Grandmother, grandson first in line for six years running
By Brandi Makuski
Stevens Point resident Michelle Cuestas doesn’t eat ice cream, but that won’t stop her from being first in line for Friday morning’s annual opening of Belts’ Soft Serve.
Cuestras can’t eat sweets due to a health condition, but she already had her tent put together when her 14-year-old grandson, Brayden Banks, joined her after school on Thursday. The two have a lot of experience waiting in the Belts’ line together.
Six years’ worth, in fact.
Cuestras took Banks, a student at P.J. Jacobs Jr. High, for his first taste of Belts in 2010. Their simple story of waiting in line for 43 hours that year swept the internet: Cuestras said people outside the community just couldn’t believe anyone would sleep in a tent for two days waiting for ice cream.
But it’s no surprise for locals, who for years have camped out overnight for the season opening of the soft serve stand, sometimes bringing space heaters, grills and ice-fishing shacks to keep warm.
“When we first started, this parking lot was full,” Cuestras said. “Now it’s dwindled a bit. But people will still honk, they bring you food. It always turns into the best time—even though the line is really long, you meet a lot of people and make new friends.”
“It used to be like a little neighborhood,” Banks said, who will be taking the day off from school Friday just to spend time with his grandmother at the stand. “You’d see a lot of tents, almost like a whole block. It was cool. I guess it still is.”
In the past, Cuestras said she’s waited in line as long as 43 hours to be first in line for the annual opening of the city’s soft serve staple, even sleeping in her car, and the Belts’ bathroom, to ensure the number one spot for herself and Banks. The duo brought “food galore” and games to occupy them throughout the next 12 hours.
“You meet people and just have a good time,” Cuestras said. “We don’t mind the car honking as they drive by at two in the morning. I’m not gonna be around forever, so we’re out here creating memories. That’s what this is about, bringing your family and friends together.”
Belts’ is now in its 37th year of selling cones, sundaes and shakes. The window will open at 11 AM on March 2, with the first 25 customers in line receiving a free t-shirt, and the first 75 in line will receiving a free Belts’ glass.
Regular hours are 11 AM to 10 PM, seven days a week. Belts’ is located at 2140 Division St. in Stevens Point.