If you're ready for summer fun, check out the entertainment offerings in Ashland County
If you're looking for fun things to do this summer, which officially begins today, June 21, then look no further than Ashland County.
And if you're looking for variety, you're in luck because the entertainment offerings are varied and plentiful — some include:
A hot air balloon festival (BalloonFest).
Car shows, fireworks (in Ashland and Loudonville) and a Fourth of July parade (in Ashland).
All kinds of live music with Music on Main and the Ashland Bandshell Summer Concert Series.
Events for history buffs (Ashland Chautauqua and Ashland County Historical Society Ice Cream Social, as well as an antique tractor show and antique festival).
If you enjoy seeing the sky full of color with hot air balloons, get yourself to Ashland's Freer Field on one or all of these days: Thursday, June 23; Friday, June 24; and Saturday, June 25.
According to Ashland BalloonFest's website, almost 30 balloons will launch (weather permitting) from Freer Field those three days and land all over the county.
Balloon launches are scheduled for around 6:30 each evening, and starting each day at 7 a.m. on Friday and Saturday.
Thursday's Founder’s Flight is named John Sidle, one of the founders of the event, which is in its 32nd year. Sidle, a longtime hot air balloon enthusiast and owner of A&M Fire and Safety in Ashland, died in 2021 from COVID.
There also will be a special shape balloon fly in Sidle's memory and BalloonFest Committee members hope to glow his original balloon on Thursday night — Friday and Saturday night also have balloon glows scheduled, if the weather allows.
The annual community event also will include food/merchant vendors, live music, activities for kids and skydivers landing on Freer Field, as well as a cornhole tournament, 5K race and pancake breakfast and fly-in at Ashland County Airport.
For a complete schedule, check out http://ashlandohioballoonfest.com/
Ashland Dream Cruise and Car Show and Loudonville Car Show both in July
"I'm in Love With My Car," as Queen put it. If you are, too — or if you're in love with checking out other people's classic cars, then you need to be in Loudonville on July 2 and Ashland on July 9.
Last year, a record 687 cars were on display during the Ashland Downtown Dream Cruise and Car Show. Proceeds from the event put on by Ashland Main Street go to the Ashland Police Division's Shop with a Cop program.
More than 500 cars are usually on display at the Loudonville Car Show, which is rated No. 1 in Top Ten Downtown Events in Cruisin' Times magazine. Last year, the event had more than 700 vehicles to go with live music and food.
Both communities also put on Fourth of July fireworks shows.
Rotary sponsors the one in Ashland, which begins at dusk Monday, July 4 (around 9:30 p.m.). Rain date is Tuesday, July 5.
While Community Stadium, where the fireworks are launched will be closed this year to spectators, there’s plenty of space around it and in surrounding neighborhoods to enjoy this year's show, according to Rotary's website, which noted the fireworks will be higher than usual, expanding the viewing area.
Loudonville's fireworks, sponsored by the Loudonville Mohican Chamber of Commerce, also will be on Monday, July 4 at around 9:30 p.m. at Riverside Park.
If you're looking for more ways to be patriotic on the Fourth of July, watch or participate in the annual Push 'em Pull 'em parade for children of all ages.
Ashland Main Street and Substance Church invite kids and families to grab their scooters, bikes, wagons, strollers — anything on wheels (non-motorized, electric or gas-powered) — and enjoy the fun.
Children 6 years old and younger must be accompanied by an adult; helmets and safety gear are recommended for children riding bicycles, skateboards and scooters.
There will be prizes for the top entries.
Registration begins at 9 a.m. at Substance Church, 101 South St., and the parade starts at 10 a.m., where participants will head up Center Street in a sea of red, white and blue.
Find live music at the Ashland Bandshell and Music on Main
If you enjoy listening to free live music (who doesn't?), Ashland Main Street offers Music on Main once a month Saturday nights at Foundation Plaza and the Ashland Bandshell has performances most Sunday and Thursday nights throughout the summer.
The one in July will follow the Ashland Downtown Dream Cruise and Car Show on Saturday, July 9 with Nashville-bound Patrick Jaeckin Loose Strings performing at 6 p.m., opening for Departure, a Journey tribute band, which will play from 7 to 9 p.m.
Vaughn Pokrzywa opened for Escape the Circus to kick off the summer event in June.
Falcon Punch at 6 p.m., followed by Low-E from 7 to 9 p.m., wraps up Music On Main on Saturday, Aug. 13.
The 73rd annual Guy C. Myers Memorial Bandshell 2022 Summer Concert Series started June 12 with a special magic show and a group that played Motown hits.
Other performances Sunday and Thursday nights from 8 to 9:15 p.m. at the Bandshell include:
Nessa, which incorporates sounds and rhythms from the Caribbean, Africa and India, with Celtic and folk genres (June 23).
John Denver tribute band John Adams Band (June 26).
Faithfully, a Journey/Eagles tribute band (June 30).
Ashland Symphony Orchestra's annual Pops in Park concert (July 3).
The Oolong Gurus performing a mix of rock, country, bluegrass and blues (July 7).
High energy rock and pop cover band Escape the Circus (July 10).
Led by Neil Ebert, Rare Vintage-10, a 10-piece cover band from Ashland performs in a wide variety of musical styles, including artists such as Jimmy Buffet, Lionel Ritchie and Chris Stapleton (July 17).
Creole Stomp plays a mix of contemporary blues, swamp pop, traditional creole and zydeco tunes (July 21).
Country music band Raquel & The Wildflowers (July 24).
Eight-piece band Brass Tracks features the iconic horn band hits of the ’60s, ’70s and ’80s (July 28).
Alla Boara brings life to Italian folk songs in modern arrangements (July 31)
Falcon Punch is a group of Ashland area musicians led by Capital University senior music major and the Bandshell’s stage manager, Satch Garlock, that plays an eclectic mix of classical jazz and video game music (Aug. 4).
A graduate of Ashland University sings for South Street Jazz Co. (Aug. 7).
Northcoast Americana band Hey Mavis (Aug. 11).
Like it does every year, Ashland Regional Ballet wraps up the concert series on Aug. 14 with performances in a wide range of styles, including ballet, modern, jazz and tap.
Ashland Chautauqua, Historical Society Ice Cream Social, antique tractor show and antique festival in Loudonville
If you're into history, there's all kinds of free choices, including Ashland Chautauqua, the Ashland County Historical Society Ice Cream Social, the Ashland County Yesteryear Machinery Club Antique Tractor and Engine Show and Loudonville Antique Festival.
In addition to enjoying the county's history with free museum tours, the Ashland County Historical Society will offer free ice cream (from Whit's Frozen Custard, which has new owners), a silent auction, music and games from 1 to 4 p.m. Sunday, June 26 at 420 Center Street, Ashland.
Ashland Chautauqua’s traditional five-day event, with its evening first-person performances and daytime workshops will feature a variety of historical portrayals with a theme of “The Famous and Infamous.”
The free evening performances will be July 12-16 at the Ashland Bandshell with the Chautauqua performances at 8 p.m. and opening acts at 7 p.m.
The scholars include:
Leslie Goddard portraying Lizzie Borden (July 12).
Darrick Johnson portraying Malcolm X (July 13).
Dianne Moran portraying Mary Surratt (July 14).
Susan Marie Frontczak portraying Madame Marie Curie (July 15).
And Elsa Wolff portraying Annie Oakley (July 16).
This year both the adult and youth workshops will be held in person and led by Chautauqua scholars. For the schedule and more information, visit www.ashlandchautauqua.org.
Antiques can be found at both the Loudonville Antique Festival on July 1 and 2 in Central Park and the Yesteryear Machinery Club Antique Tractor and Engine Show on July 9 and 10 at the Ashland County Fairgrounds.
The tractor and engine show also will feature a tractor pull, farm toy show, car show, food vendors, flea market, kiddie tractor pull and kiddie rides.
If this isn't enough to keep you busy this summer, then you need to find somewhere to slow down, relax and enjoy the summer weather — which Ashland County also has a lot of places for that, including nearly 20 county parks, Mohican State Park canoe liveries in the Loudonville area, Pleasant Hill and Charles Mill Lake.
This article originally appeared on Ashland Times Gazette: Things to do in Ashland County in summer 2022
