Inland NW links

Sports teams are listed here according to the month in which their seasons begin. Most of the established events happen at the same time every year, but if you're really into one, you might want to check the site a month or so early and make sure of the dates. Suggestions for Inland Northwest events to add here are welcomed, especially if they already have Web sites.

Events by date

TicketsWest
TicketMaster
online concert and
event tickets

January to March

Northwest Bach Festival http://www.nwbachfest.com/: Two weeks around the end of January every year.
Spokane International Film Festival (SpIFF) http://www.spokanefilmfestival.org/: Two extended weekends in late January and early February.
Spokane National Boat Show http://www.spokaneboatshow.com/: Late January into early February at the Spokane County Fair & Expo Center.
Spokane International Auto Show http://www.spokaneautoshow.com/: Early February at the Spokane County Fair & Expo Center.
Inland Northwest Motorcycle Show http://www.spokanemotorcycleshow.com/: Late February at the Spokane County Fair & Expo Center.
Great Western Sport Fishing Show http://www.greatwesternsportfishingshow.com/: First annual show Feb 29-Mar 2 2008 at the Spokane Convention Center.
Coeur d'Alene Film Festival http://www.cdafilmfestival.com/: New for 2007: a three-day weekend in early March, in downtown Coeur d'Alene.
Annual Kosher Dinner at Temple Beth Shalom (Spokane) http://www.spokanetbs.org/: A Sunday in early March; Jewish music and kosher food.
Bighorn Outdoor Adventure Show http://www.wildlifecouncil.com/bighornsubsite/: Four days in mid-March at the Spokane County Fair & Expo Center, since 1960.
Spokane Auto Boat Speed Show http://www.spokaneautoboatspeedshow.com/: Late March or early April at the Spokane County Fair & Expo Center, since 1963.
Spokane Shock arena football http://www.spokaneshock.com/
Shockwave Booster Club http://shockfan.com/: Late March through August, with sold-out home games in Spokane Veterans Memorial Arena, mostly on Saturday nights. Arena football was designed for the many smaller basketball-and-hockey arenas, and the rules were intended to create lots of offensive fireworks, high scores, and not much defense. Conventional wisdom calls for scoring resembling basketball, and the last team with the ball is supposed to win every game. Shock arena football tends to have lots of interceptions, sacks, defensive stops, and blowouts.

Year	League	Regular season	ArenaCup or Arena Bowl	Notes
2006	af2	14-2		Head coach Chris Siegfried and multiple players to majors.
2007		12-4		New head coach Adam Shackleford.
2008		15-1		Lost ArenaCup IX in Spokane by one point in overtime.
2009		15-1		ArenaCup X in Las Vegas: Spokane 74, Wilkes-Barre 27.
2010	AFL	10-2	?	#1 in AFL coaches' poll 6/23; new head coach Rob Keefe.

The old AFL developed major cash-flow problems, and cancelled their entire 2009 season, which resulted in Shock players staying on that year who would otherwise have been yanked up to the majors. Starting with the 2010 season there's a single reorganized primary arena football league. For some months it was called AF1, then it was renamed to AFL in February, after the new league bought out the assets of both old leagues. The new AFL has some teams from the old AFL, including some big-market teams such as Phoenix, Chicago, Dallas, Cleveland, Tampa Bay, and Jacksonville, and some other top-rank former af2 teams. Old-AFL teams from Philadelphia, Kansas City, and San Jose will be returning in the 2011 season.

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April to June

Spokane Women's Show http://www.spokanewomensshow.com/: Mid April at the Spokane Convention Center.
Get Lit! http://outreach.ewu.edu/getlit/: Literary festival in late April, various locations in Spokane and Cheney, including author presentations and readings, writing workshops and panels; since 1999.
Custer's Spring Antique & Collectors Sale http://www.custershows.com/antique/spring/details.htm: Late April at the Spokane County Fair & Expo Center.
Spring Barrel Tasting: Tour and taste at Spokane wineries Mothers' Day weekend (second Sunday in May) see the Spokane Winery Association site for details.
Walla Walla Hot Air Balloon Stampede: Including Saturday Nite Glow Show; held in mid-May, see Walla Walla Valley CofC events calendar.
SFCC Red Nations Powwow http://www.powwows.com/calendar/event-details.php?eventid=7852: Mid-May on the SFCC campus.
Bloomsday http://www.bloomsdayrun.org/: A 7.46 mile (12 km) fun run held every May since 1977, with circa 50,000 runners in recent years.
Lilac City Rollergirls http://www.lilaccityrollergirls.com/: Roller derby, May through October.
Spokane Lilac Festival http://www.lilacfestival.org/: Series of yearly events held since 1938, including the Armed Forces Torchlight Parade, always on the third Saturday in May, Armed Forces Day.
Sasquatch Music Festival http://sasquatchfestival.com/: Memorial Day weekend at the Gorge Ampitheater.
Artfest: Yearly arts festival, the weekend after Memorial Day, in Coeur d'Alene Park in the Browne's Addition neighborhood, sponsored by Northwest Museum of Arts & Culture. Held concurrently with Elkfest concert series.
Tour d'Alene: This early June bike ride to benefit a youth diabetes campaign apparently has no Web presence yet; call (509) 624-7478. Ride 2.7, 15.3, or 33 mostly flat miles on the Trail of the Coeur d'Alenes, starting from Plummer at the west end; minimum pledges $19 youths, $56 adults.
Lind Washington Combine Demolition Derby http://www.lindwa.com/: Early June; Lind is about 15 miles southwest of Ritzville, just off US 395.
Reardan Mule Days http://reardanmuledays.net/: Early June for more than a hundred years; Reardan is about 20 miles west of Spokane off US 2.
River City Fiddle Fest: Nationally recognized contest, in Post Falls the first full week of June. No Web site I could find as of the 2006/7 events; try Googling the event name in quotes.
Loreen Miller Memorial Bike Ride http://www.cancerpatientcare.org/: Early to mid June benefit for Cancer Patient Care (see link in health care section) with century, half-century, and 12-mile family ride options.
Car d'Lane http://www.cdadowntown.com/index_cardlane.asp?pageid=1498: Mid-June classic car show (1978 & older) on downtown Coeur d'Alene streets, sponsored by Coeur d'Alene Downtown Association; see their site under Events if the link above doesn't work.
Spokane Indians http://www.spokaneindiansbaseball.com/: Northwest League minor-league short-season baseball, mid-June through early September. Home games are played in a very well-kept traditional ballpark called Avista Stadium, with just 7,162 seats, located at the Spokane County Fair & Expo Center. Get on TicketsWest online a week or so in advance and get yourself tickets for the $9 upper box seats. Parking is free, hot dogs and beer are not, and they have lots of snack choices besides hot dogs. (Lower box seats are mostly season ticket holders; the other main option is $5 bench seats facing the outfield.)
Hoopfest http://www.spokanehoopfest.net/: "The biggest street basketball festival in the world" (3 on 3) held at the end of June: 800 hoops. They block off all of downtown over the weekend.
Ironman Coeur d'Alene triathlon http://www.ironmancda.com/: End of June (swim 2.4 miles, bike 112 miles, run 26.2 miles).

Problems with turning my ankles have always ruled out running and playing basketball, and anything else involving jumping around, and I also tend to find the game of basketball annoying to watch. So Bloomsday and Hoopfest, two of our most popular local events, are a couple of big zeros for me. Lots of other folks around here enjoy the heck out of them.

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July to September

Spokane and Coeur d'Alene both put on fireworks shows for the Fourth. Spokane's is in Riverfront Park downtown, and is therefore limited in scale for safety reasons. The Coeur d'Alene show is fired from a barge out in the lake.

Tour of the Coeur d'Alenes http://www.roundandround.com/TourCDA/TourCDA.php: A one-day benefit bike ride in early July, on the Trail of the Coeur d'Alenes. Round trip route options from 28 to 130 miles, starting from Wallace ID in the Silver Valley, or donate $10 extra, ride 50 miles downhill/flat to Harrison ID on the lake, and ride a bus back up to Wallace (limited signups). Breakfast, dinner, and food stops.
Ritzville Blues Festival http://www.ritzvilleblues.com/: Early July. I'm still having a hard time with the concept of a blues event hosted in Ritzville. I can see how living there would give me the blues.
Cheney Rodeo http://www.cheneyrodeo.com/: Second weekend in July.
Sandpoint Wooden Boat Festival (Sandpoint ID) http://www.sandpoint.org/boatfestival/: Second weekend in July.
Tour of Pain http://www.cdabrewing.com/tourofpain.html: Second weekend in July; 200 miles of cycling in one day. This is about the same mileage as the longest Day One option of Tour des Lacs in September, but starting and ending in Coeur d'Alene.
South Perry Street Fair: Mid-July.
Valley Girl Triathlon (Liberty Lake WA) http://www.valleygirltri.com/: Mid-July "sprint-distance triathlon" for women only (swim one-third mile, bike 12 miles, run three miles). Apparently the attraction is a less competitive, safer start.
Schweitzer Bluegrass Festival http://www.schweitzer.com/: Third weekend in July, free admission; Schweitzer Ski Resort is near Sandpoint in Bonner County, which borders Kootenai County on the north.
Julyamsh powwow (Post Falls ID) http://www.julyamsh.com/: Late July at the former dog track; largest annual powwow in the Inland Northwest.
Allegro's Royal Fireworks Concert http://www.allegrobaroque.org/index.php?page=fireworks: Baroque arts festival, concert, and fireworks, held the last weekend of July in Riverfront Park for more than twenty years.
Dragon Boat Festival: End of July dragon boat race on the Spokane River downtown, to benefit Spokane Parks Foundation, who used to host the race home page.
Spike & Dig http://www.spikeanddig.com/: Early August sixes volleyball tournament at SCC.
Festival at Sandpoint (ID) http://www.festivalatsandpoint.com/: Early August outdoor concert series, with name artists and fancy ticket prices.
Art on the Green http://www.artonthegreen.org/: Yearly arts festival since the late 1960s, held in early August on the campus of North Idaho College in Coeur d'Alene. CdA's Downtown Street Fair (Sherman Ave) and Taste of the Coeur d'Alenes (City Park) are held the same weekend.
Spokane Highland Games http://www.spokanehighlandgames.org/: Early August; Scottish music, dancing, and athletics at the Spokane County Fair & Expo Center.
Eight Lakes Leg Aches http://www.lcsnw.org/events.html: Early August benefit bike ride sponsored by Lutheran Community Services to fight leukemia; 30, 50, and 80-mile options with lots of climbing. The 2006 ride was the eighth annual.
Garland Village Arts & Music Festival http://www.clickspokane.com/garland/festival.html: Neighborhood street fair, second Saturday in August.
Blue Waters Bluegrass Festival http://www.bluewatersbluegrass.org/: Mid-August in Medical Lake.
Glass on the Grass http://www.glassonthegrass.com/: Mid-August "celebration of the glass arts," now held on the Gonzaga U campus, featuring the work of regional glass artists, demonstrations of glass blowing, live music, wine tasting, and food.
Fairchild AFB Skyfest: Excellent August* weekend airshow, featuring the US Air Force Thunderbirds about every other year. I strongly recommend a straw hat, sunscreen, water bottle (drink lots!) and cushy shoes and socks.
North Idaho Fair & Rodeo http://www.northidahofair.com/: Yearly in late August at the Kootenai County Fairgrounds.
Spokane Falls Northwest Indian Encampment: Late August in Spokane's Riverfront Park, and usually a week later on the Spokane reservation. This powwow is older than Julyamsh but not as big.
National Lentil Festival http://www.lentilfest.com/: Pullman WA in late August.
GoodGuys Hot Rod & Custom Car Nationals http://www.good-guys.com/: Late August at the Spokane County Fair & Expo Center.
Pig Out in the Park http://www.spokanepigout.com/: Spokane's version of the Bite of Seattle, in Riverfront Park over the extended Labor Day weekend (first week of September).
Seattle Seahawks http://www.seahawks.com/: NFL football, September through February. Obviously the games aren't played in the Inland NW, but they have lots of fans in local taprooms during the season.
Greater Spokane League http://www.greaterspokaneleague.org/: Including high school football, September through December. About half the football games are played in Albi Stadium in northwest Spokane, which I remember from my own high school days.
Spokane Chiefs http://www.spokanechiefs.com/: WHL hockey, September through March..
SpokeFest http://www.spokefest.org/: Early September 21-mile bike ride, with a 1-mile short loop for the kids, plus cycling expo and health fair, in downtown Spokane and on the Centennial Trail.
Tour de Coeur http://www.acsidaho.org/: Early September bike ride benefits American Cancer Society Idaho; 20 flat miles on the Centennial Trail or 30 miles with climbing beside Lake Coeur d'Alene.
Spokane County Interstate Fair http://www.spokanecounty.org/fair/sif/: Early September at the Spokane County Fair & Expo Center.
Tour des Lacs http://www.roundandround.com/TourDesLacs/TourDesLacs.php: A well-supported one or two-day benefit bike ride in mid to late September, from Spokane to Coeur d'Alene and back, including short route options on the Centennial Trail. Route options available from 40 to 122 miles, flat or with climbing; breakfast, dinner, food stops, and other services. Usually about 1000 riders, with about one-third from out of town; the 2006 ride was the 16th annual TDL.
Valleyfest (Spokane Valley WA) http://www.valleyfest.org/: A Friday through Sunday in late September; arts & crafts, fun run, car show.
Idaho State Draft Horse International Exhibition (Sandpoint ID) http://www.sandpoint.org/drafthorseshow/: Late September.
Greek Festival at Holy Trinity Greek Orthodox Church (Spokane) http://www.holytrinityspokane.org/: End of September: lunch and dinner, Friday and Saturday. Also dancing, coffee, deli, imports, and Orthodox bookstore; they've been doing this every year since the 1930s.
Prosser Balloon Rally http://www.prosserballoonrally.org/: End of September. Prosser WA is in the lower Yakima valley between the Tri-Cities and Yakima.

* Skyfest used to be held the weekend of Armed Forces Day, the third Saturday in May. Then one year it snowed briefly during that weekend, and the Air Force freaked out and switched to late July, which had them picking up heatstroke cases instead. Now apparently it's going to be in August. I was there the day it snowed, and that was a great show day. I waited out part of the snow flurry standing under the tail of an A-10 Warthog, munching a slice of pizza.

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October to December

Mennonite Country Auction & Relief Sale http://mennonitecountryauction.mennonite.net/: First Saturday in October, at the Menno Mennonite Church, 20 miles west of Ritzville. Lots of country food to buy and eat or take home; also crafts demonstrations, reportedly including an ice cream maker driven by a miniature steam engine. The site has a link to a map and directions page. Mennonite communities all over the US host similar events to benefit global relief efforts.
WaCanId Bike Ride http://wacanid.org/: Early October 340-mile five-day bike ride, on the International Selkirk Loop highway route. The closest point of the ride to Spokane is Newport Washington. The 2009 ride will be the first of what's meant to be an annual event.
Custer's Fall Antique & Collectors Sale http://www.custershows.com/antique/fall/details.htm: Early October at the Spokane County Fair & Expo Center.
(Halloween)
Gonzaga Bulldogs (Gonzaga University) http://www.gozags.com/index-main.html: Various sports including powerhouse men's basketball, November through March.
Think SWING! Jazz & Blues Festival http://www.thinkswingspokane.com/: Early November; local, regional, and national artists, in local venues including the Marie Antoinette Ballroom of the Davenport Hotel and the Spokane Masonic Center, satellite events at the Panida Theatre in Sandpoint, and a downtown Spokane nightclub circuit. Begun in 2006 as an outreach project to benefit New Orleans musicians impacted by Hurricane Katrina.
Spokane Fall Folk Festival http://www.spokanefolklore.org/FolkFestival.html: Folk, ethnic, and world music and dance on the SCC campus in early November, on several stages; looks like fun. Similar to the Northwest Folklife Festival held over Memorial Day weekend in Seattle; the 2006 Spokane festival was the 11th annual.
Inland Crafts http://www.inlandcrafts.org/: Mid-November three-day juried crafts sale and exhibition, now held in the new convention center; the 2006 show was the 24th annual.
Wolf Lodge Bay bald eagle watching: Mid-November to February every winter, on a particular bay of the lake, just east of Coeur d'Alene. They come to feed on kokanee salmon, like the master fish-eagles they are.
Holiday Wine Festival: Tour and taste at Spokane wineries the weekend before Thanksgiving; see the Spokane Winery Association site for details.
(Thanksgiving)
Fair Trade Festival: Late November, free; sweatshop-free clothing, jewelry, pottery and other handicrafts, in the Community Building in downtown Spokane.
(Christmas)
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First Night Spokane http://www.firstnightspokane.org/: Alternative New Year's Eve celebration and downtown arts festival, with an emphasis on events for families with young children.

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