ROCKINGHAM — Harrington Square was lined with vendors Saturday for the return of SpringFest at the Rock.
The skies remained clear throughout the duration of the annual downtown event, organized by the city of Rockingham, Richmond County Tourism Development Authority and Richmond County Chamber of Commerce.
This year’s SpringFest featured a chicken wing contest, sponsored by Perdue Farms. The wing team from American Woodmark took home the top prize of $1,000. Coming in at second place, for a $500 bounty was Chillin and Grillin, with Grill on the Go placing third and winning $100.
Rockingham native Erik Hawks, backed by the Hard Luck Band, went from opening in 2023 to headlining this year. Another local act, the Jonathan Robinson Band, opened for Hawks. Last year, Hawks and Robinson performed together as a duo at Hudson Brothers Deli.
SpringFest is a spinoff from ThunderFest, which was held from 2001-2013 in partnership with Rockingham Speedway. After a two-year hiatus, it was rebranded as SpringFest for 2016 and 2017, but construction of the downtown campus for Richmond Community College and the COVID pandemic put the event on hold until it returned in 2023.
See photos below. The RO will have another album coming later. Additional photos are available at visitrichmondcounty.com.
