On Tuesday night the Crazy Chickens and Friends hit the PNE, or Pacific National Exhibition held annually in Vancouver since 1910.
From the City of Vancouver website:
"For about two decades, the fair was the second largest in North America after the New York City Fair. Since that time, the site has played host to many famous events including the Miracle Mile at Empire Stadium in 1954. In this now-historic race, John Landy of Australia and Roger Bannister of England both broke the four-minute mile barrier."
For more history about the fair, click here.
When I was a highschooler, I remember receiving a free day pass to the PNE at the end of every school year. It was a big deal to make the big one-hour journey to Vancouver to attend, and all we wanted to do was go on rides.
This time I convinced the others to pay the reduced admission to see what all city slickers should see at least once in our sheltered asphalt-and-apartmented lives:
Pig Races! Yeehaaaw! Yessiree Bob's Your Uncle, dem piggies go FAST! Until I get some more webspace, I can't show you the video clips, so you will just have to take my word for it. The ducks will never win a land race with pigs, but the crowd went (*pun alert*) hog wild when they finally made it up that ramp and slid down the other side into the little wading pool at the bottom. Apparently, that was all the incentive they needed at the starting gate -- the idea of water at the end. The pigs, on the other hand, were much more responsive to -- you guessed it -- mini-donuts! Dem pigs ain't dumb!
You would have to be a very jaded person not to cheer on pigs with names like Albert Einswine, Magnum P.I.G., Tammy Swinette, and Bacon Bits. Or, my personal favourite, Hammy Faye Bacon.
May was oh-so-brave... she went on the Revelation by herself! Nerves of steel! I couldn't find a link to a photo of it, but imagine being whipped around in a circle on a vertical rather than horizontal plane, and the chair you're sitting in is also rotating... Christa felt sick just looking at the ride. Nobody else would go on it, and I wasn't about to pay $20 for what I considered an expensive thrill. (Oh, for more webspace for video.... maybe if I whine enough, somebody will just offer me some of theirs to shut me up...)
We entered the draw for the new home on Bowen Island and fancy cars, so maybe one of us will win and split the proceeds. We also checked out the Superdogs, a bit of the Zydeco Jam, and ate loads of amusement park food... but since this is Vancouver, the selection went beyond corn dogs and cheeseburgers to curries, sushi, and whipped cream-covered white chocolate mochas. Yum yum.
Eliza and Kristin called it a night after the pyrotechnics and rock-and-roll show called "Bring On the Night" finished off the regularly-scheduled evening, and the rest of us hit Playland. Iris and I managed to score the VERY LAST car on the Wild Mouse ride -- they even turned off the lights!! At first glance it looks like a ride for little kids, but in actuality it's a hang-on-for-dear-life ride because it whips you around so fast you swear the car's going to derail at every turn.
We checked out the gambling tables for a bit, so Christa and Iris could get warmed up for Las Vegas next weekend. Iris has never been to the U.S., but Christa has been all over, including Vegas, and Tuesday afternoon we found them a flight for total $204 with all the taxes -- an excellent deal! The Chickens get to do Vegas, but I can't go since it's Tosca's wedding next Saturday. So much for Free Range Chicken... (that's me, by the way)
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Addendum Thursday, September 11
I uploaded the PNE videoclips (all are in Quicktime):
duck race
pig race
May on "The Revolution"
PNE photos
