Octoberfest 51,570 sausages and 25,000 pretzels means it's Octoberfest
Kitchener-Waterloo Oktoberfest is the biggest Bavarian culture festival outside of Germany and its celebrating its 45th anniversary this year, but just how big is K-W Oktoberfest?
The CBC put together a breakdown by the numbers – and we added in one of our own:
1. Length of festival: 9 days
2. Visitors: over 700,000
3. Estimated economic activity generated by Oktoberfest: $21 million
4. Money collected by non-profit organizations during Oktoberfest: $1.5 million
5. Number of non-profit organizations that benefit from Oktoberfest: 50
6. Number of volunteers: 1,780
7. Estimated number of spectators on the Oktoberfest Thanksgiving Day Parade route: 150,000
8. TV viewers nationwide who tune to watch the Oktoberfest parade: 1.8 million
9. Places to sit (in the beer halls): 18,870
10. Number of pretzels consumed: 25,000
11. Number of sausages consumed: 51,750
6241110482_91217a3b28_z-300x213 51,570 sausages and 25,000 pretzels means it's Octoberfest12. Number of official keg tappings: 40 (40% are tapped in first few days)
13. Price of a 12 oz. beer: $4.75 – $5.75
14. Number of free rides given away by Grand River Transit: 14,000 – 18,000
15. Estimated cost of free rides: $40,000
16. Number of police RIDE programs during Oktoberfest: 16
17. Number of police officers conducting RIDE spot checks: 150
18. Number of impaired drivers arrested (in 2012): 5
19. Number of drivers who received a roadside suspension (in 2012): 6
20. Provincial funding for RIDE programs during Oktoberfest: $23,000
21. Number of officers in the Oktoberfest police unit: 70
22. Number of arrests for public intoxication (in 2012): 17
23. Number of cases of alcohol poisoning: Waterloo Region EMS does not track alcohol poisoning cases
24. Number of Waterloo Region EMS staff on-hand: 2 paramedics working 12 hour shifts
25. Number of Parade Entries: 168 parade entries — 12 bands, 35 floats, and 121 special entries
bodybreak-300x166 51,570 sausages and 25,000 pretzels means it's Octoberfest26. This year’s Oktoberfest Thanksgiving Day Parade grand marshals: Hal Johnson and Joanne McLeod of BodyBreak fame.
27. Number of Fibernetics, NEWT and Worldline folks who will be in attendance? All of us.
From all of us here to all our fabulous customers, Ein Prosit and Happy Thanksgiving!