Slight changes announced for Fire & Ice event amidst cold-weather concerns
1/22/2026CITYVIEW’s annual Fire & Ice hockey-themed bar crawl and sampling event is scheduled for this Saturday, Jan. 24 from 1-4 p.m. in Valley Junction in West Des Moines. This will be the ninth Fire & Ice event, and each has been held on a Saturday afternoon in January amidst Iowa’s coldest season. Attendees have dressed in their warmest winter attire and participated in this fun event, warming up with wonderful cocktails and enjoying the festivities at the Valley Junction area’s greatest establishments. It has always been cold. This year, it will be even colder.
With that in mind, we considered postponing the event a week or two, but there is no promise that the weather will be any better then. And, we have a number of partners in this event to work with, and changing dates can get tricky for them and for the registered participants. So, we are marching ahead — with a few adjustments.
In recent years, The Hall at 111 S. 11th St. was one of the establishments that participated in the Fire & Ice event, and this provided us with a large indoor space to gather after the event to announce the giveaway winners. We rented a bus for transportation to haul people from place to place, and it worked great. Unfortunately, The Hall is no longer open, so we developed a Plan B with help from our friends at the Valley Junction Foundation and Bix & Co.
Our original plan was to rent Railroad Park, located on the south end of Fifth Street in Valley Junction. This is where many Valley Junction events are held, including the popular Music in the Junction series. We were set to have the Big Green Umbrella Media RV on site for check-in. We planned to use the stage for announcements. We had a PA system reserved. We arranged to have the street by the park blocked off. We paid for the required security. We had outdoor games arranged. And we rented standing outdoor space heaters to spread around the park. Bix & Co. expanded its liquor license so they could offer drinks and food in the area, too. This would have been a wonderful setting for an outdoor event with temps in the 30s or 20s or even the teens. But near-zero or below-zero temperatures can be dangerous.
All the participating establishments this year are within a two-block area in Valley Junction, and, of course, they will all be toasty warm indoors. The short walk between places isn’t concerning. Standing in line outside to check in to the event and expecting participants to gather outside for a post-event party are.
So, for check-in, we thanks the kind folks at the Valley Junction Foundation for agreeing to open up more of their building at 137 Fifth St. to allow those waiting in line to do so indoors. We encourage everyone to register quickly and move through the line so others don’t have to wait. In case some do have to wait outside briefly, we will have outdoor space heaters lined up to keep everyone warm.
The post-event party will be held at Bix & Co. at 111 Fifth St. inside the establishment and in the expanded heated patio area. We will have space heaters around that area, too.
The wonderful giveaways from Fireball Cinnamon Whisky, Dr. McGillicuddy’s and The Iowa Wild will be done at Bix & Co. and also at the other participating establishments throughout the event.
If you have not yet reserved the $25 discounted tickets online, you can do so until 9 a.m. on Saturday at https://fire-and-ice.dmcityview.com. We will also be selling tickets at check-in for the regular price of $35.
We look forward to a fun and safe event for all involved, and we thank you for participating.
Cheers, and remember to dress warm!
What: CITYVIEW’s Fire & Ice sampling event
Where: Fifth Street in Valley Junction, West Des Moines
When: Saturday, Jan. 24, 1-4 p.m.
Check in: Historic Valley Junction Foundation office, 137 Fifth St., Valley Junction
Post-party: Bix & Co., 111 Fifth St., Valley Junction
Tickets: $25 discounted tickets online until 9 a.m. on Saturday at https://fire-and-ice.dmcityview.com. $35 regular price tickets at check-in.
More details: https://fire-and-ice.dmcityview.com
