Lined up for nearly two hours in -8 C, Susan O’Brien was the first among more than 50 people outside the Vernon Winter Carnival office Friday wanting tickets to the sell-out Suds N’ Cider event.
The 500 tickets to the Feb. 1 event sold out in an hour, with O’Brien the first sale at 9 a.m. sharp when the Carnival office doors opened and tickets officially went on sale. While most tickets can be purchased online, Suds N’ Cider tickets were only available in person and over the phone.
See: Vernon Winter Carnival tickets on sale soon
“It crashes our system,” said Carnival chairperson Deb White, as the website gets overloaded, hence the decision to make people get tickets the old-fashioned way.
“It’s a great event. I’ve been four times,” said O’Brien, bundled from head to toe to keep herself warm. “We lived in Delta and came here to go in past years and now we live here.”
While O’Brien arrived at 7:07 a.m., she was thrilled when Stephanie Odermatt and Andy Duffy showed up next in line at 7:20.
The couple was fully prepared with a folding chair, blanket, coffees, breakfast and even a propane fire pit.
“I’ve lined up most years but this year I remembered to bring the fire,” said Duffy.
Near the back of the line, a grandmother waited patiently to pick up a pair of tickets for Christmas presents for her kids, which would include babysitting the grandkids.
“I’ve never been able to get them before,” said the woman, whose identity is withheld in order to keep the element of surprise. “Last year they couldn’t get tickets either so I think they’ll be excited, they’ll have fun.”
Tickets to Suds N’ Cider and Unwined sold out with the Parka Party also expected to also be a sell-out.
But there are 99 events to take in during Carnival from Feb. 1-10. Check them all out at vernonwintercarnival.com.
There are also a few events leading up to Carnival, including the Queen Silver Star speech competition Monday at 6:30 p.m. at the Schubert Centre.
See related: Queen Silver Star candidates make debut
You can also check out the vast talents of the candidates Jan. 6 during the Talent Showcase prior to proclamation Jan. 31.