Back from Aggie Days 2016!

I'm back after an exciting week at Aggie Days 2016 at Stampede Park.  We had about 7500 students, teachers, and parent helpers visit us during last week's Education Component, and somewhere around 30,000 Calgarians came in to see us at our weekend Family Fun Days!  What a fantastic turnout!

This year Aggie Days moved into its new venue, the Agrium Western Events Centre, south of the old Agriculture Building.  What a beautiful facility!  The move produced some stress as little glitches became apparent, but overall I thought it was an awesome Aggie Days!

We milked cows, sheared sheep, milled grain, herded ducks, gave wagon rides, hatched chicks, made honey, made canola oil, planted potatoes, milked goats, and a host of other agricultural related activities - all designed to show where Albertans get their food.

What a week!  By Sunday afternoon I was exhausted, but happy!

I have (mostly) recovered now as we start to plan Aggie Days 2017!

One negative about Aggie Days is that it prevented me from visiting Doug and Heather Verbeek over at the Beiseker U.F.A. location last Wednesday, to congratulate them on their 30th anniversary as U.F.A. Agents!  That is a great milestone to have achieved.  I sincerely hope you two will be around for many years to come!  Good on ya guys!

'Ya Hoo!' for the 2015 Calgary Stampede!

"Ya Hoo!" is the call (actually the paddle signs) of Harry the Horse!  Calgary is famous for its Stampede, and the 2015 edition of that event started on Friday and is now in full swing! 

I watched the Stampede Parade on TV.  I got a chuckle over the CBC narrators who were brought in from Eastern Canada to describe the parade.  I hope they get to spend more time here, to get a real feeling of who Western Canadians are.

I'm less involved with the Stampede this year.  I usually volunteer down at Stampede Park almost every day of the ten day festival.  This year, projects here at home in Beiseker are limiting my time in the city.  I plan to volunteer a couple of days this coming week but that's about it!  

This is the second year of the agricultural exhibitors using the new Agrium Western Events Centre at Stampede Park.  I hope you get a chance to check it out.  I'm anxious to see it in operation this year too because Aggie Days is moving in there for its 2016 show!  I'm excited about the move.

I enjoy the Stampede Rodeo and the "Chucks," and I hope to take in at least one running of those events. Otherwise I will be watching the excellent coverage on CBC.  Overall, it's shaping up to be a great Stampede.  I hope you get a chance to take part in the annual festival!

It's Stampede Time Again!

We're well into Calgary's annual western shin-dig, with the start of the Calgary Stampede.  I was down at Stampede Park last week, helping with set-up but I haven't been back since the "Big Show" started.

My Stampede committee puts on Aggie Days each spring but many committee members help out with Agrium Ag-tivity in the City at the Stampede.  I will likely be down there during this week to help out.

This year, the Agriculture display area includes the new Agrium Western Events Centre!  The building officially opened about a month ago.  The agricultural displays are spread out this year between this new building and the old original barn.  Everything is there to see!  All the producer groups have displays set up there to show Stampede visitors just exactly where their food comes from, and the care and attention producers take to make sure our food is as safe and nutritious as it can be.

Let's hope for continued good weather, not too hot.  Check out the Ag Displays in their new digs when you visit the Stampede this year. I might see you there!

And -- any respect I had for animal rights groups was lost when I read of an incident the other evening when two members of an out-of-province animal rights group chained themselves to the race track rail fence at Stampede Park.  This prevented the start of the chuckwagon races for 30 minutes, while officials sawed off the protesters' restraints and bundled them off to the slammer.

I understand that they have the right to protest, but delaying the evening event was, in my opinion, very silly. 

Before they protest, I wish groups like this would do their research properly.  They might find out what measures have been taken in recent years to make the wagon races safer for horses.  They could talk to the veterinarians in charge of animal health and safety.  They should talk to the chuckwagon owners and drivers to see how their animals are treated off the track. They might talk to the folks at Spruce Meadows or Cavalia to see how their horses are treated.  They need to get their facts straight. 

We need folks out there to remind us to humanely look after all the critters in our charge.  But in my opinion, this action the other evening accomplished nothing but disdain for those groups.