calgary stampede 2008

here is a link to the rest of the photos and video from the calgary stampede parade today.

quite by accident, it seems that coming down to watch the annual stampede parade has become a bit of a tradition for andreas and myself, and as usual we rolled down later than anyone else and - of course - nabbed a sweet spectator spot atop a traffice signal box. not only do i get "rockstar" parking all the time, everywhere - it now seems i can add "rockstar" status to my parade effort too! all the usual suspects were present - clowns (creepy!), shriners in ridiculous hats (what the hell are they all about anyway?), army dudes complete with tanks and f-18s flying overhead, and of course, about a million horses/pony's/mini-horses/ass's of all descriptions - pulling all sorts of wagons and floats - it is the stampede after all! my favorite is always the pipe bands - i grew up in the classic canadian/scotch/irish traditions and the pipers always give me chicken skin and brings tears to my eyes - love it! afterwards, 'dre and i b-lined it over to the ship and anchor patio to meet up with my buddy joeboy and have some lunch and a couple drinks. 17th ave was in its glory.