This year, starting Friday, will celebrate the 33rd year of Trekfest in Riverside, Iowa, taking place in the “birthplace” of Captain Kirk around 210 years before he will be “born.”
Riverside has embraced its fictional hero with a growing festival full of music and food and put on by the Riverside Area Community Club.
“The story that was told to me is that there has always been a little-town celebration,” Trekfest Executive Director Kevin Neller said. “Somebody 33 or 34 years ago knew one of the ‘Star Trek’ writers and lobbied to have Riverside, Iowa, be the birthplace of Captain Kirk. And in one of the episodes, they said he was from Riverside, Iowa. Now, we celebrate his future birthday and our town celebration, kind warped into one.”
Trekfest is the largest event that the Riverside Area Community Club puts on all year. It puts on other community events throughout the year and use some of the proceeds for such items as academic scholarships and getting new playground equipment.
“It’s just a quirky, fun event,” Neller said. “Our plan this year is we’re going to have stuff for everybody, whether you’re a Trek person or you’re just a person who likes a good band, music, and food. It’s real laid-back, and there’s plenty of stuff going on.”
“Star Trek” has amassed a cult following since its 1966 début, probably in part because of its intense fight scenes such as the Kirk versus Gorn slow-motion fight. Every generation has its own version of “Star Trek,” with the original, “Next Generation,” “Deep Space Nine,” “Enterprise,” and “Voyager.” The current generation is even getting its own TV series, “Star Trek: Discovery,” which is set to be released this fall. The fandom is so crazy that there is even a film called *Trekkies*, a documentary about “Star Trek” fans.
“[‘Star Trek’ is] very imaginative, but it’s still very real,” said Lisa Skriver, the Riverside Club director of marketing. “Even though it takes place in the future and in space, it still deals with emotional themes and other themes that are very relatable. That’s kind of the worldwide appeal, because you get that fantasy and you also get that humanity. Because sometimes talking about aliens and different things like that can actually bring out the humanity.”
Trekfest has worked on making itself accessible to all types of people, making sure that it is open to more than merely Trekkies. Festival officials have deemed Friday family night and rightfully so, with a lot of fun events including inflatable bounce houses, games for children, and a girl softball tournament.
Not to worry, though; plenty of events will take place Saturday, with a 5K, pancake breakfast, parade, and fireworks. All the while, there will be a DJ and dancing in the park plus food. Attendees will also get to see or dress up as their favorite “Star Trek” characters.
“I think with the ‘Star Trek’ fans, it’s something that has been a part of their lives for so long,” Neller said. “I’m a kid from the ’80s, so I grew up watching ‘Star Wars’ religiously. People older than me grew up with the original ‘Star Trek,’ that’s what they watched, that was their show. It was a part of their childhood, almost a part of their identity.”