Final Preparations For Pulling Together Underway

MINNEAPOLIS (WCCO) -- A big day for us here at WCCO as we enter the final stretch to get ready for our big Pulling Together event.

Saturday, 20 teams from Minneapolis and St. Paul will face off in a tug-of-war across the Mississippi River.

The fun gets started at 9 a.m. with the actual tugs-of war starting at 10:15 a.m.

It's all happening at Hidden Falls Regional Park in St. Paul.

It's a peaceful day on the Mississippi River but there's a lot of work to get done to get ready for Pulling Together Saturday.

"It'll look much different," WCCO community relations manager Max Huber said.

We're setting up sound equipment for live music, misting stations to keep cool and big, huge TV screens to watch all the action for the tugs-of-war battles between Team Minneapolis and Team St. Paul.

"Today's a lot of unloading the barges onto the banks. We're going to be unloading misting fans, our golf carts," Huber said.

It is going to be a hot one but we've got you covered.

"We do have some misting fans. We're hoping that a lot of the shade comes into play for people. There also will be water available for purchase. And you know what, if you get really hot, jump in the river. It'll feel nice," Huber said.

Soon this park will be filled with food trucks, beer, a main stage for live music and of course all of you here to enjoy it.

There's no parking at the park but we've got you covered. You can park at the old Ford lot in St. Paul and shuttle for free on over. Metro Transit is also providing free rides.

"We're hoping for a lot of people here. A fun, festive environment," Huber said.

Once you're here this park will be filled with food trucks and a kids' area.

"We'll have a kids' zone. We have beer for the adults," Huber said.

All you need to decide is which side are you on -- Team Minneapolis? Or Team St. Paul?

"It's taken a long time to get to where we are but we're super excited about it," Huber said.

Again, the event kicks off at 9 a.m. tomorrow. Give yourself some extra time to get down here to check everything out so you can be in place when the first teams go head to head.

The first tug-of-war starts at 10:15. There are 20 teams pulling together across the river -- 10 from Minneapolis and 10 from St. Paul.

The WCCO teams will battle it out at 11:15.

In the event of a tie, your donations will be the tie breaker to determine which team will win.

To make a donation or find out more about Pulling Together, click here.