OB Oktoberfest History
Winstons Beach Club owner Scott Slaga and Ocean Beach Mainstreet Association teamed up to put the community’s own spin on the famed German festival. Introduced to Oktoberfest in Munich in 2000, Slaga decided San Diego needed its own version. So Slaga and OBMA spearheaded the inaugural OB Oktoberfest, held at Dusty Rhodes Park in 2002. The event ultimately found its forever home, settling at the beach.
San Diego’s wildest Oktoberfest, Ocean Beach’s take on the classic fall celebration, returns Oct. 9-10 with live music, beer, beachside attractions and a throwback vibe.
This year’s Y2K-themed event promises a nostalgic weekend packed with 20-plus years of local Oktoberfest tradition. Festivities feature everything from pretzel toss, Mr. and Mrs. Oktoberfest, stein-holding and brat-eating contests, to nostalgic games, interactive experiences and turn-of-the-millennium surprises.
The weekend kicks off with “Flashback Friday Locals Night,” on Oct. 9 with a Local Legends Stein Hold, cash grab giveaways and 2-for-1 beers until 5 p.m. On Oct. 10, fun and games continue with the OB+RL Beach Party from noon to 5 p.m., featuring the Mr. & Ms. Oktoberfest Bikini Competition and the Y2K After Dark Neon Party from 8 p.m. to 10 p.m. on the Electronica Stage, with throwback beats late into the night.
“Y2K is having a real moment right now, and since OB Oktoberfest started back in 2002, it felt like the perfect year to go full circle and throw it all the way back,” said Heather Hudson, OB Oktoberfest’s director of partnerships.
“There’s no better place than San Diego to throw a beach party like this,” she continued. “We’re recreating the energy of 2002 from the TRL Spring Break era and iconic Y2K style to the music everyone grew up with, before transitioning into the classic OB Oktoberfest experience that people come back for year after year.”
Of this year’s musical entertainment, Hudson said, “We have a phenomenal lineup of live music on two stages, in-between stage activities, with the contests and new twists to keep things interesting. Saturday is our fun Y2K-themed day, where we’re hosting our OB beach party from noon to 5 p.m. It’s an event-within-an-event with lip-syncing and dance-off contests.”
Hudson noted Jägermeister herbal liqueur is once again sponsoring and presenting OB Oktoberfest. It also marks the second year of the event’s two-stage format, with live music on the Jägermeister Main Stage and DJ sets on the Buzz Cannabis Electronica Stage.
The Oktoberfest organizers “pride ourselves in giving back and supporting the OB community,” which is why, Hudson added, they partner every year with OBMA and the Peninsula Alliance.
OB Oktoberfest proceeds will benefit the Ocean Beach MainStreet Association’s Friends of OB Program and The Peninsula Alliance. The event raises over $50,000 per year for community partners and has raised $850,000 to date.
“Our Oktoberfest is different from all the others,” said Winstons Beach Club owner Scott Slaga. “We don’t follow tradition. We have some good German food and beer, but we have our own music, not oompah. We’re right on the ocean and that always adds to the revelry.”
This event is 21-plus and general admission is $20 at the gate. VIP tickets are $75,which includes entrance, a custom one-liter “OB2K Oktoberfest” mug filled with two beers, access to the Main Stage VIP area and restrooms, and priority re-entry. VIP tickets can be purchased online.
