FRAZEE, Minn., -- They strapped on their lederhosen and oom-pahed like there's no tomorrow.
About 300 revelers, many dressed in authentic German clothing, filled the Frazee Event Center Sunday for the city's seventh annual Oktoberfest celebration.
They hit the dance floor, ate brats and kraut and caught up with old friends.
"This is a gathering of people who like polka," said Bob Boardman, a Frazee resident who helps organize the annual event.
"There are people here who have traveled from Iowa and other states and from all over Minnesota just to polka," Boardman said. "This is the way polka people are."
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Tom and Carol Tulibaski drove from Warren, Minn., to dance to the old-time music of the Jolly Fisherman and Country Polkateers. It was their tenth polka this year.
"We just enjoy it," Tom said. "Some people go fishing or hunting.
"We go dancing," he said.
Boardman's wife, Betty, said she knows what makes a good polka band.
"A tuba is what you need," she said. "You've got to get the oom-pah in there for the beat.
"You can come here and be so tired and when the music starts you forget that stuff," she said.
"You forget your aches and pains, too," said Carol Litzau, another Oktoberfest organizer.
Oktoberfest draws large crowds, but it's hard to attract younger people to polka and waltz, Bob Boardman said.
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"The younger generation goes for a different kind of music," he said. "When our generation is gone, it will probably die out."
Readers can reach Forum reporter Jeff Zent at (701) 241-5526
