The eighth annual Canora Ag Days, presented by the Canora Agricultural Society on August 17 to 19, provided a full weekend of entertainment. It included a variety of events and entertainment for people from Canora and the surrounding region, said Dean Wilgosh, president of the Ag Society.
Overall, Wilgosh said the event ran smoothly with good weather for the most part.
“Attendance was down somewhat again this year,” he said. “We had a couple of things going against us such as an early harvest underway in the area, as well as the tractor pulls going on the same weekend in Yorkton, drawing people away from our event.”
For the second year in a row, Ag Days began with an evening of steak, suds and songs on Friday, which was once again a success, said Wilgosh.
The Eastern Professional Chuckwagon and Chariot Association (EPCCA) races were held on August 18 and 19. Rain stayed away on both days, which was nice for drivers and horses, but also meant that water trucks were busy keeping the dust down.
Chariot Races
There were 13 heats of chariot races on both days involving 39 outfits.
On August 18 Twyla Salmond’s A-team finished first for the day, followed by Carol Hooge only five-hundredths of a second behind in second place. Casey Peterson and his A-team finished third, with Colin Kilborn’s A-team in fourth place and Shayne Salmond of Invermay in fifth.
Hooge moved up to first place for August 19, switching spots with Twyla Salmond’s A-team, which finished second. Kilborn and his A-team moved up one spot to third, ahead of Peterson’s A-team in fourth. Kevin Gareau rounded out the top five for day two.
In the combined standings for the two-day event, Hooge was the overall winner, with Twyla Salmond’s A-team in second place. Third place went to Peterson’s A-team, fourth place to Kilborn’s A-team and Shayne Salmond finished fifth.
Chuckwagon Races
The Chuckwagon races consisted of a total of 30 outfits, with 10 heats on both days.
Clayton Hawreluik of Sheho captured first place on August 18, followed by Larry Salmond in second place and Casey Peterson in third. Ryan Peterson finished fourth and Colin Kilborn placed fifth.
On August 19, first place for the day went to Colt Peterson. Salmond stayed consistent with another second-place result and Carol Hooge finished third. Kevin Gareau captured fourth place and Steven Galloway was fifth.
The combined standings for the two days of chuckwagon races had Salmond in first place, followed by Hooge in second and Hawreluik in third. Colt Peterson finished fourth and Casey Peterson placed fifth.
Gymkhana
The Eastern Gymkhana Club was in charge of Gymkhana events at Ag Days on August 18 to 19.
The age categories were split up as follows: the weepee group was for ages eight and under, peewee was 12 and under, junior included 18 and under and the senior division was for competitors aged 19 and over.
On August 18 the barrel event winners were: Jorja Salmond (weepee), Kreece Hrabarchuk (peewee), Taylor Gibson (junior) and Jodi Suchoplas (senior.)
In the pole events, the winners were: Jorja Salmond (weepee), Maria Blight (peewee), Brooke Boychuk (junior) and Roxanne Hue (senior.)
The speed barrel winners were Jorja Salmond (weepee) and Marty Salmond (peewee.)
The quad rango winners were Chayanne Hue (junior) and Jodi Suchoplas (senior.)
On August 19 the barrel event winners were: Jorja Salmond (weepee), Marty Salmond (peewee), Karlie Althouse (junior) and Blaze Peterson (senior.)
The winners of the pole events were: Jorja Salmond (weepee), Marty Salmond (peewee), Brooke Boychuk (junior) and Jodi Suchoplas (senior.)
The boot race winners were Jorja Salmond (weepee) and Kreece Hrabarchuk (junior.)
The speed barrel winners were Taylor Gibson (junior) and Blaze Peterson (senior.)
Other Highlights
A fireworks show on the evening of August 18 was a new addition to Ag Days, capped off by “a great-sounding band, The Valentinos, from Winnipeg,” said Wilgosh.
“We tried a few new things this year for entertainment for the youngsters with Kids Korner, a petting zoo and pony rides along with the usual kids activities such as the bouncy castles,” he said.
“Louie Zawislak of Mikado once again provided a kids favorite with barrel train rides.”
The Kids Pet and Costume show on August 19 included Brianne Rioch of Calgary with her Havanese dog named Marco. Both were dressed up as minions, characters from the Despicable Me movies. Rioch is the granddaughter of Frank and Laverne Rioch of Invermay and John and Laurie Krawetz of Sheho. Also entered in the show was Olivia Tratch of Canora with her pet hedgehog named Lilly.
Wilgosh said that Ag Days is made possible by the continued support of sponsors and volunteers.
“As for 2019 we are taking some time to evaluate, as costs continue to rise and attendance has been down for a couple years in a row,” he said. “It makes for a difficult decision as to what 2019 will look like.”
