The Raymond Stampede Through the Years

In late June in the 1950’s, thirty wild horses from Meeks’ lease on the Ridge, were herded down main street to their temporary home at the Fair Grounds. There was

a fenced pasture behind the chutes where they munched the tall grass ‘til Dominion Day. Then the fun began for Raymond spectators. These horses had never been

ridden and local cowboys like Marty Lund, Duke Helgerson and Duly Robinson mounted up and tried their best to last the 8 seconds. Later, stock contractors like

Vold and Reg Kesler, a Raymond native, brought their animals into Raymond for the historic show. The Raymond Fair Grounds was unique in all of southern Alberta

because of the covered grandstand which seated hundreds of eager spectators. Families would often bring quilts to line the wooden benches and save places for

their relatives. These covers would soften the impact of sitting till the show ended around seven p.m. Thanks to the shingled roof, folks were cool in the shade or

kept dry if it happened to sprinkle. Rain did not keep Raymond folks from enjoying the events;what could be more fun than watching those intrepid cowboys getting

bucked off into mud or attempting to catch a fast calf running through a puddle. Those tough bulldoggers would plow through the slurry, showering muddy water

everywhere but holding tight to their thousand-pound steer. Adding to the fun was the fact that the contestants most often were locals. In the fifties, young Jack

Nalder, age 11, placed second in the 18 and under amateur bronc riding which fueled his passion for riding buckin’ horses for his lifetime. Other amateur bronc riders

through those years were Reid Adams, Ted Salmon and Cami Lund. Another event featured Golden Snow’s range cows. He herded the cows in from his farm and let

young boys from town enter the wild cow riding event. These bovines were strong and heavy, bucking those young boys off with ease - to their mothers’ relief. The

calves belonging to these cows were used in the calf-roping contest. Men from the Raymond Roping Club: Bill Nalder, Duke Helgerson, Cliff Williams, Dooley

Robinson, and Brian Dudley entered the Raymond Stampede most years, hoping for glory in front of the hometown fans. In 1980, local teacher and cowboy, Brian

Dudley, won first in the calf roping with a run of 8.7 seconds. At the time, this was the fastest time ever recorded at theStampede. His son, Kevin Dudley won first

twice through the years. Bill Nalder was sitting in first place one year until the very last roper, Oscar Walters, of Welling beat him out by only tenths of a second.

Rats Bill Peterson, a local farmer from Welling, would thrill the crowd with his daring bulldogging feats right there in front of the grandstand. Two horses running at

top speed, a dare-devil cowboy leaning off his mount onto a wild steer in under 10 seconds gave the crowd a thrill. In the early days, steer decorating- ripping a red

ribbon off the horn - preceded the cowboy wrestling the steer to the ground; that was faster and more humane. Every year, the more professional cowboys who

wanted to enter Raymond, Panoka and Ft. MacLeod rodeos would charter a small plane which landed south of town in the Dahl field. Then a guy from the Stampede

committee would roar out there to fetch them for their rides in front of the crowd at Raymond. Another local cowboy, Robert Heggie, began his love of rodeo by

trying to stay balanced on an empty metal barrel strung on ropes between trees. He and Tommy Hicken would attempt to ride this barrel while schoolteacher, Jack

Nalder, would yank the front rope to buck the barrel. Moving on to competition, Jack entered Robert in the Standoff rodeo in the event of amateur bareback riding

when Robert was only 12. (I bet Mary did NOT know about it. Ha ha ) Those humble beginnings catapulted Robert to riding bareback horses, bulls, steer wrestling

and chariot racing. He qualified to participate several years at the Calgary Stampede in steer wrestling and competed from Houston to Denver in his career. At age

48, and the year of his 30-year class reunion in Raymond, Robert clocked a run of 3.7 seconds bringing down a huge steer and winning first place in front of a

roaring crowd of Raymond fans.Women barrel racing was an entertaining part of the Raymond Stampede and especially if Dixie Forsyth Gibb was racing. Dixie who

was crowned Rodeo Queen of Canada in 1956, was a terrific rider and brought enthusiastic cheers from the townies – most of whom she had tended as a nurse at

the Raymond hospital. Her daughter, Dana, and many granddaughters have entered the show through the years and done very well. The Raymond Stampede was

also billed as “The Raymond Stampede and Race Meet.” For most years, there was a nice dirt half-mile track surrounding the arena. Local racehorse owners, the

Meeks brothers, Brent Jensen, Art and Dooley Robinson and Mel DePew, stabled their thoroughbreds in barns at the Fair Grounds. Five races were interspersed

throughout the rodeo including the “boys’ pony race” and the “Businessmen’s Derby”. During the races, the crowd could watch the horses straining at the bit as they

ran on the north side, pounding down to the wire right

in front of the grandstand. So exciting! Jack Nalder remembers riding in the boys’ pony race in 1955, when he passed other competitors, Fido Vance, Max Gibb, Roy

Terry, Ted Salmon, Lawrence Panther Bone only to be beaten by David Meldrum riding an old white farm horse and winning first place and the $15 prize money.

Many First-Nations families including Rufus Goodstriker from the Blood Reserve would bring their racehorses to Raymond for the stampede and races. They would

often camp in those trees to the west using authentic tee pees. One of the favorite racehorses in the fifties was Mel DePew’s “Snowbank”. After an early spring

blizzard, Mel found a dead mare but rescued her colt from the snowbank and bottle fed him - only to find he was a terrific racehorse. Raymond fans loved watching

Snowbank run on the First and followed his career for years. Morris Heggie was his able jockey. A big favorite of the crowd was the Roman Chariot races with

drivers, Allan Heggie and Carl, Ted or Jack Salmon. Standing in their metal chariots on rubber wheels, and commanding a team of two horses, the horses ran neck

and neck around the back stretch and then one or the other would eek ahead at the last turn to the roar of the crowd at the finish line.

The performers at the Raymond Stampede were adored by the crowd but a little attention should be given to the men behind the scene – the fellows who worked

the arena, the track, took tickets and parked cars. The Stampede Committee was ably chaired by Alan Heggie for many years assisted by secretary, Lenny Watson

and hard-working hands like Duke Helgerson, Dean Heggie, Bill Nalder and the Williams brothers. Currently their sons are carrying on the legacy of a great

stampede in Raymond on the weekend of the First. Give these people your thanks when you see them: President, Robert Heggie, committee members: Ronnie Duke

Helgerson, Dalin Atwood, Todd Heggie, Mike Smith, Kyle Steed, Warren DePew, Randy Broadhead, Jessie Heggie, Darcy Hall and Laureen Heggie. When the Town

took the Fair Grounds, a gift from Ray Knight, for a new high school building, Ron Heggie and family donated land for the modern Raymond Stampede grounds.

How generous! We have a great tradition in the Raymond Stampede, the first stampede in Canada and we should support it with our attendance. It’s great

entertainment and an opportunity to continue the legacy of this town.