 AM TBA
9:00 AM Arts & Crafts
10:00 AM Harley Hill on Cherry St
10:00 AM Prince & Princess Pageant
10:00 - 12:00 PM Free Kid’s Games (@ Library)
11:00 AM Kid’s Tug of War (@ Tug Site)
12:00 PM Carnival
12:00 - 3:00 PM The Tug
4:00 PM Tug Awards Ceremony
5:00 PM Arm Wrestling Tournament (@ Across from Peacock’s Tavern)
6:00 PM Kids Pedal Tractor Pull
7:30 PM - 9:30 PM Monica Austin
10:00 PM - 12:00 AM Michael Moncada & Whiskey High
12:00 AM See you next year!
FESTIVAL INFO
SHUTTLE SERVICES
Dorrance Park and the Port Byron Methodist Church
FRI: 5:00 PM - 12:30 AM
SAT: 9:00 AM - 5:00 PM
HANDICAP PARKING ♿
ADMISSION
THURSDAY [FAMILY NIGHT]
Free gate admission
Carnival wristbands $25
Friday & Saturday
$5 per person, per day
Children 12 & under are free
EVENTS
CARNIVAL
6:00 PM - 10:00 PM THURSDAY
6:00 PM FRIDAY
12:00 PM SATURDAY
Grab your tickets and join in on the fun. Or come Thursday night and get a wristband to ride all of the rides you can squeeze into the day!
SWEET CORN EATING CONTEST
6:30 PM FRIDAy, sign-up is 5PM - 6pm
We are hosting our first Sweet Corn Eating Contest! Come to the Fire Station and Village Hall in Downtown Port Byron. The event is being sponsored by Rams Riverhouse.
Early Registration Fee: $5
Day of Registration Fee : $8
In-Person Sign Ups will begin at 5 PM
Must be 18+
This will be a 20 minute timed event, each contestant will have 20 minutes to eat 12 ears of sweet corn. There will be trophies for 1st-3rd place.
All participants need to check in at the designated sign up table (located near the fire station & village hall) between 5 and 6 p.m. on Friday, August 11. Participants will then need to stay near the table until the event beings at 6:30 p.m. It will be one race, and tables/chairs/glasses of water provided.
FIREMAN’S PANCAKE BREAKFAST
7:00 AM - 12:00 PM SATURDAY
Start your day off right with a yearly tradition many years in the making! All proceeds go to our Port Byron Fire Department.
PRINCE & PRINCESS PAGEANT
10:00 AM SATURDAY
We would like to welcome you to the 2023 Tug Fest Prince/Princess Pageant. If you have attended the Great River Tug Fest in the past, or have talked to some of the previous contestants and parents, then you already know what a wonderful experience it is to be a part of this event. Our number one goal is fun!
Interested in having your little one participate? Please fill out and send us an application.
KID’S TUG
11:00 AM SATURDAY
The Kid’s Tug is where we start the training of our future tuggers! Join us at the Tug Site area and cheer on the dozens and dozens of kids that participate each year! We divide the children into age brackets to ensure everyone gets a fair chance and no one goes home disappointed.
Sign your kid up here!
THE TUG
12:00 - 3:00 PM Saturday
The one and only tug of war across the Mighty Mississippi! Ten teams of 20 & one woman’s team of 25 pull with everything they’ve got as they attempt to take home the alabaster eagle trophy.
Where else are you going to see a 2,700 foot long, 680 pound rope stop all Mississippi River traffic?
Kids Pedal Tractor Pull
6:00 PM Saturday
We are hosting our first Kids Pedal Tractor Pull event! Come by the Fire Station and Village Hall in downtown Port Byron. The event is being hosted by the Eastern Iowa Pedal Pullers. There will be medals for placing 1st - 3rd in each age group.
Registration Fee: $5/per child
In-Person Sign Ups will begin at 5 PM
Early Registration is encouraged here, but there will be in-person sign ups an hour prior to the event.
MONSTER ARM WRESTLING
TOURNAMENT
5:00 PM Saturday
Think you’re strong enough to participate in our annual Monster Arm Wrestling Tournament? Whether you just got off of the rope or you were just watching from the crowd, this event is for anyone and everyone.
Weigh-ins start at 5:00 PM at the Gazebo across from Peacock’s Tavern.
More information about Monster Arm Wrestling can be found here
