Worley concert draws 200 people; arenacross draws 600

A country singer crooned and tires kicked up dirt during he first two grandstand events at the U.S.A. Veterans Fourth of July celebration behind the Arena Building in Cape Girardeau.

Rodger Brown, U.S.A Veterans commander and event organizer, said he wanted to give people something to do "other than going to the lake." He said that Darryl Worley was picked for the grandstand because of his patriotic message.

Worley's songs "I Miss My Friend," "Have You Forgotten?" and "Awful, Beautiful Life" have all reached No. 1 on the Billboard chart's list of top country songs.

Brown said he was a little disappointed with the turnout for the first night, which he estimated at around 200 people, but thought the crowds would grow later in the weekend.

Amy Ives of Cape Girardeau said the songs Worley performed were "patriotic and meaningful." Her 7-year-old daughter, Mallory, came to see Worley and experience her first concert.

"It was almost like having a private concert," said Mark Proffer of Cape Girardeau. People missed out on a great show, he said.

The arenacross races Saturday packed more people into the grandstand. Brown estimated the crowd at around 600 people.

"This is a slice of Americana that needs to be done on Fourth of July," Brown said. "People get to experience something vicariously, through the races, something they don't usually get to do themselves."

Stephen Hendrix of Jackson said he was proud to see his son, Cameron, racing in the 50 class.

"The track looks good," Hendrix said. "We need to have something like this here in Cape more often."

Kim Hope of Cape Girardeau said watching the races was "absolutely a good way to spend the weekend. We usually go to St. Louis to watch supercross, and it's nice to have arenacross here in Cape."

jhargraves@semissourian.com

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