This weekend Joan and I got to spend 2 days at the 5 day Dawson Creek Exhibition & Stampede. It certainly lived up to its by-line – “The Greatest Show in the Peace”. It is a combination fair, agricultural show, pro-rodeo, horse racing and world professional Chuckwagon Racing. Something for everyone.

Both afternoons we were entertained with the normal rodeo events – bareback riding, steer wrestling, saddle bronc, team roping, barrel racing and bull riding. This was followed by TB horse racing. The real treat here was the flying start. In the evening, this was followed with the “1/2 mile of hell” – our first experience of Chuckwagon racing. This is an incredible team event of horses, a driver and outriders. The amazing thing for us was the fact that the team was made up entirely of thoroughbreds. The amazing thing for the spectators is the mayhem, danger, excitement and spectacle of 4 teams of 4 horses racing a ½ mile around the track being chased by the outriders to determine the winner. Each race begins with the outriders "breaking camp", by tossing a keg into the back of their wagon before mounting their horses and following the wagons as they complete a tight figure eight around two barrels before somehow merging together to circle the race track. The first wagon to cross the finish line typically wins, although various time penalties are handed out for infractions such as a barrel being knocked over, wagon interference or an outrider crossing the finish line too far behind his wagon driver. Saturday night had one spectacular crash, fortunately the driver escaped unharmed as did the horses. Unfortunately competitors and animals are not always this lucky, prompting animal welfare groups to call for the sport to be banned.

The other 2 bizarre things we observed this week end were:
1) A kids sport called Wild Horse Racing. Deal was a pony was placed in a shute with a lead rope strung through the gate. Three kids hung onto the rope and when the ‘wild’ pony was released the kids had to control the horse and one of them mount it and ride it. Points were awarded for time taken to mount and length of the eventual ride. Absolute bedlam, rearing kicking ponies and kids being flung everywhere. What the....??
2) The mobile stables (and the trucks) used to house the teams of horses. Refer photos. Certainly we haven’t seen anything on this scale in Australia. It was incredible.

Overall one of the best weekends we have had in Canada.