What's new at 2016 Wichita Riverfest?

The 45th Riverfest will debut more than two dozen new games, events and fun features this year.

Here’s a rundown of some of the new things to check out in 2016 that weren’t there last year.

Throughout the festival

Several new features are open every day of the festival:

▪ Ackerman’s Backyard: A daily happy hour from 4 to 7 p.m. with craft beer and games. It will also feature local DJs playing different styles ranging from electronic music to two-step. Ackerman’s Backyard is in A. Price Woodard Park, 401 W. Douglas.

▪ Fireshark Gaming: This mobile gaming room, which allows people to play inside a giant video game, will be at the RedGuard Stage area, south of Waterman in WaterWalk, most evenings of Riverfest. There will be longer hours, from 11 a.m.-10 p.m. on the weekend.

▪ Habitat for Humanity House Build: Volunteers will help build a house for a Wichita family starting June 3 near the Wichita Boathouse, near Maple and the Arkansas River. Members of the family were refugees fleeing civil strife in the Democratic Republic of the Congo. “We would love for people in Wichita to come down and to see the house come together,” says Kathy Lefler of Wichita Habitat for Humanity. After construction is completed at the end of Riverfest, the house will be moved to the Delano neighborhood.

First weekend:

Some new events will join the Riverfest lineup the first weekend:

▪ PaddleFit Classes: June 4 stand-up paddleboard exercises and sprints from 8-8:30 a.m.

▪ Paddleboard Yoga: Shortly after the classes, you can also do yoga on a paddleboard on the water.

▪ Human Foosball: This oversized game will be held June 4 and 5 from 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. The final tournament will happen on June 11 as well.

▪ Wings of the Wind: A kite festival at the RedGuard Stage area, south of Waterman near Water on June 4 and 5. It runs from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. on both days.

▪ Riverfest Hackathon: Have an idea to improve life in Wichita? Participants work in teams on whatever civic initiatives they want. It starts midday on June 4 and runs for 24 hours. At the end of that time, selected teams will present their ideas to a panel of civic leaders and city officials, including Wichita City Manager Robert Layton. Registration is free. Register at www.hackathonict.com.

▪ STEAM City: This Sunday educational event adds “Art” under the traditional Science, Technology, Engineering and Math umbrella. It will feature booths run by local businesses and organizations. “They’ll be doing some demonstrations and fun hands-on things that young people in middle school and high school would enjoy,” said Teri Mott of Wichita Festivals. “The idea is to share with young people some careers that they may not have been aware of in the past.” It runs from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. at Main and William.

▪ Into the Darkness: This is another educational event behind the Wichita Public Library that runs roughly the same time as STEAM City. “You enter an environment where you can’t see and have to do the kinds of things that you would normally do,” Mott said. “It’s to give perspective to sighted people about what blind people’s lives are like day-to-day.”

▪ Carnival del Rio; Dia de la Familia: This event at the RedGuard Stage, south of Waterman in the WaterWalk area, features lucha libre wrestling from 3-7 p.m. June 4. It runs into the night with concerts featuring Las Estrellas and Grupa Picante from 7:30-10 p.m.

▪ Riverfest Sandcastle Competition: At this June 5 contest at noon at Main and William, you’ll have two hours to build a sandcastle into something that represents a building or monument in Wichita.

Throughout the week:

Several new events are happening in between the two major weekends of Riverfest:

▪ Wichitalks: A June 7 series of lightning talks from 16 speakers, set to slide shows that go to the next slide every 15 seconds. The common theme: All speakers have a passion for Wichita. Doors open at 6 p.m.; talks start at 7 p.m. at the Wichita Boathouse, 515 S. Water. There’s a cash bar.

▪ Paddleboat Races: These races, from 6-7 p.m. June 8, involve two-person teams at the Cox Kids Corner, on the banks of the Arkansas River across the street from the Hyatt Regency.

▪ Pink Firetruck Pull: Teams of 10 can register to try to pull a firetruck 100 feet across a finish line. This event runs from 5 to 7 p.m. June 9 on Douglas. The $25 registration fee includes a Riverfest button. This is a fundraiser for Victory in the Valley, a nonprofit that helps patients with cancer.

The second weekend:

▪ Human Bowling: Oversized game where participants are the bowling ball. It’s from 5-9 p.m. June 9, 10 and 11 at Ackerman’s Backyard in A. Price Woodard Park, 401 W. Douglas, next to Century II.

▪ Paddleboard Races: Stand-up paddleboard racing starts at 11 a.m. June 11 on the Arkansas River near Maple and is limited to 15 participants.

▪ Kickball Tournament: Teams of 15 will compete against each other on June 11 at the Westside Athletic Field, 571 N. McLean Blvd. It also starts at 11 a.m.

▪ Beard & Mustache Contest: Watch this June 11 competition among facial hair enthusiasts starting at noon. The guide noted that it was also open to women. Participants were chosen May 31.

▪ World Record Attempt: At 5 p.m. on June 11, a contestant will try to break the world record for the longest jump in a UTV. That record for a ramp jump stands at 202 feet. A Flight Off-Road employee named Mark Millsap will attempt the jump.

▪ New Belgium Bike Giveaway: There’s a 7:15 p.m drawing the last night of the festival for an attendee to win a New Belgium Custom Cruiser bicycle.

‘Old school event’ or two

And there are some repeat or renewed events now a part of this year’s Riverfest:

▪ Blacktop Nationals: The car and motorcycle show is now a part of Riverfest’s final weekend. It runs June 9-11 in the parking lot outside Century II.

▪ Riverfest Pedal Parade: This bike parade begins at noon on June 11. It was one of the first events at the first version of Riverfest in 1970. “It’s something people have asked for,” Mott said. “What people really wanted to do was to come out, decorate their bikes and hang out. So we thought that this might be a fun way to reinvigorate an old school event that people love.” To be eligible for a prize, enter by 5 p.m. June 9 at wichitafestivals.com.

This story was originally published June 2, 2016 at 3:00 PM with the headline "What's new at 2016 Wichita Riverfest? ."