OCTOBERFEST 2024
Octoberfest 2024 is on!
Join Us for the 43rd year of the one and only ….
Fritz’s Octoberfest
Join us for a beautiful weekend of camping and blacksmithing on the Sonoma coast.
Featured demonstrator Abe Pardee
Teaching tent - Logan Hirsh and Megan Crowley
DATE: October 11 - 13, 2024
LOCATION: Fritz Hagist’s Ranch
34895 Kruse Ranch Road, Cazadero, California
Shop 707/847-3362, Home 707/847-3935
MAP: octoberfest2023_map.pdf
CONTACT: Michael Suwczinsky, secretary@calsmith.org
REGISTRATION: Online or by mail
Online. REGISTRATION IS OPEN. ONLINE REGISTRATION WILL BE OPEN TILL OCTOBER 9, 2024
Mail. Make check payable to CBA.
CBA Secretary Michael Suwczinsky
5505 Santa Cruz Ave, Richmond, CA 94804
You must be a CBA member to attend. Conference limited to the first 150 registrants. SIGN UP EARLY or risk missing out!
COST:
Tickets by Sept 22th
CBA Members $220
Additional Family Members $130
Tickets after Sept 22th
CBA Members $250
Additional Family Members $160
Refund Policy: 50% refund if cancelled by 9/30, No refund after 10/1.
* Due to capacity limits and cost increases for food, etc, the Octoberfest price has gone up since the last event (as all things have.) Keeping in mind that this is "room & board" for 3 days - we feel this is fair and realistic, and we hope you feel the same.
SET UP: Arrive on Friday. Site Opens Friday. Arrive before dark – difficult to find in the dark/fog
AUCTION & IRON IN THE HAT RAFFLE: Please bring items of value for these fun fundraisers.
MEALS: Friday lunch through Sunday lunch. State the number of children attending on your registration form.
PROGRAM: Friday dinner and evening slide show presentation. Friday night open forges till.... Gallery, tailgating, demos go all day Saturday and Sunday morning. Open forging BETWEEN workshops. Saturday evening auction and Iron In The Hat.
COURTESY & SAFETY. ABSOLUTELY NO DOGS ALLOWED. DRIVE SLOWLY once you get off SR 1. This event has a big impact on this rural neighborhood which extends for several miles. PLEASE be courteous, especially when driving through Plantation Camp on Kruse Ranch Road. Keep road dust to a minimum, and watch for animals and people. CHILDREN MUST BE SUPERVISED AT ALL TIMES. HIGH GRASS FIRE DANGER. Be cautious. Bring safety glasses and hand tools. This is a CO-OP event. Everyone makes it happen, so plan to participate.
LODGING: Camping is available on site for tents and small RVs (but no hook-ups). Hot showers are available. Prepare for all weather – hot, cold, fog, rain, sun.
These hotels are fairly close along Hwy 1.
Fort Ross Lodge, 707 847 3333
Timber Cove Inn, 707 847 3231
Salt Point Lodge, 707 847 3234
ABOVE all in Timbercove, near Fritz's shop
Gualala Country Inn 707 884 4343 (Gualala)
Surf Inn 707 884 3571 (Gualala)
ROADS TO OKTOBERFEST: Head for Plantation. From Hwy 101 take River Road/Guerneville exit in Santa Rosa. Follow the signs to Guerneville and Jenner (Hwy 116). At Hwy 1 head north to Meyers Grade (RECOMMENDED IF YOU HAVE A BIG RIG OR TRAILER). At about 5 miles, Meyers Grade merges into Seaview Road. Fourteen miles later, turn left on Kruse Ranch Road. Follow the anvil signs one- anda-half miles to Fritz’s driveway on the right.
octoberfest2023_map.pdf
DEMONSTRATORS:
Demonstrator: ABE PARDEE - Charleston, SC
Abe Pardee received his BFA in Metals from the Appalachian Center for Craft in Tennessee in 2010. He then worked for several notable blacksmiths and was an apprentice at the Metal Museum in Memphis. From 2016 through 2021 he operated Pardee Metal LLC in middle Tennessee producing custom forged ironwork commissions and limited run production items. In 2022, Abe became a professor of blacksmithing at the American College of Building Arts in Charleston, South Carolina. He has continued to teach and exhibit nationally throughout his career.
OCTOBERFEST EDUCATION
MAEGAN CROWLEY - Dolores, CO
Iron Maegan Metalworks: Creating sculpture and custom interior/exterior architectural ironwork for residential, public and commercial sites. Design, concept development, drawings, fabrication, production, and installation of site specific metalwork.
LOGAN HIRSH - Cave Junction OR
While I think it’s important for smiths to be familiar with traditional practices, I think it is also important to keep a personal style active in every creation. This helps develop a Smith with a style versus a Smith being known for a process.
This in turn keeps the Smith and the blacksmithing community contemporary, providing a secure foundation for every educational experience. Get ready for a weekend of hard work!
