The greatest outdoor show on earth
- July 4, 2008 12:19 AM |
- By Andree Lau
by Andree Lau, CBCnews.ca
I can't cook pancakes. Made from scratch or out of the box, it doesn't matter. I will either burn or undercook them without fail. That's why I look forward to the week and a half in July when I can enjoy all the perfectly cooked pancakes I can eat — and free, to boot.
The phenomenon known as the Calgary Stampede breakfast began during the 1923 event. According to one account, a young chuckwagon driver who camped at the train station would have friends visit him during breakfast, and they would eventually invite visitors to join them.
Miss Alberta Petite helps flip pancakes at the CBC Calgary Stampede breakfast. (Andree Lau/CBC)
Today, the breakfasts are a much-anticipated tradition hosted by corporations and community groups at the same time as the Stampede, which bills itself as the greatest outdoor show on earth.
This year, there are no less than 49 pancake breakfasts between now and July 13.
The majority are handled by the Stampede Caravan Committee, a group of volunteers, who ensure the pancakes are fluffy, the sausages hot, and the coffee plentiful. All this under the sun in front of scorching griddles — and with big smiles.
The breakfasts bring all sorts of people together in the pursuit of free flapjacks and you don't even have to step foot on the Stampede grounds to get a taste of that famous western hospitality.
Cowboy hats are optional.
About the Authors
- Elizabeth Bridge is a producer with CBC's Digital Archives project. She got her start in the kitchen baking brownies and making fudge but is still trying to get pastry right.
- Andrea Chiu
is an associate producer at CBC Radio Digital. Though she loves to eat, cook and discuss food,
don't ask her to bake. It never turns out well. She tweets as @TOfoodie on Twitter and organizes food and wine events in Toronto called FoodieMeet.
- Amber Hildebrandt
works for CBCNews.ca in Toronto. Growing up on a farm in Manitoba, she acquired an insatiable appetite, but it was during a stint in Japan that she developed her discerning tastebuds and foodie ways.
- Tara Kimura
is a multimedia producer for CBCNews.ca.
- Andree Lau
is a CBC web reporter in Calgary. Her journalism career includes seven years as a CBC-TV reporter. Her own blog called "are you gonna eat that?" chronicles her eating adventures (including sampling snake and camel hoof tendon).
- Jessica Wong
is a CBCNews.ca writer who loves to eat and cook, as well as discuss, read and watch programming about food, sometimes all at once.
- Kevin Yarr
, CBCNews.ca's writer in Prince Edward Island, wrote about food and beer for national and regional magazines before joining the CBC. He acquired a desire for new tastes on his first trip to Europe, and an appreciation of eating locally and in season when he finally settled down on P.E.I.
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Comments (5)
Stampede Parade.
This is the third year in a row that I have attended the Stampede Parade with my two young children. While my children thoroughly enjoyed the parade, and now look forward to it every year, I must say that I found it very long and mostly boring. The few floats that were in the parade were very plain and not memorable. My favourite part of any parade are the marching bands. Of the 20 or so marching bands involved in the parade, only a handful actually played as they were marching by our location. The crowd cheered loudly for the original Stampede Queen and the Military contingent, and deservedly so. I do not remember any other part of the parade that prompted a loud cheer. The rest of the parade seemed filled with people waving from either horses, chuck wagons, or cars. Is there any way that we can encourage sponsors, etc. to spend more money on creating more impressive floats or attracting more marching bands? Perhaps have larger cash prizes for floats? I am thinking of all the tourists that attend the parade each year. Surely we can put on a better parade than this given all the money that is made from the Stampede each year. Am I the only person that feels this way about the parade?
Or you could quit complaining and enjoy the wonderful show that is put on every year.
Or you could get your complaining ass out of the chair and do something. But I doubt that'd happen - another whining Calgary yuppie.
Wow. Go figure someone would find something to whine about.
Totally agree with Shane - this person is a hypocrite.
Wow, it seems shane and Gen might not be whiners but they are bitter about something, negativity just to be negative now that is better. Maybe wendy was bringing forward ideas for change and improvement. Last I checked looking to improve things isn't whining. If you are happy to accept status qou and mediocrity may you get what you ask for.
I have been going to the parades here in Edmonton for years with my kids and my friends kids and before that my sibling and I will tell you it is shameful when compared to the parades in the states like the Macy Day with all the huge floats and balloons!