OLDS — Area resident Nancy Leischner won the ladies barrel racing crown during Oldstoberfest, held Sept. 16-17.
And that wasn’t the only win for organizers.
Attendance was so strong that authorities had to turn people away, says, Cathy Grant, a member of the organizing committee.
That’s got committee members thinking about adding a third day to Oldstoberfest – possibly as early as next year.
Grant was thrilled to see Leischner and her horse Trooper win the ladies barrel racing competition.
“She’s just a really nice person and has done well,” Grant said.
She described Leischner as “a bit of a local hero” because earlier in the season, Leischner qualified for the Calgary Stampede.
“That was kind of like her first foray into the pro level. She’d gone a little bit, but then she started going really competitively,” Grant said. “It’s really nice when you win your hometown rodeo and she’s an Olds girl.”
Grant says this year’s edition of Oldstoberfest, coming after a couple of years of COVID restrictions, went really well.
"We did outstanding. We’re very, very pleased with the attendance, with the community support,” Grant said.
She said the crowds got so big that people walking up to buy tickets had to be turned away at the gate. Entrance had to be restricted to people who had bought previously. Online sales had to be shut down too.
“It was jammed,” Grant said. “We were at maximum capacity.”
As a result, Grant said, organizers are already thinking of expanding to a third day, possibly as soon as next year.
“We're very optimistic that we’re going to be able to maybe add that third day,” Grant said.
“It’s early. We haven’t crunched all the numbers yet, but we’re optimistic that Oldstoberfest is just going to keep getting bigger and better.”
For example, Grant said although organizers were happy with Who Made Who, the AC/DC tribute band who performed Friday night and country artist Andrew Hyatt who took to the stage with his band on Saturday night, they might try to book “bigger bands” in the future.
“I’m confident that every year there’s going to be improvements,” Grant said.
“We have a very good committee who are very invested in growing our Oldstoberfest and the majority of these people are also very involved in the community, both in Olds and in Mountain View County, so they’re interested in seeing this grow.”
She also praised all the sponsors for their support.