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Monday, June 23, 1997

When multitudes of Texans mass, sports is usually the cause

By CHRIS NEWTON / Associated Press Writer

DALLAS (AP) - A sea of swaying, sweaty Texans with something other than racing on their minds filled the fields of the new Texas Motor Speedway for the second weekend in a row.

This time, the gathering was bigger than almost any other event in the state's history.

The twangy, boot-scootin' bands of CountryFest '97 drew an estimated 260,000 one week ago, doubling the attendance for the first race at the track in April.

And Saturday, an estimated 400,000 Texans moshed, crowd-surfed, partied and passed out to the electric guitars of Rockfest '97, show producers said. Only the Houston Rockets' 1995 championship parade was bigger.

Some concertgoers, stranded by friends or too tired to go home, lingered on the muddy grounds among mounds of garbage late Sunday afternoon.

"I came with some friends and we were having a great time and all that stuff," Valerie Spaiers said. "I ended up passing out earlier than they. And I went to look for them again, and they weren't there. I've been here ever since."

By Saturday night, 100 missing persons reports were filed by parents worrie because their children hadn't come home yet. Many of those young people were doubtless among scores of those who slept on the floors of abandoned security shacks after the show.

One of those worried parents, Jim McLester, was told by authorities to try checking hospitals and jails for his son.

The multitudes of concert attendees left behind ankle-deep garbage and tons of aluminum cans that may have made the concert one of the dirtiest gatherings in Texas history. But the concert definitely wasn't the largest.

The Rockets' parade was estimated to have drawn 700,000 fans as Houstonians flooded into downtown streets from their office buildings; eight gas stations in the downtown area ran out of gas.

"That was an incredible experience. The whole city was there," said Howard Jameson, who works for the Houston mayor's office and attended the parade.

"I can't imagine an event where more people turned out in our city's history."

The 1987 visit of Pope John Paul II to Texas drew an estimated 300,000 to a worship service in a field outside San Antonio.

About 200,000 turned out for a parade in downtown Dallas after the Dallas Cowboys won the Super Bowl in 1993.

The parade was marred by violence, injuries and arrests, forcing the city to tone down the victory celebration after the Cowboys repeated as NFL champs a year later. Only 60,000 fans turned out for the Cowboys' victory parade in 1994.

When the Cowboys won the Super Bowl again in 1996, 150,000 fans took to the streets.

That was about how many people watched the NASCAR Winston Cup Interstate Batteries 500 at the debut of the Texas Motor Speedway two months ago. That was the largest crowd ever to attend a sporting event in Texas.

No recorded presidential visits rank in the top events. The crowds weren't that big for President Kennedy's illfated motorcade through downtown Dallas in 1963, or for visits by other presidents.

In recent times, most Texas masses have been relatively peaceful.

Houston police reported that fewer than 10 people were arrested at both Houston championship parades.

The number of arrests at RockFest '97 were "less than a dozen," said a police officer - mostly for public intoxication, and one assault. At CountryFest '97 there were eight arrests.

There were also fewer medical emergencies since the heat wasn't as much of a factor, said a police department spokesman, adding that the injuries were different in nature.

"There were a few falls, a couple of drug overdoses, but nothing life-threatening," the officer told the Fort Worth Star-Telegram. Send a Letter to the Editor about This Story | Start or Join A Discussion about This Story
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