The Free Press, Mankato, MN

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June 2, 2009

'War-stravaganza' grows

Living Military History Day: ‘More pyro, more tanks, more actors’

By Brian Ojanpa

LE CENTER — War may be hell, but its re-enactment can be hellaciously entertaining.

That’s the aim, anyway, of Jeff Traxler, who is reprising the “war-stravaganza” he staged last year just outside Le Center.

“It’s going to be bigger and better than ever,” Traxler hyped of the Living Military History Day spectacle that abounds with sensory overload.

“We’re going to have more pyro, more tanks, more actors,” said Traxler, whose inaugural event last year included a simulated World War II battle incorporating explosions, machine guns, armored vehicles, planes and more than 100 soldier re-enactors.

Saturday’s event will feature re-enactments from the Civil War, World War II and Vietnam, plus mockups of military encampments from various eras.

The main show will be a re-enactment of the World War II Normandy battle.

The event is held on the grounds of Traxler’s Hunting Preserve. Daylong shuttle transportation from nearby Le Sueur County fairgrounds will be provided.

Traxler, a military history buff who has visited World War II battlefields in Europe, is using 40 people to help stage the event and hopes to draw 3,000 visitors.

He said he has more than 160 German and American soldier re-enactors signed on from throughout the United States and last year used 14 sets of bleachers and spent $7,000 just for blanks for the guns.



If You Go
What: Living Military History Day — A Tribute to D-Day
When: 9:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Saturday
Where: Traxler’s Hunting Preserve near Le Center
Cost: $20 for ages 13 and older; $10 for 6 to 12; free 5 and younger
Information: www.traxlers.com or 507-357-6940

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