Strathcona Mounted Troop
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Strathcona Mounted Troop - 2 June 2009
Written by: Capt Liz England
The Training Season has now come to a close and the Mounted Troop is gearing up for the start of the 2009 Ride Season. With the help of Instructors MCpl Pete Fedyshyn and Cpl Darren Roberts, the Ride Master Sgt Wade Alexander successfully graduated all 14 new Riders from the 2009 Equine Course and built a strong team around the five veteran Riders from the 2008 season. With only two months of intense training, Sgt Alexander put together another outstanding Musical Ride performance and trained another fierce tent-pegging team.
The 2009 Ride Season is off to a good start with a strong performance at the St Albert Rainmaker on the weekend of 21 – 23 May. Fighting through a screen of dust, the Troop put on an entertaining show and despite not being able to see past the nose of their mounts, the Riders brought the crowd of 300 to their feet. Cpl Darren Roberts and his mount Steele stole the show by achieving a perfect 5 out of 5 in the tent-pegging demonstration and set the bar high for this year’s tent-pegging team.
In addition to performances at town Stampedes and Rodeos (see the Troop Calendar), the 2009 Musical Ride Tour will include rides in support of local schools and charities including the Kinsmen Club and Special Olympics of St Albert, Southern Alberta Ronald McDonald House, and the Wild Pink Yonder ride in support of Breast Cancer. By performing at these venues, it is our hope to bring our living display of history to younger generations of Western Canadians and to show our support to the community for whom we perpetuate our cavalry heritage.
As the official Colour Guard of Spruce Meadows, the Mounted Troop is looking forward to spending the better part of the month of June at the National (10 – 14 June), Continental/Skyliner (16 – 21 June), and Canada One (25 – 28 June). The North American (1 – 5 July) will feature the Lord Strathcona’s Horse (Royal Canadians) 100-man guard and Feu de Joie on the 4th of July. The Ride Season will come to a close after the Masters tournament 9 – 13 September and the Troop will take some much-deserved leave.
The Strathcona Mounted Troop is proudly sponsored by
