<body><div>PADUCAH — BBQ on the River saw many changes this year, including a different layout and a change in leadership, but attendees and vendors say the changes are positive.This is Tyler Parker’s first time as the director for BBQ on the River, and he said this is the biggest the festival has ever been.“(Thursday) night was phenomenal. The streets were packed. We were wall-to-wall with people. All my vendors are telling me that they were up from where they were this last time,” Parker said.Brandy Key, the president of the Tilghman Softball Booster, said the transition between leadership was “seamless,” and she can tell a difference in this year’s festival.<figure><img src="https://img.particlenews.com/image.php?type=thumbnail_580x000&amp;url=2OWv8Y_1FWEBpWJ00" alt="https://img.particlenews.com/image.php?url=2OWv8Y_1FWEBpWJ00" width="1662" height="1247" ><figcaption>Tornado Alley's booth preps ribs for Friday, Sept. 25. Zoe Lewis</figcaption></figure>“I would say that this has probably been the best BBQ on the River to date,” Key said.Parker said another change that people might notice this year is the layout of the festival. He said organizers wanted to bring it back to the spot it originally was in 1995.“[The people are] so glad to be back at the original location, where Susie Corner started the whole thing,” Parker said. “Getting feedback from the people walking around, everybody’s saying they love the new layout. They like the space that they’ve got to move, so everything seems to be going real well.”<figure><img src="https://img.particlenews.com/image.php?type=thumbnail_580x000&amp;url=4gU3Mc_1FWEBpWJ00" alt="https://img.particlenews.com/image.php?url=4gU3Mc_1FWEBpWJ00" width="1662" height="1247" ><figcaption>Vendors take the smoke for the second day of BBQ on the River.&nbsp; Zoe Lewis</figcaption></figure>The music lineup is also different this year. Organizers again brought back the original BBQ on the River themes with rock and country music.“We had people come up to us last night that told us the music was phenomenal, that everybody loves it and they’re like, 'Don’t change a thing.’ Everybody seems to be really liking the new style,” Parker said.Bud Qualk, a western Kentucky native, has been attending BBQ on the River for 25 years, and he has noticed the changes.“It’s really changed — to us. It’s much better. It’s like it was back in the old days,” Qualk said.Not only have visitors said this is the biggest BBQ on the River, but more people have flocked to the area to try the wide array of BBQ vendors.<figure><img src="https://img.particlenews.com/image.php?type=thumbnail_580x000&amp;url=0WzuBV_1FWEBpWJ00" alt="https://img.particlenews.com/image.php?url=0WzuBV_1FWEBpWJ00" width="1662" height="1247" ><figcaption>"They want to come here not only because our meatloaf sandwich is amazing and we have the best ribs on the block, but because 100% of our proceeds go back to [Paducah Tilghman's softball] team," Key said.&nbsp; Zoe Lewis</figcaption></figure>“I think it’s the weather, I think it’s the layout and I think it’s the community. People know that this is a great festival. We literally had people drive down from Clarksville yesterday,” Key said.Sue Sickels was another visitor at BBQ on the River on Friday, Sept. 24. She’s from New Orleans and is visiting her daughter in Paducah.“We took two different types of ribs home yesterday for supper last night: pulled pork sandwiches, Cajun corn and all that kind of stuff. Just had a really good time,” Sickels said.The festival is not over yet and will continue from 10 a.m. to 10 p.m. Saturday, Sept. 26.“We want you to come out and visit all the different cool spots and hit these Market Day vendors up. Check out the food and drink vendors and have some great barbecue,” Parker said. “Just be hungry when you get here and stay a while.”</div></body>

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PADUCAH — BBQ on the River saw many changes this year, including a different layout and a change in leadership, but attendees and vendors say the changes are positive. This is Tyler Parker’s first time as the director for BBQ on the River, and he said this is the biggest the festival has ever been.

Visitors react to changes in layout, leadership, music lineup at BBQ on the River

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PADUCAH — BBQ on the River saw many changes this year, including a different layout and a change in leadership, but attendees and vendors say the changes a

Visitors react to changes in layout, leadership, music lineup at BBQ on the River

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