By Billy Melville
A night of celebration will take place at the Deerfoot Inn and Casino in Calgary on Saturday, November 3.
The annual WPCA awards banquet will honour those who achieved greatness this past season, as well as those who have contributed to the growth and prosperity of the most exciting professional sport in the world today.
Kelly Sutherland will be the top honouree this year as he made history once again by capturing his record setting 10th World Chuckwagon Championship. He posted 33 top ten runs in 2007, including 9 first place runs and 12 additional runs that cracked the top 5.
He placed in the top ten overall at 8 of 11 shows, and qualified for four sudden death championship final heats at the Grande Prairie Stompede, the Ponoka Stampede, the WPCA Dodge Pro Tour Championship in Strathmore and the Battle of the North in Dawson Creek.
He successfully defended his 2006 World Chuckwagon Championship and capped off the 2007 campaign with a victory at the season ending show in Red Deer by a whopping six seconds. Chanse Vigen and Reo King again handled the bulk of the outriding duties for Sutherland all season long.
In Strathmore at the Dodge Pro Tour Championship, the top eight drivers in the World Standings prior to the start of the Strathmore Heritage Days Stampede qualify for the WPCA Dodge Pro Tour Championship playoff round.
Kelly Sutherland, Jerry Bremner, Luke Tournier, Rick Fraser, Leo Tournier, Neal Walgenbach, Mark Sutherland and Troy Dorchester made up the elite eight playoff contestants. After four days of running, Leo Tournier, Kelly Sutherland, Mark Sutherland and Neal Walgenbach survived the playoff round and would participate in the sudden death championship final heat to declare the WPCA Dodge Pro Tour Champion for 2007.
Once again it was an exciting final heat witnessed by a capacity crowd, and when it was over the Super 8 Motel outfit, driven by Neal Walgenbach along with outriders Shawn Calf Robe and Brian Mayan drove away in a new Dodge truck and took home the season showcase WPCA Dodge Pro Tour Championship.
It was the second time in his career that Walgenbach had won the WPCA Dodge Pro Tour Championship with his first coming in 2001. What a fitting way to end his illustrious career as Neal Walgenbach announced his retirement from full-time competition after the 2007 season.
Chanse Vigen will be honoured as this year’s World Champion Outrider. Chanse is a third-generation world champion chuckwagon man who captured his third career World Outriding Championship in 2007.
This past year he outrode for the winning outfits at the North American Chuckwagon Championship in High River, Edmonton’s Chuckwagon Derby, the Battle of the North in Dawson Creek, and the Red Deer Chuckwagon Championship, as well as being part of Kelly Sutherland’s record 10th World Chuckwagon Championship.
He was the top pointed outrider at five WPCA Dodge Pro Tour Shows. He displayed the character of a true world champion at the 2007 Calgary Stampede with a demonstration of courage and heroism when he leaped from his mount into Tyler Helmig’s driverless wagon, crawled out onto the wagon pole to retrieve the lines in a brave attempt to control the runaway outfit.
Codey McCurrach will receive this year’s WPCA Top Rookie Driver Award. Codey is a product of the pony chuckwagon circuit the past 20 years. He is a third-generation driver who drove his first chariot race at age 10 in Cranbrook, BC, and moved up to driving pony chuckwagons at age 16.
In his first year on the WPCA Dodge Pro Tour in 2007, he posted 8 top ten runs, including three runs that cracked the top five. He finished 19th overall in the world standings making him the highest placing rookie driver in seven years.
Ryan McAleney will receive this year’s WPCA Top Rookie Outrider Award. In his first full year on the WPCA Dodge Pro Tour, Ryan finished seventh overall in the world standings – second only to Jason Glass’ sixth place finish in 1987 for the highest placing rookie in WPCA history.
Ryan rode all season behind Mike Vigen and Harold McCarthy, and picked up notable rides for the likes of Leo Tournier, Troy Dorchester, and Rick Fraser. He won his first show with Leo Tournier at Edmonton’s Chuckwagon Derby in July.
Other awards including be the WPCA Chuckwagon Person of the Year Award, Past Member Tribute, Special Recognition, Active Supporter Awards, Top Race Committee, Media, Judging, Clean Drive, Most Improved Chuckwagon Outfit, Rod Glass Memorial Award for most improved outrider, and the WPCA Equine Outfit of Excellence will be announced at the awards banquet that night as well.
On October 5, 2007, chuckwagon legend Orville Strandquist was the first chuckwagon driver inducted into Cheyenne Frontier Days Hall of Fame. Orville competed at Cheyenne from 1960 to 1992 winning the Chuckwagon Championship in 1975 and placing inside the top five many times over that period. He won the Wild Horse Race three consecutive years from 1970-1972, and was known as a top promoter of the Cheyenne Frontier Days for many years.
