Live Entertainment, Hands-On Kids' Fun, Spectacular Rides at 60th Annual Conejo Valley Days - May 11 - 15

Conejo Valley Days (CVD) is celebrating its 60th anniversary, May 11 through May 15 at Conejo Creek Park South (23 Freeway/Janss Rd. exit) in Thousand Oaks. The festival will feature everything from live entertainment at the Golden Horseshoe stage, to kids’ crafts to outhouse races. The five-day event also includes over 25 carnival rides, exhibits, animal shows, freestyle motocross exhibitions, mini dirt bike races, hands on activities and free live entertainment. Pets Central Education and Welfare Foundation is the 2016 title sponsor.

RCS Shows Carnival

For the third year, RCS Shows is CVD’s carnival and midway operator. Its rides can be found at the Los Angeles County Fair and Coachella Music Festival as well as other large festivals around the western U.S. CVD rides include Insanity, Mach 1 and G Force. New this year Twister, which gives riders the sensation of being in an out-of-control racecar. “We love the partnership with Conejo Valley Days and the community. We enjoy bringing our newest and best rides to CVD,” says Chris Lopez, RCS vice-president.

Chevy Metal/Live Entertainment

Young bands from the area will perform on Wednesday and Thursday nights, May 11 and 12. Friday night, May 13, is country western night. Headlining is Ry Bradley and his band. Songwriter Bradley will bring his live-wire performance to the stage beginning at 7:00 p.m. His current EP, Freedom Like This, is part country, part rockabilly and part rock. His popular single, New Kind of Lonely, has already received airplay on over 100 country stations around the country.

The evening kicks off with line dance lessons with Kristal Lynn Konzen at 5:30 p.m. She is a line dance instructor at Borderline in Thousand Oaks and the Cowboy Palace in Chatsworth. Line dance novices and pros are encouraged to participate. Rounding out the evening is Rebel Heart at 9:00 p.m. This five-piece southern rock band combines country, rock and blues.

Chevy Metal, featuring Foo Fighters’ drummer Taylor Hawkins, will headline Saturday, May 14. The concert is free with CVD admission. A limited number of VIP tickets for front-of-the-stage viewing are already sold out. Other bands scheduled for Saturday include Bad Jones, Ro Ashika, Chum, Dinamita Pa/The Mockers, Buster’s All Stars and Charlie Overbey.

Sunday features salsa music so festivalgoers can dance along with Sonora Explosiva and Grupo deSafio. The entertainment is sponsored by Radio Lazer.

Always a crowd pleaser, CVD 4th Annual Outhouse Races will take place on Sunday, May 15. Participants are encouraged to be creative. Previous years saw such entries as “Party Pooper,” “Ye Olde John” and “Poop Coupe.’” The races are sponsored by Cal-State Site Services, which provides temporary fences, barricades and, of course, outhouses for special events.

A Garden & Home Décor Show will be held the Saturday and Sunday of CVD, May 14 and 15. Anchoring the show and hosting the “décor” portion is Reeds Furniture. Reeds Furniture has been active in the Conejo Valley since 1960 and is a long-time supporter of Conejo Valley Days. It will be at the festival all five days.

STEM Exhibition Pavilion

While marking its six decades in the community, the 60th annual Conejo Valley Days will also be celebrating the future by hosting a STEM Exhibition Pavilion. UCLA Health and CBC Federal Credit Union are pavilion sponsors.

The STEM Exhibition Pavilion will recognize the science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) accomplishments of students in third grade through secondary schooling and community college. It will feature a LEGO building project and lots of hands on activities for those who want to play with a robot or take part in a fun science experiment. The Thousand Oaks Library will be demonstrating a 3-D printer. Kristen Routh, Ms. Regional California America 2016, will be lending a hand at the pavilion.

Kids and Animals

Art Trek, an independent, not-for-profit arts program, will be at CVD Saturday and Sunday so kids (and adults) can draw and make banners.

Members from the 501st Legion, a worldwide organization dedicated to all things Star Wars, will be in authentic Star Wars costumes at CVD Saturday, May 14 from 1:00 p.m. to 4:00 p.m. Festivalgoers will be able to get their pictures taken with the troopers and other Star Wars characters.

On Saturday and Sunday, The Reptile Family will be offer animal shows with reptiles, amphibians and arachnids. On Sunday, Nature of Wild will showcase non-releasable wild animals. The organization cares for animals that cannot be reintroduced into the wild.

Thursday through Sunday will feature freestyle motocross exhibitions headlined by Vince Morgan. Mini dirt bike races will also be taking place on Saturday.

Nonprofits and Sponsors

Big Brothers Big Sisters of Ventura County (BBSVC), Ventura County’s only one-to-one mentoring program for at-risk youth, will be hosting a new VIP Experience from noon to 6:00 p.m., Saturday and Sunday, May 14 and 15, VIP Experience guests will enjoy exclusive wine tastings and food sampling. Proceeds from ticket sales to VIP Experience will benefit local BBSVC mentoring programs. Tickets are $27.75 (includes general admission). Tickets are available at the Conejo Valley Days website, www.conejovalleydays.us, until sold out. BBBSVC will also be selling kettle corn during the entire festival through California Kettle Corn with a portion of the proceeds going to BBSVC. Stonehaus is a major sponsor of the BBSVC VIP Experience.

In addition to being the overall CVD sponsor, The Pets Central Education and Welfare Foundation is also sponsoring the Shelter for Hope pet adoptions on Saturday and Sunday. More than 30 local nonprofit groups participate in CVD each year, raising money that is invested back into the community.

“This year’s CVD is packed with something for everyone. It showcases many of the wonderful nonprofit organizations, schools, volunteers and businesses in the Conejo Valley that make it such a wonderful community to live and raise our children. Without our sponsors and supporters such Event Essentials, Thousand Oaks Inn, KHAY, Conejo Valley Heating and Air, LaRocca Integrated Services and so many more, we would not be able to keep up this wonderful tradition. ” says Mary-Catherine McBride, CVD executive director. “We are truly fortunate.”

CVD hours are Wednesday and Thursday, May 11 and 12, 5:00 p.m. to 10:00 p.m., Friday, May 13, 5:00 p.m. to 11 p.m., Saturday, May 14, noon to 11:00 p.m. and Sunday, May 15, noon to 8:00 p.m. Entry: $10 for adults, $5 for kids 6 through 12 and free for kids 5 and under.

For more information, showtimes and to purchase tickets, go to www.conejovalleydays.us, Follow Conejo Valley Days on Facebook, www.facebook.com/ConejoValleyDays and Twitter, @CVDays60.