The old cowboy trail will be getting a little less dusty for outriders in the Canadian Professional Chuckwagon Association this year.
Earlier this year the Western Financial Group announced they will be stepping up by sponsoring the CPCA outriders this season.
This year’s high point outrider will now receive a championship bronze, and now all the outriders will be rewarded for their point results per show.
“Our marketing manager Bryan Hebson did a hell of a job getting all the sponsors. He got everything put together for the outriders and it’s a great incentive for the boys to come,” said CPCA president Ray Mitsuing. “The prize of fuel and everything else this year, it’s going to be harder than hell and it’s going to help the boys make it down the road.”
The outriders were excited to hear the announcement earlier this year, and the award is also going to make things more competitive between them as they will compete for points at each show and for the final award at the end of the season.
“That’s going to be huge for us. It’s always good to get some extra money and it adds a little more competition into it, but we all get along together so it’s good,” said outrider Casey Knight, who’s entering his third year on the tour. “It means a lot for all of the outriders. Every little bit helps out just getting down the road because of all the fuel and all that other stuff. It’s a long summer but it’s fun.”
Knight’s family has a long history with chuckwagon racing, so it only came natural that some day Casey himself would take up the sport. He admits he still has a lot to learn, but now that he’s more established as an outrider in the CPCA he says the intricacies of the sport are starting to come more easily to him.
“Everything’s starting to get a little more easier,” said Knight. “I’m starting to figure stuff out on my own, learning from my mistakes and all that jazz. I’m just always learning.”
A good outrider can make the difference between winning and losing, so all the drivers agree that it’s about time that they get rewarded for all their hard work and efforts throughout the season.
“It’s an extra incentive for them to stay clean and they’ll get recognized for it at the end of the year. I think they have a $5,000 bonus so they’ll be trying even harder,” said defending CPCA champion Devin Mitsuing. “They all make the same amount of miles as us. They might not have horses and stuff to take care of but they need to get compensated for going down the road and risking their lives every night just the same as us too.”
Last season’s high point outrider was Rory Gervais.
Source: Meridian Booster
