Carbondale residents were encouraged to abandon all constraint and dive into a rack of ribs during the weekend.

The 11th Annual Carbondale Pig Out was held this weekend in the 710 Bookstore parking lot. The event is a fundraiser put on by Carbondale Main Street, a not-for-profit organization that promotes growth in the downtown district of the city.

Meghan Cole, executive director of Carbondale Main Street, planned the event, which hosted an amateur barbeque contest and local music acts such as Woodbox Gang, Under the Radar and Josh Plemmon.

The Pig Out is Main Street’s largest fundraiser and usually raises anywhere from $12,000 to $15,000. The money raises funds towards things like grants for exterior improvements of buildings.

“Our mission is to improve the downtown area,” Cole said. “We want to show people that you don’t have to go to the mall or St. Louis to enjoy great shopping or dining.”

The Bourbon Knights, a self confessed politically minded band, played Saturday night to a crowd of about 100 people. It was the band’s second year playing the Pig Out, which they admit is different from the usual venues they play.

“You kind of have to win them over here, ” said David Raymond, guitarist for the band. “At Hangar, it’s always the same crowd, and they know what to expect. It’s different than that because it’s not the same drunken crowd: There’s a lot more families and kids so we try to cut down on the swearing.”

Raymond’s 3-year-old daughter Bella frolicked through the crowd as the band played into the unusually chilly night. Her mother, Kelly Dye, enjoyed the Pig Out but said she felt there could have been more there for children.

“Ideally, it would be nice for them to have more kid-related functions, but it doesn’t seem like they would have the capacity,” Dye said.

Besides inflatable playgrounds, there was also a track for remote controlled cars that patrons could control with faux steering wheels.

“They should make it more of a carnival atmosphere if they want to bring people in and make money,” Dye said. “They’d have a better chance of making money if they had rides.”

Compared to last years Pig Out, patrons and vendors felt there was a smaller turnout and something missing from this year’s festivities.

Employees at the 17th Street Bar and Grill stand said they remembered last year’s Pig Out being much more crowded. They said possible reasons for the lower turnout this year included cold weather, the lack of a Saluki football game and the Murphysboro Apple Festival.

Shivering beneath a tent Saturday night, Jessica Potts listened to the music and drank beer from a white plastic cup while conversing with friends.

“It’s nice that you can drink outside,” said Potts, a junior from Herrin studying architecture. Potts said she would likely be returning next year for several reasons.

“It’s fun: the barbecue, being outside, the wine. It’s a good atmosphere,” she said.

David Lopez can be reached at 536-3311 ext. 273 or by email at [email protected].