Howdy All!

With all things considered, today was a very good day.  With morning chores done and out-of-the-way, Rick and I attended a friends fathers funeral .  There is always sorrow when we lose a loved one, but I always see it as a time to cherish the all the  good memories that that person made while here on this earth.  This was also a good time, as we got to visit with so many folks that we had grown up with in the Grande Prairie area.

My father was in attendance so it was very good to see him as well.  As I don’t see him often, it was good to chat in person.  He’s looking and feeling great at the young age of 85.

The barrel draw was drawn in the early AM this morning.  Ross Knight drew 1, Rick got 2,  Layne MacGillvray on 3 and Obrey Motowylo was on 4.   Our horses on the outfit were Cowboy on the left wheel, Spirit on the left lead, Sporty on the right lead and Law on the right wheel.  Beau was rode by Cole tonight and Chanse Vigen threw the stove with Ice.

When the horn sounded, all wagons got off to a good start.  Rick skinned that team very nicely around the top barrel and away they went.  The crowd was cheering wildly for their favorite driver.  Obrey and Rick shared the lead pretty  much the whole race. When they hit the backstretch, Obrey was pulling ahead by just a bit.  When they crossed the finish line, it was the Motowylo team winning the Dash and “Team 23” coming in second.  It was a great, penalty free race just the way it should be.  My thinking is, its thrilling, exciting and happy to make it to the dash, and then its a bonus if you win the race.  Cheers to Obrey, Ang and the boys on their win.

My dad also came out to see the races, and then ventured on over to see us back at the barns.  Our son Cody and his girl Allie, surprised us by driving up for the Races too.    Grandpa was excited to see them.  We all had a great visit.

We again are handing out a mini souviner chuckwagon to some lucky fan each and every night of the races at all the venues this summer.  This young gal got the chuckwagon, and then wanted to come back to the barns to meet Rick.  And that’s what she did.  It’s heartwarming to see the smiles on the kids and adults alike.

Well, the sun has set on another day.  Tomorrow the Chuckwagon Gypsies will be on their way to our next stop on the tour, Saskatoon Saskatchewan.   The grounds of Evergreen park will  be a deserted little place.  We collected many new wonderful memories here in Grande Prairie, Alberta.  It’s time to move on.

From the Travelin Trailer

Sue with Rick and “Team 23”

P.S.  You will never have this day again, so make it count.