Attendance Up at Stompede ‘09
The 2009 Grande Prairie Stompede was a roaring success, said Joel Acton, president of the Stompede committee.
“It was absolutely great,” he said. “We’re very pleased with the outcome.”
Final attendance numbers weren’t yet calculated, but Acton said they looked to be up a bit from last year’s total of 25,000 to 27,000 fans.
“We had big crowds tonight, the grandstands were full, but compared to Friday and Saturday, the stands were jammed on Saturday,” he said. “All the buckles were given out and it worked out really great. We’re really happy.”
There were far too many highlights at this year’s Stompede to pick just one, but a few notables were the Dash for Cash – the work of the Chuckwagon Heritage Foundation and the entertainment, Acton said.
“The Dash for Cash in all three wagon associations was great, especially the $50,000 Dash for Cash,” he said. “Of course, if you throw a little money at something, it makes it very exciting. I thought the heritage foundation did a great job this year and we’re looking forward to working with them for years to come. Also, our sponsors came to the table and we worked that in very well this year with those guys, so we’re very happy about that.”
There were some downsides to the event, which this year included the unfortunate death of four horses, Acton said.
‘NATURE OF THE SPORT’
“It’s the nature of the sport. Unfortunately, these things do happen from time to time,” he said. “We have over a thousand thoroughbreds go through that arena on a daily basis, not including bucking stock and handling stock, so it’s a very small percentage of animals that we lose. It’s not a regular occurrence but it does happen. It’s the nature of the sport and nobody’s happy about it.”
Acton said the deaths won’t inspire any changes because it’s just the way the sport is, and that’s a part of why people watch it.
“I think for some people, that’s part of the allure, the danger of it,” he said. “It seems to be that’s the exciting part.”
A smaller issue arising this year was parking and admissions, something that will be improved upon for next year’s Stompede, Acton said.
“At the end of the day, Evergreen Park is our home and we’re working in conjunction with them to keep things running out here,” he said.
“It’s a big facility and we’re looking to find ways to upgrade it and make it viable to keep the Stompede here in the future. We’re very happy with the job they did this year.”
Acton said he thinks the event will continue to grow and expand and do bigger and better things in the future.
“There’s that drive and enthusiasm, and we get new board members with new ideas, and that’s always healthy, so we’re looking forward to what happens in the future,” he said. “I can’t emphasize enough that I really appreciate the effort put forward by our many volunteers and the members of my committee, and secondly and not least, the sponsors and individuals who help sponsor the rodeo. Without them, we wouldn’t be able to put this show on.”
One person who definitely enjoyed the event was Leigha Rode, who was left smiling from ear-to-ear after being crowned Miss Stompede 2009 on Saturday afternoon.
“I’m speechless,” the 19-year-old from Sexsmith said. “It’s great to be rewarded for long, hard work. Now I get to begin my reign and serve our Grande Prairie Stompede, so I’m very excited.”
Rode said the process was long and took a lot of preparation, but it was more than worth it.
“This week, it was a long week, but I enjoyed every minute of it. The group of girls we were with was fantastic,” she said. “I’m looking forward to volunteering in our community, being able to go around with the crown and talk to everybody, teach them about rodeo and promote our rodeo.”
The Stompede is very well run, which makes it that much more enjoyable of an event, Rode said.
“We spent a lot of time behind the scenes and everybody is very well organized,” she said. “The Stompede is running very smoothly. The wind kind of put a damper on things today, but everyone’s in really high spirits. It’s going really well.”
Rode will make a great ambassador for the event, Acton said.
“I think she’s outstanding,” he said. “I think she’ll be a great representative of the Grande Prairie Stompede. We’re also looking forward to the reigning queen (Brittany Foster) who passed her crown on to Leigha, she’ll be running for Miss Rodeo Canada next year. I’m sure she’ll do us proud, as will Leigha next year.”
Jason Glass, the 2009 Grande Prairie Stompede chuckwagon champion, who was on hand for the pancake breakfast at Grande Prairie Chrysler on Friday morning, said local events, such as the breakfast, are a great opportunity to thank sponsors and meet with fans.
“It’s nice of these businesses; Dodge, they support us all summer and put all these breakfasts on, so we get some awareness of what we’re doing out here with chuckwagon racing,” he said. “It’s excellent.”
The sport seems to get more fans every year, so it’s good to be able to interact with them and give something back, Glass said.
“Driving chuckwagons and taking care of horses and thoroughbreds, and the lifestyle that we lead, we want to get awareness out there to the public that it’s a year-round job,” he said. “There’s a lot of work that goes into it and a lot of care for the horses – those horses are taken care of better than we take care of ourselves – so the more we can get that out to the public, I think the more fans we will attract. That’s why we need to get out and about and show our faces and talk to some people, and just get out into the public and I think it’ll help our sport.”
Grande Prairie is one of the best stops on the chuckwagon tour, Glass said.
“The facility we compete in is nicer than anywhere else we go; it’s an amazing facility and they work really hard there,” he said. “Last year we had great crowds and this year it seems like we’re having great crowds too, so it’s a big city and there are lots of people and lots of money out here.”
Colby Wanchuk, the 12-year-old son of renowned rodeo clown Ricky Ticky Wanchuk, was also enjoying the pancake breakfast. He said the there’s plenty of work to be done, being a part of the show, and it can be dangerous, but it’s also exciting.
“Sometimes, when we do the fire truck act, it gets going pretty fast and you’re up there high; if something breaks, you’re going to get hurt,” he said. “But it’s been really good. We get to travel all across Alberta, B.C., and Saskatchewan going to different places.”
Everyone involved with the event, from cowboys, to fans, to volunteers definitely took the “Cowboy up!” challenge to heart, making the 2009 Grande Prairie Stompede a success.
via: http://www.dailyheraldtribune.com/ArticleDisplay.aspx?e=1593036
