By Alberto Garcia
Kaaboo Del Mar, an eclectic three-day music festival, ended Sunday with more than 80,000 visitors streaming through the Del Mar Fairgrounds. The event is the replacement for “Street Scene” concerts that used to take over downtown San Diego.
The festival hosted 7 outdoor stages and several indoor events including art exhibits and comedy acts. The musical groups ranged from East LA’s Los Lobos, country sensation Zac Brown Band, rap legend Snoop Dogg, local rockers Switchfoot, Grammy winner Sheryl Crow, and longtime favorite NoDoubt with Gwen Stefani. The final act on Sunday was The Killers who closed the festival before a packed crowd.
“At times we ran back and forth between bands to catch our favorites,” commented Jenny Garcia from Oceanside. “It was a great atmosphere with food, drinks, and places to hang out between acts.”
The event promoters delivered on their promise of a more civilized festival compared to other outdoor events like Coachella or Stagecoach. Existing fair grounds bathrooms were supplemented with upscale portable bathroom trailers with tiles floors and air conditioning. Food vendors included Thai cuisine, lobster bites, and more traditional favorites including pizza and sandwiches.
“It was a great venue that provided space between stages to relax, eat, and enjoy the weather,” Danny Shuster of Pacific Beach said. “We had a great time and hope Kaaboo returns next year.”
Title sponsor Mercedes-Benz helped underwrite the event but one local company may have had the biggest impact on the crowd. San Diego-based OmegaTurf supplied over 30,000 sq. ft. of artificial turf that covered the front half of the main stage audience area. The turf transformed an asphalt parking lot into a comfortable space to watch the concert, with some fans opting to lie down on blankets like at a park.
“We took a paved parking lot and put up paradise,” OmegaTurf President Chris Payne joked, playing off the song lyrics of The Counting Crows, who played on the main stage Saturday night. “People really enjoyed the turf and we’re delighted to have been a sponsor of Kaaboo,” he added.
Although some neighbors complained about the noise from the loud music, all bands were required to end by 10:00pm. The events continued until 2:00am inside exhibit halls and other spaces on Friday and Saturday nights.
“People didn’t seem to want to leave,” said Rick Castillo, from Chula Vista, who watched The Counting Crows and Zac Brown Band on Saturday. “Even after the bands ended at 10pm, people were hanging around, enjoying the food and drinks and even playing volleyball on a beach sand court they had up,” he added.
Between shows people enjoyed rest areas, hammocks, and indoor seating areas to escape the heat.
“I cant wait for next year’s Kaaboo,” yelled Jose Gonzalez from Escondido as he exited the main gates on Sunday night. “I’ll be back for sure!”