Mud bog big draw in Melita
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Hey there, time traveller!
This article was published 13/08/2012 (4857 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.
MELITA — Jacked up trucks with straight pipes screamed through the pit at the mud-bog event in Melita on Saturday.
Alongside some of his work crew, Dave Legge watched the show from the back of the truck he uses to move drilling rigs around the region.
Legge brought the truck in case one of the mud boggers needed to be winched out.
“This is what we do, we work in the mud,” Legge said. “We didn’t get the track muddy enough so they’re just running time trials. Usually it would be if they could get through it or not.”
The group of men, who work for a oilfield hauling company, followed the oilfield work to Melita from Slave Lake, Alta. Legge said many of them bought homes in Melita and they are happy to help out community events like the mud bog.
Byron Skidmore, who has lived in Melita for the past two years, was sitting in the shade of the emergency vehicle he brought in case one of the mud-bog trucks caught fire.
“It’s an industrial firefighting truck. We have 4,500 litres of water and 500 litres of foam on board. We work mainly in the oilfield as medics, firefighters and safety hands — on blowouts on rigs all over Canada,” Skidmore said.
Skidmore’s favourite truck of the day was the red 1946 Fargo that was being driven by two sisters, Rachel and Amy Sanderson.
The sisters got involved in mud bogging because of their dad Howie Sanderson, who has been a mug-bogging enthusiast for years. On Saturday, Howie was keeping the Fargo running, but the girls do let him drive it once and a while, Rachel said.
“Dad used to mud bog with the Wheat City Mud Runners Club — a big mudders club based out of Brandon in the 1980s,” said Amy. “Dad used to take us in an old Dodge truck called Slough Foot. We used to pull the camper with the truck, then when we got there he’d switch tires.”
Amy and Rachel are now part of the Manitoba Mud Racers Association and often place in the top five in the super-stock class.
Brenda Dell, one of the organizers of Banana Days, said the mud bog and Banana Days are separate events that are run in conjunction with each other. This is the second year for the mud bog and Dell said it brings hundreds of people to town.
“We are missing some of the farmers who would be here because they are combining, but we’re glad for them that they are having a really good crop,” Dell said.
At Banana Days, there was a best-ball golf tournament, juggling workshop, barbecue, street hockey tournament, social, karaoke contest, mixed slo-pitch tournament, beer gardens and canteen and a car show.
» rbooker@brandonsun.com