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No One Celebrates ‘The Fourth’ Like Iron Rangers

Everybody has his or her favorite holiday. Like many other Rangers, mine happens to be the Fourth of July. In fact,  MANY non-Rangers have been inducted into Range Fourth of July celebrations; these Independence day evangalists now refuse to celebrate anywhere else. Who would? Who else has a street dance like Eveleth or the Aurora Freedome Fete or the Gilbert Gala Parade ? Where else can you eat Becky’s eggrolls, Barb’s fried bread. barbeques, fireworks, the best parades and TONS of fun!

A time of reunions and friendship at their finest

There is no better time of year to reconnect with old friends, classmates and family. EVERYONE comes home for the Fourth of July on the Range. Seriously, I would give up a party any other day of the year but never the Fourth. Disclaimer: I’ve only had two not-so-fun Fouths and that’s because I was big and pregnant. Oh, and one time I broke my foot by foolishly jumping into a friends arms; you guessed it—he didn’t catch me. Sitting for hours in the ER, I missed the street dance and was immobile for the rest of the summer.  Otherwise, I have never been disappointed.

It’s the pre-celebration that rocks!

Interestingly, Most of the fun doesn’t necessarily take place on “July 4th.” Rangers actually like to extend the entire holiday by starting the party several days ahead—this coming weekend will start it all! In Eveleth, Goodfella’s Bar and The Grille has Sweet Freedom playing Friday and Saturday night from 9:30 pm until 1:30 am. Saturday is Gilbert’s annual street dance featuring the Prodigal Sons Band playing outside Devo’s Sand Bar, the Pat Ram Pub and Jim’s Seldom Inn. This street dance always sets the mood for more fun times ahead! July 2nd through the 4th, the city of Aurora will be whooping it up with the Freedom Fete Music and Pig Roast. Bring the whole family for great roast pork sandwiches and live music.

Now, July 3rd happens to be (in my opinion of course) the MOST FUN NIGHT OF THE YEAR!  Here’s the scoop: most people start the day with a huge barbecue. Then, people either make their way downtown Gilbert for the BIG NIGHT PARADE; this is the Range’s biggest Fourth of July parade and people come from ALL OVER to line the streets and catch souvenirs, candy and of course a BUZZ (no pun intended). The entire town is packed full. If a huge crowd isn’t your deal, Aurora will have a parade at 6pm, which may be smaller, but still a good time. After the parades, some folks hang around to view the fireworks, but most head down the highway to Eveleth for “Thunder over Eveleth” and the famous 3rd of July Street Dance. Most people usually don’t dance here, but rather they listen to good music and meet up with old friends to share laughs, catch up and party down.

Wake up with your party hat still attached

Only on the Iron Range will you find hard-core Fourth of July fans that wake up early on the 4th, get a famous Bloody Mary’s at Eggy’s Red Garter or a Lime Cooler from the Roosevelt and watch yet another parade go by. Here’s a little secret: most parade goers look forward dancing with Eveleth’s famous Clown Band; you’ll never see any better clown attire than here, folks. But if you’re up at the lake, like many are, one of the best-attended parades is Tower’s 4th of July Parade. This parade rocks! Parade participants really go all out attempting to win one of the cash prizes which are awarded for best club, best commercial, best family and Best in Show wins 450 bucks! Tell me that’s not incentive to go a little nuts. These are not the only parades, of course. Check Rangebuzz.com EVENTS for complete information about parades in Ely, 110th Anniversary Calithumpian Parade in Biwabik.

There’s no better place to celebrate our country’s birthday than THE RANGE! Relax, let loose and have an awesome holiday.