Above, a huge crowd at the Hodag Country Festival, Rhinelander, Wisconsin, in 1998, where Wayne shared the bill with Toby Keith, Diamond Rio, Lorrie Morgan, Ricky Skaggs, Tanya Tucker, Kenny Rogers, Trace Adkins, Ricky Van Shelton, Neal McCoy, Collin Ray, Deana Carter, Lonestar, Johnny Paycheck, and Big Al Downing. Wayne first performed at the Hodag Festival in 1989, and has since been booked back seven more times. This is without a doubt the largest crowd that Wayne has performed to, helping to establish his name in Wisconsin and the USA. • Return to Highlights Main Page • Highlights of 2006 • Hodag In Rhinelander • Nashville Memories • Branson and The City • Wisconsin Travels • Silver Dollar City Moments Note: because of the file size of some photos included in this section, performance may be reduced with some internet connections.

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HODAG IN RHINELANDER "...[I]t's a great thrill. I had such a great time last year. It is the biggest festival I've ever performed at and the reaction from the audience was absolutely fantastic so when Ernie and Bernie called me to see if I would come back this year, I was absolutely delighted. Here it is, 20 minutes or so from going on stage and there's just thousands and thousands of people out there. The reaction has just been beyond expectation for me. I'm just going to get up there and give them the best show I can do." — Excerpted from the Career Classics Volume II DVD. For more information, click here.