STAMPEDE PARADE

Sunday, August 9, 2009

OMAK

Many thanks go out to our Royalty for the Omak Stampede Parade and our banner carriers:

Springdale Frontier Day's Rodeo Royalty Jessica McNall, Springdale Pee Wee Pro-West Rodeo Queen Holly Maxwell, Old Timer's Rodeo Queen Sara Maxwell

Banner Carriers - Hunter Thomas (in purple) and Hayley Columbia (in pink)

by Carol Kapua:
 

(same as Penticton)

Tom, Linda H. and I went to Penticton on Friday for a 10am parade. My room was right under the people from hell. 4am was not good.

Yes, the float can be set up and taken down by 3 people. It may take longer but we were able to do this. We had the 2008-9 Penticton Royalty on our float and they did a great job and had a wonderful time. We got 1st Place in Communities 25,000-50,000.  It was hot. After the parade we loaded up fixed ourselves something to eat and headed for Omak.

We crossed the border at Osoyoos and got pulled over to open up the trailer as well as the rest of the floats that crossed the border. We saw some beautiful country as well as the people in both locations. The crowds were wonderful. We got applause all the way through. Linda really had the Shriners going.

We arrived in Omak about 4-4:30 and had decided to set up the float because we were tired and wanted to sleep in....which I really did. So it was a good thing. The Omak Chronicle let us use their parking lot and we have been invited back there again. At this parade we were joined by Richard and Judy, Joseph, and three of their friends and they all walked and helped put the float away and then we were treated to a lunch at the Elks.

Tom, Linda and I left and started for home. Just before we got to Wenatchee Linda left us. We made good time until just before Gold Bar and just after the 2nd light at Sultan. We lost an hour and half there.

Got home and unloaded and then I took Tom to Federal Way because hopefully he caught a flight out first thing this morning.

Would I do these parades again...Yes. Would like at least one more person to go. The drive is beautiful and the roads are really good. The people are so nice and I know that we will see them again here.

The first hotel furnished clean BBQs and that was great. The second one we had to use our own. It was all good.

This coming weekend is Astoria and we will be leaving at 10am from the caboose. For those of you that know where I live and are riding in the van meet at my house at 9:30 so that we can load the van. We will make a stop on the way, have a sandwich, potty break and stretch our legs and arms.

If you have any questions please call me.

We may be canceling the parade in Monroe in order to finish cleaning out the caboose. Please kokua.

In Omak we had 3 very nice young ladies that are rodeo riders, ride on our float for the first time abd they did a great job. Tom took lots of pictures and we left the trophy with them. They were excited and we have no place to store them for now. We took first place again in communities 25,000-50,000... not bad for one weekend. 

by Tom Grady:
 

At Omak, Carol got a chance to hone her float driving skills... Former Tulalip Tribes Chairman Stanley Jones and his wife Joanne were in attendance in the parade audience.

Thank you very much to the Omak Chronicle Newspaper for the use of their parking lot for our set-up/tear-down....it was very much appreciated. Also thank you for the water after the parade and the invite for the next time we come back. We'll be back!

We made some very good contacts for our parade content on this trip... I wish we had more time up here.