Day Fifteen- Rally Day 1 and a Riverboat Cruise

Rally breakfast of pancakes & sausage started at 7:30am followed by Opening Ceremonies, then free time, unless courses were taken. Of course Ted went for a long ride on his mountain bike, and I slept in. I was very surprised to see Audrey, Arlene, Myrna and Corky still sitting in the coffee room, when I sleepily wandered in. The boys all went to the Rally site and we continued to have a ladies’ natter until ten! It was so nice to just sit, talk and do nothing!

A Riverboat Cruise was arranged for 1:30pm, a nice change from the heat . . . eleven of us got on the Meewasin Queen for a leisurely cruise up the river.


We enjoyed the breeze and the view of historical buildings along the shore and the numerous bridges. Saskatoon is a beautiful city!

Locals take advantage of this beauty and recreation . . . we saw kayakers, jet skiers, power boaters, kids diving off docks, Canadian geese taking over some poor citizen’s lawn, and people riding, walking & running along the riverside paths.

As we were walking back from the dock, deciding what to do next, Myrna spied a little Granny having a heart attack, and she went over to assist. I jumped in to help, trying to convince her family to call for help when Dr Wild came along on his bike and called 911. Ted flagged the ambulance down then once they had whisked her away, we left, riding further along the River. No shortage of excitement on this trip!

Departure time for the banquet was 6pm . . . great fun when Dave B walked in wearing his “hat” and new name badge, courtesy of Big Ted . . . . “Old Fart” it read. . .

The caterers did a superb job with tender roast beef sliced thin that melted in your mouth. A real treat was the ice cream cake, apparently a very popular item in Saskatoon! I can see why! WOW! The entertainers were an excellent Japanese drum band; very different and very precise and enjoyed by all.

The acoustics and lack of air conditioning in the curling rink leave much to be desired, so the live Band that came later to play ‘oldies’ suffered the majority of the crowd going outside to cool off. A shame because they were good!

Oogling the Goldwings was another activity. Most noted was the completely airbrushed eagle-themed model with chrome galore. Did I see drool when the lights & music were turned on? Another Alberta chap had a ‘08 Wing with 2010 plastic also chromed to the hilt, with a nifty little trailer behind.

Draws were made & prizes were handed out – the Edmonton Chapter took home a big portion of the loot! But then, we might have the most members attending as well! Silent Auction items of all sorts raised a good deal of money for the Saskatoon Chapter. Terry and I were bidding on a computer bag, so you can imagine my surprise when Terry presented it to me (in the presence of the gang) as we were leaving . . . awww . . . thanks you guys. *blush*

Did I mention we have a Tim Horton’s right across the street? Yes! Well, I made a quick trip over for a Cappuccino before bed. Mmmmm . . . . good to be back in Canada!