From Rocket Boots Bob to River Raft Fun, a Great Weekend for Bedford

Looking back at last weekend's River Festival, what a fantastic showcase it was for Bedford. It is estimated that over 300,000 people came out to join in the fun over the weekend. The arrival of the summer was excellently timed and no doubt encouraged many people to come out and enjoy the vast array of entertainment on offer.

The festival was bigger than ever, yet the number of local people and groups involved, both working and enjoying themselves, shows the River Festival still retains its spirit as a community owned event and one we can all be proud of.

Here are some of the facts and figures which help tell the story of a tremendous weekend which showed Bedford at its best:

• Over 1,000 people took part in the parade
• As well as all the activity on the land and water the crowds were entertained by a Spitfire as it flew over on Saturday afternoon
• The first UK appearance of 'Rocket Boots Bob' who wowed the crowds as he flew his water jet pack above the river
• 33 rafts started the raft races on Sunday
• 20 Dragonboat teams competed along the 350 metre course. The team from Gold's Gym were the winners.
• It takes in excess of 5 days to deliver the infrastructure needed for the River Festival. However, it is all expected to be removed by Wednesday morning
• 5 miles of speaker cables criss-crossed the site
• 5 stages showcased more than 500 performers across the weekend
• The Viking Kayak Club used more than 1,000 glowsticks on the Illuminated Boat Parade on Saturday night
• Ancient Greeks took over Castle Mound

... And over 30 tonnes of rubbish had been cleared on site by Monday!

I want to thank all those working on the clean-up, and of course everyone involved in whatever way in the River Festival over the weekend, as it's the involvement of so many people and groups that makes the event unique and so much fun for everyone.