Arrests down on day one of Stagecoach

Forty-three patrons of the Stagecoach country music festival in Indio were arrested for mostly alcohol-related offenses during the first day of the sold-out event, a police spokesman said Saturday.

The patrons were arrested Friday for violations that ranged from public intoxication to underage drinking at the Empire Polo Club. The number of arrests was down from the 52 one year ago, Indio Police Department spokesman Ben Guitron said.

There were also no vehicular or traffic-related incidents reported.

`It actually went really smooth,” Guitron said.

Guitron urged festival-goers to keep themselves hydrated, to take it easy on heavy food and to “pace” themselves during the event that runs through Sunday. It features headliners Jennifer Nettles, Luke Bryan and Don McLean.

Preparations at the polo grounds for Stagecoach, which started in 2007, began when the two-weekend Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival ended Sunday. Both festivals are produced by Los Angeles-based promoter Goldenvoice.