The Amazing Alberta Time Travel Adventures of Wild Roping Roxy and Family Day Ray

by The Amazing Alberta Time Travel Adventures of Wild Roping Roxy

  Next, the Vancouver Millionaires hockey team float rolled by. The players took turns hoisting up the Stanley Cup for the crowd to see. Ray was a huge hockey fan but still had to confess to his sister that he’d had no idea there was an NHL team in Vancouver prior to the Vancouver Canucks!

  The final sports float was reserved for the Edmonton Commercial Grads Basketball team. They were off to the exhibition grounds to play their first World Championship Game. The players were singing upbeat songs, accompanied by Clifford Higgins, the organist from Knox Church.

  Northwest Mounted Police float.

  © Glenbow Archives: nc-26-163.

  When Roxy saw them she shouted, “Hey team, kick some butt and bring home the cup!”

  The coach recognized the familiar voice and yelled back, “Hey Miss Fancy Shoes, why don’t you, your brother, and your dog jump on our float. I’ll get you front-row tickets for the big game!” The twins were thrilled with the invitation and jumped on board without hesitation. Fifteen minutes later the float was entering the big red gates of the Calgary Exhibition.

  Chapter 12

  The Big Game

  After the twins and the team jumped off the float, Ray looked at his watch and told his sister that it was only 3:15; they had lots of time to grab a bite to eat before the important game started at four. Roxy agreed and, on the midway, they ended up eating two seven-cent corn dogs each, followed by a bag of mini-donuts.

  By the time they arrived inside the Horse Show Pavilion, thousands of people had already taken their seats around the basketball court and were shouting, “Let’s play ball! Let’s play ball!” Fortunately, Coach Percy Page was good to his word and two front-row seats had a large sign that read: “Reserved for Family Day Ray and Roxy.”

  At 4:00 the players stopped practising and lined up at centre court for the start of the game. As each player sized up the woman standing across from her, the host of the event, Carol Wilson, welcomed the crowd to the first ever Women’s World Championship Basketball Game. She thanked the two major sponsors of the event, Underwood Typewriters, the sponsors of the Underwood Trophy, and Peter Prince, “the Lumber King of Calgary”. Roxy explained to Ray that Peter “Lumber King” Prince blasted a channel in the Bow River in Calgary to float logs down, which created an island. The island eventually became a park named after him—Prince’s Island Park.

  Carol handed the microphone to Nellie McClung, a writer, member of Parliament, and one of the Famous Five. Nellie told the crowd how thrilled she was to be at the big game and then introduced the players from the Cleveland Favorite Knits team, including Meg and Courtney, “the mighty Murgatroyd sisters.” The approximately 500 Favorite Knit fans were a rowdy bunch and gave their team a standing ovation. The twins thought having their fans so loud would be good for the game; one fan, however, with sharp knitting needles sticking out of his greasy black hair, wore a “destroy the grads” T-shirt. He looked awfully creepy.

  Full house for the big game!

  © Glenbow Archives: nd-3-4089.

  Nelly handed the microphone to Cappy Smart to introduce the Edmonton Grads team. The fire chief began: “Ladies and gentlemen, boys and girls, how about a blazing round of applause for Canada’s team that’s going to light the scoreboard on fire…your one and only Edmonton Grads!” That was the cue for his fireman to start ringing the large bell on the fire truck. The crowd loved it and started yelling, “Light up the scoreboard! Light up the scoreboard! Go grads go!”

  At last it was time for the official toss of the basketball. Cappy invited both Prime Minister Borden, Canada’s prime minister at the time, and Woodrow Wilson, the president of the United States, to come forward to centre court. They both shook hands and made a bet that the leader of the country whose team lost the game would have to march in the military tattoo, a special drum performance and arms display, with the 6,000 troops on parade waving the flag of the victor’s country.

  After the leaders left the court, the referees told both sides to play hard and to play fair. And with that, the ref threw the ball in the air and the World Championship game began.

  The first half of the game was a real battle to control the ball. Unfortunately, the Grads had more penalties than their opponents; the Cleveland team took advantage of this and led the game at halftime, 28 to 20. During the break, Roxy told her brother that the Grads would regroup in the locker room and come out strong in the second half to get the job done. After all, she said, Dr. James Naismith, the Canadian inventor of basketball didn’t call the Grads “the finest basketball team that ever stepped out on a floor” for nothing. She also answered Ray’s question as to why they didn’t sing the national anthem before this important, international game. She explained that singing the national anthem at sporting events did not occur until after it was sung at a Maple Leafs game at Maple Leaf Gardens after the end of World War II.

  The fire bells rang to start the second half of the game, and you could tell from the look in the Grads players’ eyes that their coach had given them a great pep talk at halftime. The team was full of confidence, focus, and energy and, sure enough, it showed on the scoreboard.

  With less than five minutes left in the game, the Grads were behind by only two points, trailing 48 to 46. The crowd was going wild, especially since the fire bell rang out every time the Grads scored!

  With less than a minute to play, the scary-looking Cleveland fan, whom Roxy had dubbed “Needle-head,” did the unthinkable: he stuck his foot out in front of Connie Smith, the high-scoring Captain of the Edmonton Grads. She went flying head first into the second row wooden bench, cutting her eye. Fortunately, Dr. Thomas Blow, Calgary’s first eye specialist, was in the crowd, and he rushed over with his medical bag to stitch up the injured player.

  The coach of the Grads called for a time out while “Honest” Tom Mackie, the former Calgary police chief, from 1909 to 1912, arrested Needle-head.

  Roxy was so upset that she looked at Jasper, pulled on her left ear lobe, and pointed to the guy. Jasper rushed up to Needle-head and peed all over the leg that he had used to trip the star player. The entire crowd cheered Jasper on and booed the jerk as he was led away in handcuffs.

  The coach was short a player, because the backup team member, Elise Bennie, was already playing for Kate Macrae who had twisted her ankle during the second quarter of the game. He pointed to Roxy and gestured her to come over to the bench. She was beside herself with excitement.

  After Roxy had thrown on a jersey, the coach called all his players into a huddle and told them that less than 30 seconds remained in the game and, because they were down by two, they needed a three-point shot to win!

  The whistle then blew, signalling that the time out was over. The Grads nervously went back to the court and, unfortunately, Meg Murgatroyd of the opposing team won the toss. Meg dribbled the ball 20 feet toward the Grads’ net and then passed it to her younger sister, Courtney. With 10 seconds left in the game, Courtney landed a perfect shot at the net. But just as the ball was about to go in and guarantee a win for the Favorite Knits, Roxy jumped up with her arms outstretched and caught it.

  Roxy quickly passed the ball to Daisy Johnson and yelled at her to shoot. Daisy, however, was too nervous and passed it right back to Roxy, shouting, “Only four seconds left Roxy…Take the shot!” Roxy realized that this was a longer distance than the back of the Grads’ railcar, but she reached down deep and, with all her strength and energy, threw the ball at the Cleveland net. There were less than two seconds left in the game. The ball flew through the air and landed perfectly in the basket. Roxy looked up at the large white scoreboard to find that the Grads had won the World Championship game 61 to 60!

  The crowd went wild and rushed onto the court. At the same time, the Edmonton Grads hoisted Roxy onto their shoulders; they realized that they wouldn’t have been the World Champions without her! When they let her down, Roxy took off her basketball shoe
s and handed them over to Hattie as agreed. She received her team sweater in return. They were both thrilled with the exchange and gave each other a big, warm congratulatory embrace.

  After the Underwood World Champion trophy was presented and their coach was given a Chevrolet car by the local merchants, Cappy invited the entire team to hop on his fire truck for a victory lap around the exhibition grounds. The players had a blast taking turns ringing the bell and waving at the hundreds of celebrating fans. The Underwood Trophy, Roxy informed Ray, was the Stanley Cup of women’s basketball, and the Edmonton Grads won the series 114 out 120 times over the years.

  Stars of the World Championship Edmonton Grads.

  © Glenbow Archives: na-3521-1.

  The coach was thrilled with the car that he had received. He confessed to the team that it was his first car ever and he had to learn to drive first before he could take it for a spin!

  Ray and Jasper waited for Roxy to finish the victory lap. After she returned, she hugged her fellow team members one last time and then turned toward her brother. She remarked that there was only one thing sweeter than that victory.

  “What’s that?” Ray asked.

  “Donuts!” Roxy said. “Another dozen of those delicious mini-donuts with sugar!”

  Chapter 13

  A Shocking Surprise

  After they had finished the donuts, Roxy signed over 50 autographs for those who had witnessed her unbelievable game-winning shot. She then headed over to the Horse Show Pavilion with her knapsack. Once she arrived, she changed from her sweaty track suit into her new pink Western shirt, decorated with large, custom-embroidered white lettering that spelled out her stage name, “Wild Roping Roxy” on the back. The colour of the shirt was a perfect match with Roxy’s favourite cowboy boots and the pink trim on her white split skirt. As Roxy walked out of the Pavilion, it was immediately apparent from the crowd’s reaction that she was one of the best-dressed cowgirls around.

  “Okay, Ray,” Roxy said, “let’s go find out when the rodeo starts. I don’t want to miss a single event!”

  “That’s a plan,” Ray replied. “Let’s head over to the information booth and get a program. Come on, Jasper.”

  As the twins and their dog approached the booth, they found it very odd that people dressed in cowboy hats, jeans, and boots weren’t staffing the booth. Instead, at the booth they saw three clean-cut soldiers. There were two brothers from the Canadian Army Service Corps, named Clarence and Edgar Lougheed, and a distinguished lieutenant colonel, named Francis Farquhar, the commanding officer of the Princess Patricia’s Canadian Light Infantry. Francis was standing next to the official banner of the regiment, affectionately known as the “Ric-A-Dam-Doo.” Princess Patricia, herself, had hand sewn the banner after she’d agreed to have the regiment named after her in the summer of 1914. In front of the soldiers was a very friendly collie dog, named Bob, who greeted Jasper and twins with his tail wagging. Bob was the first mascot of the regiment and, in June 1915, was awarded a Toronto Humane Society medal for his wartime contribution, when he accompanied the regiment to England and France.

  “Excuse me,” Ray said, “could you tell us when the rodeo starts this afternoon? We’d like a couple of programs as well, please.”

  The two young soldiers burst out laughing. “Haven’t you heard, boy?” the tallest one said. “The last Stampede rodeo was three years ago, back in 1912. The founder, Guy Weadick, and his wife are probably over in Europe somewhere performing in a Wild West show.”

  “What?” Roxy exclaimed. “Isn’t this the Calgary Exhibition and Stampede?”

  “No, ma’am,” the soldier replied. “This is the Calgary Industrial Exhibition. This year, we’re celebrating everything military. In fact, there are over 6,000 of us soldiers gathered here on the exhibition grounds, before we head off to the war in Europe.”

  “Look here,” the lieutenant colonel interjected, holding up the opened program. “We have a big military tattoo starting in 15 minutes under Colonel Harwood’s direction. It includes a huge combined marching band with five military bands and one citizens’ band, coming together to perform several songs including our regiments’s official three-song medley. There are lots of regiments on parade, including the amazing 13th Mounted Rifle Unit from Fort Macleod. They wrestle and have tug-of-war battles while mounted on their horses. It’s very exciting.”

  “And,” another soldier said, “after the tattoo, there’s harness racing and great entertainment, including girls from Tasmania who perform a death-defying act called the ‘Human Butterfly.’ They hang 20 feet above the ground, suspended only by their teeth while they twirl around. There’s also the Arabian Acrobats who exhibit their great strength and—”

  “Thanks,” Ray interrupted, “we’ll take the program please and head over to the grandstand area. Appreciate all your help.”

  The twins and Jasper walked away and soon sat down on a nearby park bench, feeling decidedly dejected.

  “Ray, this sucks,” Roxy said. “I had my heart set on seeing Florence LaDue compete for another World Championship and I know you wanted to watch the cowboys.”

  Then Roxy had a brilliant idea.

  “Hey, why don’t we use that magical time travel dinosaur tooth and go back to the 1912 Stampede? Not only will we see Florence and the rest of the cowboys and cowgirls in action, but maybe prevent our great-great-grandmother from getting her hand crushed. We might even be able to stop the end of her relationship with the love of her life!”

  “I don’t know, Roxy,” Ray said. “That’s a neat idea, but it’s two in the afternoon on a warm sunny day. We have no idea if there’s a full moon or not. Don’t you remember what the note said? If there’s a full moon right now, we’ll be sent back to the open mouth of a dinosaur, 70 million years ago, not to 1912. I sure don’t want to be a dinosaur appetizer.”

  “Don’t fret, brother,” Roxy assured him. “Let’s just ask some of the folks walking towards the military tattoo if they saw a full moon last night.”

  Unfortunately, no one they spoke to could answer their question, as the two previous nights had been cloudy and rainy, with no visible moon of any shape. The twins had no choice. If they wanted to help their great-great-grandmother, they had to put their own lives at risk.

  “Well, Ray,” Roxy said, “I do remember Uncle Bob once said that depending on the month, the odds of a full moon in the sky are 17 percent. That means there’s an 83 percent chance we will be just fine.”

  Ray sighed. “I wish I had my iPhone. I could just click the weather icon and check out the shape of the moon tonight. I just don’t know if we can take the risk. Before I decide, tell me more about our great-great-grandmother.”

  Roxy was more than happy to share what she knew about Leah, who was born in 1893 in a log cabin on a 160-acre homestead by the Sheep River, south of Calgary. She grew up living close to John and Mildred Ware’s ranch, and Leah became best friends with their daughter, Janet, who was born in the same month. Janet’s father, John Ware, was an ex-slave from the American South. John first rode into Alberta in 1882, working with a 3,000-head cattle drive to the district of Alberta, which was part of the Northwest Territories at the time.

  John was very tough, something he’d developed as a boy when he’d been forced to fight other young slaves for their owners’ entertainment. As an adult cowboy, John took on the toughest assignment at the famous Bar U Ranch where he worked. He was responsible for breaking in wild horses for the ranch’s clients, including the North West Mounted Police and local settlers.

  Leah’s best friend Janet and her dad John Ware.

  © Glenbow Archives: na-263-1.

  It is said that John never got bucked off, even the first time he was on a wild horse. It bucked and reared before jumping over the corral fence and galloping out of sight, but he stayed on. When the horse and rider returned, John was in the saddle and the hor
se was under control.

  Over the years, John became famous for his cowboy skills. In addition to his exceptional bronc-riding abilities, he also steer-wrestled faster than any other cowboy in the Canadian West and was an expert trick roper. It was this last amazing skill that John began teaching his daughter and her best friend, Leah, when they were knee-high to a black stallion.

  John died in a tragic horse accident in 1905, two weeks after Alberta became a province. By then, Leah was practicing her trick roping technique at least two hours a day, seven days a week, and continued to do so until she was 19. Leah was seen as one of the favourites going into the World Champion Lady Fancy Roper title at the first Calgary Stampede in 1912. She also toured with her boyfriend, Dallas “Big Boy” McCoy, throughout North America at Wild West shows, where they were billed as “The Root Tooting Twosome.” They were considered the finest trick and fancy roper acts on the circuit, apart from Florence and Guy.

  The 3-year-old cowgirl!

  © Glenbow Archives: na-263-1.

  “Roxy,” Ray said, when she’d finished her story, “I think we owe it to Leah to go back in time and try to help her out. As Grandma, Leah’s granddaughter, likes to say to us, ‘Pitter-patter, let’s get at ‘er!’”

  They decided to sneak under the packed and noisy grandstand to initiate the time travel sequence. Roxy opened her knapsack and took out the thick burlap bag containing the sharp tooth and dinosaur bone that Bob had given them. She engraved September 5, 1912, onto the tooth. She was certain of the date of the Lady Fancy Roper World Championship event because, in her room at home, she had a framed letter that Guy Weadick had personally written to her great-great-grandmother. The letter invited Leah to the “monster celebration,” featuring the world’s best fancy ropers competing for the World Championship title, on September 5th. The letter also mentioned that the Calgary Stampede would feature cowboys and cowgirls from all over North America, plus more than 300 Mexican horn steers and the “buckingest bucking horses that ever bucked a buck!”