KISS in Crandon: What to know about traffic, parking and race weekend fun if you're going to Friday's concert
CRANDON – Somewhere between digging out your Lick It Up Tour T-shirt from the '80s and brushing up on your face-painting skills for Friday’s KISS concert in Crandon, you might want to map out your plans for getting there.
Fans headed to Wisconsin’s northwoods to see the legendary rockers light it up one last time on the End of the Road World Tour — billed as the final trek of the band's 50-year career — will find themselves part of a sizable KISS Army and then some.
Even before the Forest County Potawatomi Community announced it had landed KISS for a concert at Crandon International Raceway, Labor Day weekend is a monster one in the county, thanks to the Polaris Crandon World Championship Off-Road Races.
The event begins Wednesday and Thursday with prep and practices and then shifts into high gear with racing Friday through Sunday. It’s the 54th year for the world championships at the raceway — an event that typically draws 50,000 people across three days, said Tina Kulaf, office manager at Crandon International Raceway.
“It is one of the biggest days in Forest County of the year,” said Mary Belland, associate director of the Forest County Chamber of Commerce. “It’s crazy awesome. There are people everywhere. It’s pretty impressive for our community to have that amount of people in the area.”
Then factor in the KISS component.
The Forest County Potawatomi Community began planning more than a year ago to put together the Crandon Rocks concert. Chairman James Crawford said he's hoping to draw 40,000 or more fans for the 8:30 p.m. performance, to be held in a large area outside the raceway normally used for parking.
Of the many calls Belland has fielded in recent months, the majority have come from points south of Crandon in Wisconsin, but there have also been some from as far away as Minnesota and Michigan.
“For the diehard KISS fans, they’re coming from a ways,” she said
For anyone headed that direction for what could be the final KISS concert in Wisconsin, here's a few things to know about the show, the drive and the tradition of race weekend.
Allow plenty of time to get there. Go early for the parade.
This isn’t the time to cut it close and expect to just slide in under the wire. Between race festivities, the concert crowd and people heading up north for Labor Day weekend, traffic is expected to be heavy in and around Crandon all day.
“We’re in a rural area. Everything is just two-lane roads,” Kulaf said.
Also impacting traffic on Friday will be the Lucas Oil Labor Day Parade, the kickoff to race weekend. Race teams begin assembling at 8:30 a.m. for a police escort from the raceway to downtown, where they set up booths, sign autographs and display their cars for a street party. The parade begins at noon.
“It’s super cool,” Belland said. “Friday is probably one of the most exciting days for the entire weekend.”
When do things get rolling at the raceway?
The opening ceremony is at 2 p.m. Friday. The last race of the night is at 7:30 p.m., so nearly right up until concert time at 8:30 p.m. The full schedule of race events is available at crandonoffroad.com/events.
KISS tickets include admission to activities at Crandon International Raceway on Friday only.
Don't have your concert ticket yet?
They’re still available at crandonrocks.com. Prices, not including taxes and fees, are $75 for general admission, $150 bronze section standing, $200 silver section seated, $225 gold section seated and $275 pit standing.
General admission tickets can be purchased onsite the day of, along with any reserved section tickets that are still available. Gold section tickets were down to a handful of single seats as of Aug. 24.
Can I bring my own lawn chair?
Only general admission ticket holders may bring a lawn chair (with backs no more than 35 inches high) or blanket. No chairs of any kind are allowed in the other standing sections; seated sections have chairs provided.
Concert gates will open at 1 p.m., with general admission ticket holders served on a first-come, first-served basis. Stake out your spot with your chair or blanket and either remain on the grounds until the concert or leave for the off-road races and regain entry with your wristband.
What about carry-ins?
No coolers or outside food and drink carry-ins are allowed. Local organizations will be selling food and drink at portable bars and stands on the concert grounds.
Crandon International Raceway sells burgers, brats, hot dogs, cheese curds, chicken wings, nachos, fries and pizza, along with beer, margaritas and other alcoholic and non-alcoholic options.
How will parking work?
“Our official parking is offsite, and it will all be clearly marked. We offer a free shuttle service from that to the raceway,” Kulaf said. “Our neighbors will be offering parking as well, but our shuttles will not stop at those locations to pick people up.”
Cost will be $20 at all locations.
What if I still need a place to stay overnight?
You may be out of luck. Motels, rentals and campgrounds in the immediate Crandon area are mostly full, but for those still on the hunt for lodging, Belland suggests trying campgrounds in Hiles and Laona.
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Kendra Meinert is an entertainment and feature writer at the Green Bay Press-Gazette. Contact her at 920-431-8347 or kmeinert@greenbay.gannett.com. Follow her on Twitter @KendraMeinert.
This article originally appeared on Green Bay Press-Gazette: Going to KISS in Crandon? What to know about parking, traffic, crowds
