The first-ever Ypsilanti Heritage Festival Guitar Hero contest was a smash hit. People began showing up at noon — one hour before the official start. Some kids even brought their own guitars. It was wild.

There were a few technical glitches. Usually the weather for Heritage Festival is not as perfect as it was this past Saturday. As a result, we had to move the television from the main stage so the screen could be seen. It would have been nice for everyone to have the experience of playing on the main stage, but it’s fake rock and roll. Sometimes you just have to roll with it. The batteries on the Wii remote went dead in the middle of one kid’s performance. He protested, but I told him not to blame the gear. In addition to those two minor incidents, there were some issues over the choice of game. With all due respect to all you Rock Band fans out there, we don’t want to hear you sing.

We ended up giving away over $250 worth of prizes in three age groups. To all those who donated prizes, we salute you.

A very heartfelt thank you goes to the following:

The Rocket
World of Rocks
The Wolverine
Pub 13
The Sidetrack Bar & Grill
Biggie’s Fine Foods
Dreamland Theater
AM1700
Liquid Swordz
The Tap Room
TC’s Speakeasy

With any luck, I’ll never have to hear Alice Cooper’s “School’s Out” ever again.