COVID-19 forces Manson Greater Crater Days to cancel, reschedule events

More than 24 hours before kicking things off, Manson decided to cancel its 2020 edition of the Greater Crater Days celebration, due to the growing number of COVID-19 cases in the area.

The event, which would run from Friday evening through Saturday evening, was cancelled on Thursday at the urging of Manson Mayor Dave Anderson. The celebration was initially given the green light by the Manson City Council on June 16.

The truck pull, which jumpstarts Greater Crater Days, has been moved to 7:30 p.m. on Saturday night at the Sports Park Raceway in Fort Dodge. According to organizers, there are plans to reschedule events associated with the celebration. The dates of the rescheduled events have not yet been announced.

With the cancellation of Greater Crater Days, the lone weekend event to occur within Manson city limits is the 2020 Middleton Classic, a two-day golf tournament held at the Manson Golf and Country Club. The tournament, which began in 2009, is a tribute to the late Joe L. Middleton.

Currently, there are 30 positive cases of COVID-19 within Calhoun County lines. However, 18 of those cases have been reported as recovered from the ailment, adjusting the numbers to 12 active cases.