Last full weekend before the buses roll: the carnival opens tonight at One Loudoun Uptown, there's a free concert on the Leesburg Town Green Saturday, and an auction clock runs out tomorrow morning.
The 5-second plan
Young kids: Family Storytime at Brambleton Library, Sat 10–10:30. Free, in Ashburn, done before the day starts.
A couple: the Hoppin' Molly Trio at Wheatland Spring, Fri 6–8. No cover, pizza on site.
In your twenties: the BREW Mile at Lost Rhino, Sat 5 p.m. Four beers, four laps, in Ashburn. Price goes up Friday night.
A teenager: the End of Summer Party at the Sterling Library teen center, Fri 2–4. Free, three days before school.
Staying in Ashburn: the carnival at One Loudoun Uptown, tonight through Aug 23. Free to walk in, rides ticketed — Saturday's 1 p.m. open is the easiest one with small kids.
The one to plan around: the Jim Croce tribute on the Leesburg Town Green, Saturday at 7 — right below.
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Editor's Pick
Summer JAMS brings Johnny Kasun's Jim Croce tribute to the Leesburg Town Green Saturday at 7. Operator, Time in a Bottle, Bad Bad Leroy Brown, played by a band that does nothing else. Free, no ticket. We told you last week the Green was dark on Aug 8 and back on the 15th; this is us keeping that appointment. One Saturday left after this.
Sat 8/15, 7–8:30 p.m. · Free, no ticket · ~15 min · All ages · Blanket down by 6:30; BYO beer or wine at 21+
This Weekend
Friday is the crowded one — three of these are Friday night, and no two are the same kind of night. Pick a lane.
Four beers, four laps, in that order: the
BREW Mile is in its sixth year — quarter-mile laps around the Lost Rhino lot, a twelve-ounce beer between each, plus a root beer track if you're driving.
Sat 8/15, 5 p.m. start, runs to about 9 · $50 plus a $4 signup fee, $55 after 8/14 · In Ashburn · 21+
The low-stakes Friday: DJ Michelle Portenier runs the mic in the pavilion at
868 Estate Vineyards. Reserve a table on the event page; you can walk in, but a seat isn't guaranteed.
Fri 8/14, 6–8 p.m. · Free to get in; wine and food for purchase · ~35 min · Adults
Producer-only, meaning the person selling it grew it: the
Cascades Farmers Market fills the senior center lot on Whitfield Drive — tree fruit from Beechwood Orchards, pastured chicken from Green Acres, Turkish plates from Istanbul Kebab. Park behind the shopping center.
Sun 8/16, 9 a.m.–noon · Free to browse, vendor prices vary · ~12 min · All ages
Music on a working farm: the
Hoppin' Molly Trio plays Wheatland Spring Friday evening, with Pizzeria Loco on site. They grow and malt their own grain, so the beer list is unusual for the county. No cover, no reservations.
Fri 8/14, 6–8 p.m. · No admission charge; beer and food priced individually · ~30 min · No kids policy posted either way
Country on a 63-acre farm, no cover: Gracie Yates and Brock Burton play Vanish Farmwoods Saturday evening — a Kentucky country and Americana pairing through for one night. Want it earlier? The New Dominion Band has the 1–4 slot.
Sat 8/15, 5–8 p.m. · No cover listed; beer and food pay as you go · ~25 min · Adults and families on the lawn
One we pulled: Stone Tower's Wine Country Boil sold out before we could run it. Next year, book early.
Family
Three days left. Two Fridays, a Sunday morning, and the school clock nobody set.
Opens tonight and runs twelve days: the
Carnival at One Loudoun Uptown is back on the Atwater Drive lot — rides, games, prizes and carnival food.
Walking in is free; ride tickets are sold on site or as wristbands in advance. Twelve days means you don't have to fight the first weekend.
Wed 8/12–Sun 8/23 · Mon–Fri 5–11, Sat 1–11, Sun 3–11 (closes 6 on the final Sunday) · Free to enter, rides ticketed · 44578 Atwater Dr, in Ashburn · All ages
Somewhere to be on the first day of school: D&D Club for Teens runs its intermediate session in the Brambleton Library teen study room Monday — the day school starts, and somewhere for a teenager to be that isn't their bedroom. Fine print: experienced players, bringing dice and two level-7 characters. Never played? Beginner games run monthly.
Mon 8/17, 6–8 p.m. · Free · In Ashburn · Middle and high school, some experience assumed
Too old for storytime, too young to drive: the
End of Summer Party in the Sterling Library teen center is games, music, snacks and crafts.
Fri 8/14, 2–4 p.m. · Free · ~12 min · Middle and high school
Register first — walk-ups aren't taken: the Conservancy's monthly
bird walk at Algonkian follows the Potomac frontage with a guide who knows what you're looking at. Meet at the boat-ramp lot at 8 sharp.
Sun 8/16, 8 a.m. · No fee listed; advance registration required · ~20 min · Adults and kids who can walk quietly for a couple of hours
The clock nobody set: fall tryouts and practices started August 3, two weeks before school starts — the part that catches families with a rising ninth grader. New this fall: girls flag football and boys volleyball. Registration moved to a platform called A Better Way, and a current VHSL physical is required.
School opens Mon 8/17 · Free to register, physical required · Countywide · Grades 9–12
What Actually Matters
Three clocks, and two of them run out tomorrow morning.
Bids close at 9:30 tomorrow morning: the county's
online surplus sale is clearing a Star Wars pinball machine, gym equipment, a 2020 Ram 1500 and children's lockers. Registration at publicsurplus.com is free; add 9.75% and collect in Leesburg by appointment.
Closes 9:30 a.m. Thu 8/13 · Whatever you bid, plus 9.75% · Online; pickup in Leesburg · Adults
No appointment needed: Animal Services runs a walk-up
vaccination and microchip clinic at the Leesburg shelter Thursday, 9–11. Rabies, DHPP and FVRCP are $10 each, a microchip is $15, and county residents pay nothing. Cats in carriers, dogs on non-retractable leashes.
Thu 8/13, 9–11 a.m. · $10 per shot, $15 microchip; free for county residents · ~15 min · Adults
Pre-register or take what's left: the county
job fair at the ADAMS Center in Sterling has 20-plus employers across healthcare, education, retail, transport and law enforcement. Entry runs in four one-hour slots, so booking gets you your time.
Thu 8/20, 11 a.m.–3 p.m. · Free · ~12 min · Adults
Opening Radar
Shake Shack opens this morning at 20961 South Bank Street in Sterling — ribbon cut at 9:45, doors at 10, lemonade and vouchers for whoever turns up. That's a Sterling address, not One Loudoun. No menu prices are posted for this location, so we're not printing any.
Opens Wed 8/12, 10 a.m. · No menu prices posted for this location · ~10 min · All ages
The answer to a Saturday with teenagers and no plan: iSmash opens Friday on Davenport Drive in Sterling — smash rooms and black-light splatter painting. The ribbon cutting at 12:15 is free, but session pricing isn't posted, so don't assume the rooms are. Nobody has been yet, us included.
Ribbon cut Fri 8/14, 12:15 p.m. · Opening event free; session pricing not posted · ~12 min · Big kids and teens
Registration Radar
School starts Monday, so every one of these has a date on it now.
Registration closed Aug 7 — the waitlist didn't: Loudoun Soccer still takes names and places players as space opens, so add yours rather than writing the season off. Already in? Watch for a roster email around Aug 14. Practices start the week school does, most teams 5 or 6 on weeknights.
Rosters ~8/14, first games Sat 8/29 · Fees are behind the registration tab and not readable from the public page · In Ashburn · Grades K–12
New to the letter: Dulles Youth Basketball takes K–5 players for the winter season at Cedar Lane Elementary and other Ashburn schools. First come, first served until it fills, and every player attends one fall skills evaluation to get placed. The fee is only shown once you start the form, so check it there before committing.
Winter 2026-27 season · Fee shown at the registration step, not on the public page · In Ashburn · Grades K–5
Older sibling?
Ashburn Youth Basketball runs grades 3–12 and sign-ups shut Sept 7, no late exceptions. The fee breakdown on the form adds up to $270. One thing worth knowing before you register: a player who makes their middle school travel team is not eligible for a house league team.
Closes Mon 9/7 · $270 per the form's own breakdown · In Ashburn · Grades 3–12
Fall ball with no weeknight commitment: Algonkian Lacrosse runs five Saturday-morning clinics at Claude Moore Park, loaner sticks available, plus a middle school league playing full-field Sunday games at Stone Bridge, no weekday practices. Girls sign-ups are open for both; the boys league hasn't posted its yet. A free try-it clinic follows Aug 29 — sign-ups aren't open, so calendar it and check back.
Clinics from Sat 9/12; league from Sun 9/13 · $125 clinic, $150 league · ~15 min · Clinics all abilities; league is rising grades 6–8
🎒 Extra Credit
Three more, quickly.
Two at Brambleton Library: the
Back to School scavenger hunt runs self-paced from Aug 18 whenever the doors are open, which solves a first-week-of-school afternoon; and
Family Storytime is thirty minutes of stories and movement, done before the day starts.
Hunt 8/18–8/31; storytime Sat 8/15, 10–10:30 a.m. · Free · In Ashburn · Hunt is elementary and under with a grown-up; storytime is 5 and under with a caregiver
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Corrections
Setting the record straight
In the Jul 29 edition
We said: That the Loudoun County School Board acted "unanimously" on the Golden-to-Mars power line — both in moving to challenge the state's decision and, "again unanimously," in adopting a policy on power lines over school property.
What’s right: Only one of those votes was unanimous. Of the four votes the Board took on July 13 (BoardDocs item 3.01), the 9-0 authorization to file the appeal in PUR-2025-00056 was the unanimous one. Adopting Policy 6355 was 8-0-1, with Donohue abstaining, and the vote to suspend the rules was 8-1. We attached the word to the wrong vote and then let it stand for two weeks while we confirmed the tallies. That is our error, not a rounding of anyone else's record.