diff --git a/WebApp/Components/Features/Calendar/Index.razor b/WebApp/Components/Features/Calendar/Index.razor
index fa9c98a..244776a 100644
--- a/WebApp/Components/Features/Calendar/Index.razor
+++ b/WebApp/Components/Features/Calendar/Index.razor
@@ -4,7 +4,9 @@
 @using WebApp.Models
 @using WebApp.Services
 @using Heron.MudCalendar
+@using Microsoft.Extensions.Logging
 @inject IEventOccurrenceService EventOccurrenceService
+@inject ILogger<Index> Logger
 
 <PageHeader Title="Event Calendar" Description="View competition schedules and event occurrences" Icon="@AppIcons.EventCalendar">
     <ActionButtons>
@@ -23,7 +25,7 @@
         <MudCalendar T="CalendarEventItem" 
                      Items="_calendarItems" 
                      View="CalendarView.Day"
-                     CurrentDay=_calendarDate
+                     CurrentDay="@_calendarDate"
                      />
     }
 </MudPaper>
@@ -39,29 +41,115 @@
 
     private async Task LoadCalendarEvents()
     {
-        var occurrences = await EventOccurrenceService.GetEventOccurrencesAsync();
-        _calendarItems = occurrences
-            .Select(occ => new CalendarEventItem(occ))
-            .ToList();
+        try
+        {
+            Logger.LogInformation("Loading calendar events");
+            var occurrences = await EventOccurrenceService.GetEventOccurrencesAsync();
+            
+            if (occurrences == null)
+            {
+                Logger.LogWarning("Service returned null occurrences");
+                _calendarItems = new List<CalendarEventItem>();
+                return;
+            }
 
-        // Find the next date with events
-        _calendarDate = GetNextDateWithEvents();
+            Logger.LogDebug("Received {Count} occurrences from service", occurrences.Count());
+            
+            var items = new List<CalendarEventItem>();
+            foreach (var occ in occurrences)
+            {
+                try
+                {
+                    if (occ == null)
+                    {
+                        Logger.LogWarning("Null occurrence found, skipping");
+                        continue;
+                    }
+                    
+                    if (string.IsNullOrEmpty(occ.Name))
+                    {
+                        Logger.LogWarning("Occurrence with Id={Id} has null or empty Name", occ.Id);
+                    }
+                    
+                    var calendarItem = new CalendarEventItem(occ, occ.EventDefinition);
+                    items.Add(calendarItem);
+                }
+                catch (Exception ex)
+                {
+                    Logger.LogError(ex, "Error creating CalendarEventItem for occurrence Id={Id}, Name={Name}", 
+                        occ?.Id, occ?.Name);
+                    // Continue processing other items
+                }
+            }
+            
+            _calendarItems = items;
+            Logger.LogInformation("Created {Count} calendar items from {OccurrenceCount} occurrences", 
+                _calendarItems.Count, occurrences.Count());
+
+            // Find the next date with events
+            _calendarDate = GetNextDateWithEvents();
+        }
+        catch (Exception ex)
+        {
+            Logger.LogError(ex, "Error loading calendar events");
+            _calendarItems = new List<CalendarEventItem>();
+        }
+        finally
+        {
+            StateHasChanged();
+        }
     }
 
     private DateTime GetNextDateWithEvents()
     {
-        if (_calendarItems == null || !_calendarItems.Any())
+        try
         {
+            if (_calendarItems == null || !_calendarItems.Any())
+            {
+                Logger.LogDebug("No calendar items available, returning today's date");
+                return DateTime.Today;
+            }
+
+            var today = DateTime.Today;
+            var nextEvent = _calendarItems
+                .Where(item => 
+                {
+                    try
+                    {
+                        return item != null && item.Start.Date >= today;
+                    }
+                    catch (Exception ex)
+                    {
+                        Logger.LogWarning(ex, "Error checking item date, skipping item");
+                        return false;
+                    }
+                })
+                .OrderBy(item => item.Start)
+                .FirstOrDefault();
+
+            if (nextEvent != null)
+            {
+                return nextEvent.Start.Date;
+            }
+
+            // Fallback to first event if no future events
+            var firstEvent = _calendarItems
+                .Where(item => item != null)
+                .OrderBy(item => item.Start)
+                .FirstOrDefault();
+            
+            if (firstEvent != null)
+            {
+                return firstEvent.Start.Date;
+            }
+
+            return DateTime.Today;
+        }
+        catch (Exception ex)
+        {
+            Logger.LogError(ex, "Error in GetNextDateWithEvents");
             return DateTime.Today;
         }
-
-        var today = DateTime.Today;
-        var nextEvent = _calendarItems
-            .Where(item => item.Start.Date >= today)
-            .OrderBy(item => item.Start)
-            .FirstOrDefault();
-
-        return nextEvent?.Start.Date ?? _calendarItems.OrderBy(item => item.Start).First().Start.Date;
     }
 }
 
diff --git a/WebApp/Models/CalendarEventItem.cs b/WebApp/Models/CalendarEventItem.cs
index f7a0aaf..b6cab82 100644
--- a/WebApp/Models/CalendarEventItem.cs
+++ b/WebApp/Models/CalendarEventItem.cs
@@ -24,6 +24,10 @@ public class CalendarEventItem : CalendarItem
     /// </summary>
     public CalendarEventItem()
     {
+        // Initialize base class properties to avoid null reference issues
+        Text = string.Empty;
+        Start = DateTime.MinValue;
+        End = DateTime.MinValue;
     }
 
     public CalendarEventItem(Core.Entities.EventOccurrence occurrence, Core.Entities.EventDefinition? eventDefinition = null)
diff --git a/WebApp/Program.cs b/WebApp/Program.cs
index 7820822..702e53e 100644
--- a/WebApp/Program.cs
+++ b/WebApp/Program.cs
@@ -1,5 +1,6 @@
 using Data;
 using Microsoft.AspNetCore.DataProtection;
+using Microsoft.AspNetCore.StaticFiles;
 using Microsoft.EntityFrameworkCore;
 using MudBlazor.Services;
 using Serilog;
@@ -268,7 +269,31 @@ app.UseRouting();
 app.UseAuthentication();
 app.UseAuthorization();
 
-app.UseStaticFiles();
+// Configure static files with proper cache headers for Blazor assets
+app.UseStaticFiles(new StaticFileOptions
+{
+    OnPrepareResponse = ctx =>
+    {
+        // Blazor framework files: Use ETags with short cache and revalidation
+        // This allows caching for performance but ensures fresh files after deployments
+        // Browser will check ETag on each request (304 Not Modified if unchanged)
+        if (ctx.File.Name.Contains("_framework") || 
+            ctx.File.Name.Contains("blazor") ||
+            ctx.File.Name.EndsWith(".dll") ||
+            ctx.File.Name.EndsWith(".wasm"))
+        {
+            // Cache for 12 hours, but must revalidate (check ETag) before using
+            // If file hasn't changed, browser gets 304 Not Modified (no download)
+            // If file changed, browser downloads new version
+            ctx.Context.Response.Headers.Append("Cache-Control", "public, max-age=43200, must-revalidate");
+        }
+        else
+        {
+            // Other static files (CSS, images, etc.) can be cached long-term
+            ctx.Context.Response.Headers.Append("Cache-Control", "public, max-age=31536000");
+        }
+    }
+});
 app.UseAntiforgery();
 
 app.MapRazorComponents<App>()