Barett Christensen, front, races to a first place finish, with Spencer James, right, close behind during the 85 cc 7-11 year old event on Sunday, August 4.

    The Drumheller Off Road Vehicle Association track was  packed over the long weekend with riders from all over Alberta competing the Alberta Motorsports Championship Series.
    Overall, Drumheller’s riders each put in strong showings. They were up against between 250 and 300 of the province’s best riders.
    Some of the stiffest competition faced by the Drumheller riders was each other.
    “One thing that was pretty cool was in the 85cc 7-11, Spencer James took first on Sunday and Barett Christensen was first on Monday. They battled back and forth with each other. They were some good races to watch,” said Sherry Christensen, who helped organize the races.
    Barett would also go on to win first place in the 65cc PeeWee race both days.
    Decklin Christensen had a strong weekend, finishing first in the 85cc 12-16 race on Sunday and second the following day. He then placed second in the Monday Super Mini race.
    Greg Quantz finished first in the Junior Mx-1 race on Sunday and Monday. Quantz would also finish first in the Junior Mx-3 race on Monday.
    Daniel McNaughton had a strong weekend, finishing second in the Junior Mx-2 race on Sunday and Monday. He also finished first in the Junior Mx-3 race on Sunday and placed second the following day.
    Ben Fooks took top spot in the Vet Master race on Monday.
    Some of DORVA’s veterans also competed in the 40 Plus races. Glenn and Brad Peake took first and second in the 40 Plus race on Sunday, with Ryan Sisson coming in fourth. The following day, Brad would come in third, followed by Brent Plante in fourth, and Sisson in fifth.
    With the races being held in Drumheller, new riders were given an opportunity to test themselves in a competitive setting.
    “We have some new riders who came out. It is great to see them trying out the sport. A lot of them just do the hometown track, because they know it and don’t necessarily want to travel around,” said Christensen.    
    Not only was the track packed with riders, dozens of volunteers supported the event. In total, roughly 60 volunteers, including the Drumheller Titans, helped out.
    The motocross season isn’t over quite yet. The riders who have been competing all summer in the Championship Series will finish up the season in September. On September 7, they head to Brooks for round 8, followed by the final round of the series in Calgary on September 15.
    The overall winners of the Alberta Motorsports Championship Series are determined by who has the most points at the end of the season and are awarded at the Alberta Motorsports awards later this year.

The Atlas Coal Mine had their best weekend ever and with 1,950 individual visits, up 37 per cent.

    Records were falling all over the valley during the long weekend indicating that the lull in tourism, following the flooding events in June, may have come to an end.
    The August long weekend saw records shattered from one end of the valley to the other.
    Marketing coordinator for the Royal Tyrrell Museum Leanna Mohan has seen numbers return to normal following the events this spring, and over the August Long Weekend visitorship was up 17 per cent over last year.
    She said typical numbers for this time are in the 5,200 range. Saturday they were up to 6,000, Sunday 6,500 and holiday Monday they saw 5,300 come through the door.
    The Atlas Coal Mine had their best weekend ever and with 1,950 individual visits, up 37 per cent.
    Linda Digby, executive director for the Atlas Coal Mine, said they were anticipating a busy weekend and were prepared. However they were pushing capacity for parking and for tour spaces.
    “That’s a new chapter for us. It is something we have been anticipating as we’ve been growing,” said Digby. “It is a good problem.”
    The valley as a whole was busy with Chuckwagon races and Motocross. One other factor of course was Drumheller’s appearance on The Amazing Race Canada.
    “Maybe there was pent up demand with the wet spring we had,” said Jay Russell of the Atlas Coal Mine. “But having a national television show showcasing the valley was definitely beneficial to everybody.”
    Debbie Schinnour of the Tourist Information Centre at the World’s Largest Dinosaur says the television coverage was a benefit judging by the requests from visitors to see Horse Thief Canyon as well as the Atlas as Coal Mine.
    “We had a great weekend,” said Schinnour. “I think everybody wanted to get out again.”