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Glenwood Caverns Adventure Park’s Music on the Mountain is a smash hit

April E. ClarkArts & Entertainment ContributorGlenwood Springs, Colorado CO

GLENWOOD SPRINGS, Colorado – Iron Mountain is alive with the sound of music at Glenwood Caverns Adventure Park. And the tunes won’t be stopping until Sept. 22.The weekend music series, which takes place every Saturday, features a wide variety of music genres, from rock to bluegrass. This weekend’s concert features Pink Floyd cover band Us and Them, a popular draw at this year’s Strawberry Days festival.Music on the Mountain started three years ago when Caverns owner Steve Beckley aimed to provide his guests – locals and tourists – with evening entertainment.”We have gradually built the series to include more shows,” Beckley said. “Our busy times are during the day, and we were looking for ways to get more people up the mountain in the evening. We added the idea of a can of food in exchange for a tram ride to help the LIFT-UP food bank and to incentivize people to come for the free music.”Beckley said Music on the Mountain provides an ideal opportunity for people to enjoy the park outside of the typical daytime hours.”Evening at the Caverns are the best times to come up,” he said. “It is cooler, there are no lines for the rides, and the sunsets are amazing.”A favorite with the locals, the Missing Link Band from Glenwood Springs has performed every season of Music on the Mountain since its 2009 premiere.”There are many great bands that have played more than once, but the Missing Link Band is the only one that’s played all four seasons,” said Mandy Gauldin, of Peak Communications, which promotes the park and concert series.Gauldin said the band has helped break records for the event’s can collection efforts over the years.”Missing Link wrapped up the 2011 season last September with a record-breaking event during which the park collected almost 1,400 cans of food in one evening,” she said. “The second-highest can-gathering concert was in June of 2011, which featured two local high school bands, A Vision Quest and Slightly White, and the crowd donated more than 1,200 cans.”More than 17,400 food items for the LIFT-UP food pantry, as well as 908 food and personal care items, and more than $300 in cash for the victims of the Waldo Canyon Fire has been collected in the series’ three-year lifetime. “The community has been so supportive of these events,” Gauldin said.Not only do the concerts provide a valuable community service, they also get locals excited about live music in Glenwood Springs. Beckley has received a plethora of positive feedback since it started.”People enjoy coming up and hearing great music, playing in the park, and spending time with their friends and families,” he said. “Throughout the summer people are always asking when is Music on the Mountain starting.”Beckley said it’s hard to pinpoint just one concert as the most memorable, as they have all had their strong points. He is looking forward to Sept. 9 when the park hosts a Sunday gospel concert.”All the bands are different and play all types of music from old-time rock, country, bluegrass, etc.,” he said. “This year we are also adding a Sunday event that has two great gospel bands.”

One perk to taking the tram up Iron Mountain for the Music on the Mountain series is the chance to ride the Glenwood Adventure Park’s newest attraction, the Cliffhanger roller coaster. The Cliffhanger is the highest elevation roller coaster in the U.S.”The Cliffhanger coaster is running at nights, and the ride with the city lights below is quite spectacular,” Beckley said.From new attractions to a popular music series, Glenwood Caverns Adventure Park has been a hot spot this season.”This has been our busiest summer ever, and it seems like all the hotels and restaurants have also had a great summer,” Beckley said. “Glenwood is lucky to have all the great amenities for tourists. It has helped us get through a tough economic time.”The Music on the Mountain series closes Sept. 22 with The Missing Link Band. Looking ahead for the caverns, Beckley has some exciting plans in store for future attractions.”Next year we are expanding the cave tour to include four more rooms that have previously not been seen by the public. The new rooms are nicely decorated and should improve the cave tour dramatically,” he said. “Next holiday season – November/ December 2013 – we are adding a holiday program with light shows and evening fun for all ages.”If Beckley has his wish, he would like to see a big name in the music industry play music atop Iron Mountain. Stranger things have happened, he joked.”Everyone has a different preference, but I would love to get an old-time rock band, i.e. Electric Light Orchestra, Van Halen, Fleetwood Mac,” he said. “OK, I’m dreaming, but stranger things have happened. Who would have guessed that a tram to a cave would be successful?”


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