Good Old Fashioned Bluegrass Festival

Our largest event, the Good Old Fashioned has been held each summer since 1994. It features three wonderful days of California bands on the main stage, as well as hot campground pickers on the side stage between main acts. The GOF is also legendary among festival fans for both the quality and quantity of campground jamming.

The festival takes place on the second weekend in August at Bolado Park, just south of Hollister.  There is a tree-filled, shady campground for tent camping and a spacious meadow for RVs. The weather in August is typically comfortably warm during the day, with nights that range from mild to cold (pack layers!) The GOF is kid friendly, with a Kids on Stage program for budding bluegrass musicians and a wonderfull volunteer-staffed crafts and activities corrall next to the audience area.

Please note that there are absolutely no dogs or pets of any kind permitted at Bolado Park, except for service dogs, which must be in uniform at all times.  Any ticketholders or volunteers who arrive with a pet will not be allowed to enter the festival grounds. To avoid unpleasantness and enjoy your festival, please respect this policy and make other arrangements for your pet.

News

GOF Volunteer Opportunities

Hi to all you pickers and festivalgoers out there on them internets!  If you’re interested in volunteering at the next GOF in 2009, we currently have a number of different opportunities.  Volunteering at the GOF is a great way to give back to everyone’s favorite little bluegrass festival, and get a free ticket for yourself in the bargain.  We have volunteer opportunities for ongoing pre-festival jobs; for immediately before-and-after-festival gear transport, setup and teardown; and for various festival jobs. If you’d like to find out about volunteering at the GOF, please email me, (Jessica Evans) jessica (at) lunula (dot) com, for more info.

2009 NCBS Good Old Fashioned Bluegrass Festival Set For August 7-9

The NCBS Good Old Fashioned Bluegrass Festival will be an ongoing part of Northern California’s AUGUST festival schedule. The 16th annual event will be held Friday-Sunday, August 7-9, 2009 at Bolado Park in Hollister.

The event was held in July for the first 14 years. It was temporarily moved to August in 2008. The change is now permanent due to a groundswell of favorable feedback from GOF bands and customers.

Bands wishing to play the 2009 Good Old Fashioned must apply by December 31, 2008. The application form is available in Bluegrass By The Bay magazine and online. For more information about band selection, contact (Penny Godlis) pennyg44 (at) gte (dot) net. For more information about the festival, contact (Michael Hall) hallmw (at) gmail (dot) com.

GOF Band Application

Bands interested in performing at the 2009 GOF should fill out and submit the band application by December 31st.