26 facts about Kitchener-Waterloo Oktoberfest

Kitchener-Waterloo Oktoberfest is the biggest Bavarian culture festival outside of Germany and its celebrating its45th anniversary this year, but just how big is K-W Oktoberfest?

Here isa breakdown by the numbers:

1. Length of festival:9 days

2. Visitors: over 700,000

3. Estimated economic activity generated by Oktoberfest: $21 million

4. Money collected by non-profit organizations during Oktoberfest: $1.5 million

5. Number of non-profit organizations that benefit from Oktoberfest:50

6. Number of volunteers:1,780

7.Estimated number of spectators on the Oktoberfest Thanksgiving Day Parade route:150,000

8. TV viewers nationwide who tune to watch the Oktoberfest parade:1.8 million

9. Places to sit (in the beerhalls):18,870

10. Number of pretzels consumed:25,000

11. Number of sausages consumed: 51,750

Number of sausages consumed: 51,750.- Kitchener-Waterloo Oktoberfest

12. Number of official kegtappings:40 (40% are tapped in first few days)

Here, Premier Kathleen Wynne helps K-W Oktoberfest president Harry Vogt with the official tapping of the keg that marks the start of the festival.

13. Price of a 12 oz. beer:$4.75 - $5.75

14.Number of free rides given away by Grand River Transit:14,000 - 18,000

15. Estimated cost of free rides:$40,000

16.Number of police RIDE programs during Oktoberfest:16

17. Number of police officers conducting RIDE spot checks:150

18.Number of impaired drivers arrested (in 2012):5

19. Number of drivers who received a roadside suspension (in 2012):6

20. Provincial funding for RIDE programs during Oktoberfest:$23,000

21. Number of officers in the Oktoberfest police unit:70

22.Number of arrests for public intoxication (in 2012):17

23. Number of cases of alcohol poisoning: Waterloo Region EMS does not track alcohol poisoning cases

24. Number of Waterloo Region EMS staff on-hand:2 paramedics working 12 hour shifts

25. Number of Parade Entries:168 parade entries -- 12 bands, 35 floats, and 121 special entries

26. This year's Oktoberfest Thanksgiving Day Parade grand marshals: Hal Johnson and Joanne McLeod of BodyBreak fame.