T-Minus 1 Day: Setting Up For Pulling Together

MINNEAPOLIS (WCCO) -- "It's a challenge. It's a huge project, but it's a great one," project manager Matt Alan said.

It definitely takes a village to bring an event like this together. More than a year of planning, and now, the set up.

But before you can have a tug of war, you need help from a tug boat. Alan said Upper River Services and the Army Corps of Engineers teamed up to deliver four barges on Friday morning.

"Two of those barges will be pull barges, one will be a spectator barge and one is the support vessel," Alan said.

The pull barges are 80 feet long by 20 feet wide and each of them will hold about 4 tons of sand for tug of war.

Hundreds of feet of power cables will make sure Pulling Together is powered up.

"Got the stages, the beer coolers, the screens and lights to set up," Quality Propane and Power's Spence Lawrow said.

THere are also signs to put up, tents to assemble and shuttle services to test--once that gets you to the event, and another that gets you across the river.

"No charge to any guests," Alan said. "They can sign up, come down and watch a pull from right out in the middle of the river, so one of the best seats in the house."

By sundown tonight, Hidden Falls Regional Park will be 90 percent transformed. It's an all-day effort, but it's well worth it.

"I just think it's really cool to have events like this at 'CCO and have all the departments come together, put our best foot forward and create something unique and special," graphic designer Rhonda Morgan said.