Coast Mountain News Thursday, July 3, 2014
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Vol. 30 | No. 13 Thursday, July 3, 2014
Al Simmons at Festival Kid's Site -
Serving the Bella Coola Valley and the Chilcotin CoastMountainNews.com
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Michael Wigle photo
14 year-old Isaac Silver-Mack takes an impressive turn in the Businessmen's Cow Ride!
Locals steal the show at 29th Annual Valley Ridge Riders Rodeo BY JOY MACKAY The rain held off, for the most part, and smiles prevailed at the 29th Annual Bella Coola Rodeo, hosted by the Valley Ridge Riders. This year’s celebration last Friday afternoon, and the small amount of rain that fell didn’t dampen the spirits of contestants or the general public who attended the open air dances on Friday and Saturday evenings, enjoy-
ing upbeat live music by the ‘Johnson Brothers.’ Reviews of this year’s band were unanimously positive. On Saturday and Sunday, the action got underway in the afternoon with rodeo performances co-approved by the British Columbia Rodeo Association (BCRA) and Western Indian Rodeo and Exhibition Association (WIREA). For the third year in a row, the rodeo format featured two
full one-day rodeos. This format offers greater incentive to contestants to make the long trip through the Chilcotin and down the “Hill”. In addition to the standard events that make up the regular rodeo performances, the Valley Ridge Riders hosted a number of novelty events, encouraging local participation. Events to which local spectators have become accustomed include the very popu-
lar Businessman’s Cow Ride, which saw more entries and more scored rides than ever. Jacob Sinclair, perhaps better known as Jim and CJ Dixon’s son-in-law, won the event and the buckle, with what was described by veteran judge Cam Williams as a “heck of a ride”. Sunday’s Wild Cow Milking was also won by a local team: Vickie and Brody Tuck, accompanied by Darius Krugar took top honours for this action-
packed event. It’s always fun for the crowd to see local contestants do well, and Brody’s return to the Valley for the weekend made for some extra fun for the whole family. Other local contestants that put in impressive performances and took home some prize money were Annika Granander, Rachel Chatham, Vickie Tuck, and Kaitlyn Absatz. SEE
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