Salute in the Salt Flats fireworks show slated for July 4
SECOND UPDATE: The Salute in the Salt Flats fireworks show has been canceled due to a lack of a permit, according to Breckenridge and Stephens County Fire Marshal Calvin Chaney. For more details, click here to read the Breckenridge Texan article.
Original article:
For the second year in a row, Breckenridge will be treated to the Salute in the Salt Flats fireworks show south of town for Independence Day, Wednesday, July 4.
The event is sponsored by Kent Thompson, owner of Canyon Road Barn and Grill. He created the event last year after the Breckenridge Chamber of Commerce decided not to host a fireworks show in order to devote more resources to the Breckenridge Airshow, which was brought back in 2017 after a 21-year hiatus.
“The people of Breckenridge and the surrounding area deserve a fireworks show; that’s what the Fourth of July is all about,” said Thompson, a U.S. Marine Corps veteran. “We’ll do this on the Fourth every year. The Fourth of July is kind of special to me.”
In order to put on the best show possible and to allow it to be offered for free to the community, Thompson solicited donations from others. “Right now, we have tons of sponsors, too many to list,” he said. “Most of it is from private citizens.”
Thompson expects as many as 10,000 people to watch the show this year. Keeping safety in mind, he will have the Stephens County Sheriff’s Office and Sacred Cross EMS on-hand Wednesday night.
The Salute in the Salt Flats, organized by Kent Thompson, takes place on about 40 acres of salt flats in southern Stephens County. (Courtesy Photo)
Additionally, the Breckenridge Fire Department and the Wayland Volunteer Fire Department will be on-site to ensure fire safety. “We’re fully supported,” Thompson said. “We launch over about 40 acres of salt flats – there’s not even any grass out there.”
The Salute in the Salt Flats fireworks show, which is free to the public, will kick off at about 9:30 p.m. Wednesday south of Breckenridge, just past Canyon Road Barn and Grill, located at 5790 FM 3418. That’s about six miles south of Breckenridge and three miles west of U.S. Highway 183 on FM 576.
Attendees may watch the show from anywhere in that area. Free parking, including handicapped-accessible parking will be available at the Rail A Ranch’s Old Ranch House, just north of Canyon Road Barn and Grill on FM 3418.
Also on site will be vendors selling refreshments, including $1 hot dogs, as well as free bottled water supplied by United Supermarket.
The event is set to kick off with Shonda Wood singing the “National Anthem” and Carl Garvin performing “America the Beautiful.” DJ Lowell Bailey will be playing patriotic music for the event.
Thompson asks that those attending the event do not bring their own fireworks.
Story by Carla McKeown/Breckenridge Texan
Photos courtesy of Kent Thompson and Canyon Road Barn and Grill
