Thank you everyone who joined together from afar for our Cheat Fest From Home Week. Extra big thanks to the FOC staff, board, all of our volunteers, the musicians, speakers, community members, and sponsors, those who donated, those who ran the 5K, those who made art, those who tuned in from home to dance, and those who shared Cheat Fest memories on social media – THANK YOU! We cannot wait to see you all in person, by the river we all love. Until then, stay safe & supportive — hang in there — and remember that we are all in this together.  I’ve got a few wrap-up announcements below. Remember, you can revisit all of the Cheat Fest content on the website: Cheatfest.org.

Fire Pit Raffle Open Through Memorial Day!

The Custom Fire Pit Raffle will remain open through Memorial Day; we’ll select a winner on Tuesday, May 26. If you haven’t yet, donate for your chance to win this beautiful, Friends of the Cheat & river themed piece. There really isn’t a better time than now to hang out by a backyard fire. All raffle proceeds directly support the work of Friends of the Cheat.

ALSO: We will contact silent auction winners individually to organize the safe distribution of all prizes.

Virtual 5K!

Wow, we are so excited by how many folks joined us for this a lone, together run. Don’t forget to submit your final times & share your experiences. We will share our awards soon! We’ll be sending certificates of completion soon, and stay tuned for our Awards Ceremony later this week. If you haven’t yet, make sure to submit your race results here. 

Some Quotes from the Runners:

“I was slow!”

“Wonderful! Beat my previous personal 5k record”

“It was a gorgeous morning for a walk. Birds singing, peaceful, sunny, and a nice breeze. I was able to enjoy God’s handiwork all around me as I walked through Mineral Wells, WV. Thank you for this opportunity!”

“Ran as a family like we usually do for Cheat Fest. :)”

“Taking in the spring wildflowers along the trails renews my soul. Today was a good day!”

“We ran from the very end of the Cheat River, to make it semi official. On the Sheepskin Trail. In Point Marion. It was just after a pretty good spattering of rain. So it was a little humid, and warm at close to 70°. I ran with my wife Jess and we practiced social distancing. We only saw a few others on the trail. And got our run in just before the session closed! We had a lot of fun. And were happy to participate and keep the tradition going!”

“Running in my home away from home in western New York on the Erie Canal, definitely not the mountain state, but it felt great to support a great cause this way!”
“I stopped to take too many pictures and didn’t pause my Runkeeper. I’m slow, but not that slow! It was a beautiful evening 😊”
“Walked with my friend Sarah on the Official IC White Memorial Trundle course…AKA the Mont Chateau Rd that runs parallel to the Mighty Loch Cheat..from the Geological Survey, across the Cheat Lake Bridge to Ashebrooke Sq. and back. We weren’t in competitive walk mode so.it was an interesting little trundle with lots to see on the way! GREAT DAY!”
“Ran with my parents like we usually do for Cheat Fest.”
“many hills”
“Ran with my dog, so we had some sniffing stops along the way :)”

Long time Friend of the Cheat & Volunteer Cafe Coordinator Taryn with her Kiddos on their 5K!

Colors of the Cheat

Congratulations to Henry Hinnant for his beautiful, original Cheat Fest inspired artwork featuring Blackwater Falls – I love this! Thanks to everyone who colored & created with the Cheat in mind, keep it up! 

Deep Breaths

In case you missed it — Deep Breaths: A mysterious short film featuring SG, JT, JB & Jimbo. Original score by @kaiakater + @andrewdangerryan, sound design by the wolpertinger + @cusique, special thanks to jimbo, @6ab3, @bendingriverwoodworks and stubbs.

The Music

For those who can’t wait to re-live any of our live streamed content, you can head over to our Facebook & Youtube Channels to enjoy hours of fabulous sets from the Cheat Fest musicians as well as the Ed Eddy talks from FOC staff and friends and community song shares. Gratitude to everyone who contributed, and an extra extra big thank you to Adam Payne for organizing and streaming the music. You rocked.

Another Big Thank You to our Sponsors!

Thanks to our festival sponsors for sticking with us through mud, sun, thick and thin. Their support is especially crucial in unexpected times like these, and we are incredibly grateful to have such wonderful businesses and individuals who have our back. Learn more about all of our wonderful sponsors here.   Check out the latest issue from one of our sponsors and friends: Highland Indoor Quarantine Edition.