The Indianapolis Colts made their annual visit to LaPorte High School on Wednesday afternoon as part of the Colts summer Fan Fest. Punter Pat McAfee and starting left guard Joe Reitz were part of the festivities, signing autographs and interacting with local fans. LaPorte is one of seven stops on the Colts’ tour of their home state.
There was a buzz at LHS as fans anticipated a revival of Colts football under first overall draft pick and new starting quarterback Andrew Luck. LaPorte, which is the only Fan Fest session held in Northwest Indiana, has hosted the event for five consecutive years. It is a perfect fit because of football’s popularity in LaPorte and all around the region.
Slicers varsity football coach Bob Schellinger made an appearance at the festival, as did Superintendent of Schools Glade Montgomery. Schellinger has won 100 games over his 20 years at the helm for LaPorte and has been a varsity football coach for over 30 seasons.
WEFM 95.9 of Michigan City hosted a live broadcast from the event. Live interviews were held over the airwaves to help bring the excitement to football fans all around the area that were unable to attend. The J-Baker band provided live entertainment.
In addition to McAfee and Reitz, several Colts cheerleaders were on hand to help entertain the crowd, rev up Colts support and sign autographs. Blue, the ever popular Indianapolis mascot, made an appearance shooting tee-shirts and interacting with fans. Attendees flocked to take photos of the Super Bowl trophy replica. Seeing the replica brought back fond memories of looking on as the Colts hoisted the trophy in 2007 by defeating the Chicago Bears in the Super Bowl. There were a wide variety of other Colts related displays inside the trailer along with the replica.
In the meantime, younger Colts supporters participated in spin-the-wheel giveaways sponsored by Buddy Bread. The many children who turned out also enjoyed the Colt head air slide. A giant Colts blowup inflatable, which was approximately 4.5 stories tall, was also on display. Another kid favorite was a game called Play 60. Young fans would run through obstacles, fall into air mattresses and hit blocking dummies. 
Not surprisingly, the LaPorte High School stop was a booming success for the Indianapolis Colts. According to Dan Bigg, who was involved in the organization of the Fan Fest, it only took an hour to exceed the attendance from last summer. By the end of the two hour session, close to 2000 people attended the fest.
Richard Warner of Visual Impressions Photography attended the event and captured photos for LaPorteCountyLife.com! Be sure to check out the gallery on the LaPorteCountyLife Facebook page to see his great shots!