Plains Day on horizon

Committee brings in new events, ditches some traditional ones

The organizers of Plains Day met for the first time last week and have formulated most of the activities planned for the annual celebration.

Eight people, including Plains Mayor Michael Brinson, gathered at the Rocky Mountain Surveyor’s office on the east end of Plains Thursday evening to go over preliminary planning stages of Plains Day, which takes place Saturday, June 7. Kathy Logan and Ken Saner have taken on the co-coordinator responsibilities. Six community members volunteered to help coordinate the near 20 events planned for throughout the day.

With this year’s theme as “Surfin’ in the Rockies,” Logan divided the activities into seven categories — Our Health, Our Talent, Our Pets, Our Town, Our Past, Our Future, and Our Community. Activities are scheduled to begin around 7 a.m. with the traditional Mason’s Pancake Breakfast, which will be held at the VFW on West Lynch and will run until about 11 a.m.

Lisa Read will be heading up a 5K Fun Run while the Clark Fork Valley Hospital will host the 1st Annual Sanders County Heart Walk. Both events are to begin at 9 a.m. For more information on the 5K, people can contact Read at 826-7300.

New this year will be the Arts Festival and will be run by Deb Warren and Erika Lawyer. Lawyer said they plan to hold various competitions, physical and mental, including a Drama Queen/King Improv, Brainiac Challenge, and an obstacle course that will include tricycles, a balance beam, and the use of the “drunk goggles.”

The “Youth Adventure” will have two categories — sixth- to eighth-graders and freshmen to seniors. Warren suggested that kids don’t wear nice clothes because there’s a good chance they will get messy. The games have been scheduled to take place at the Plains Wild Horse Elementary School from 2 p.m. to 3 p.m.

There will be a pet contest at 11 a.m. and Larry Ballantyne, chief of the Town of Plains Volunteer Fire Department, will set up a dunk tank at the Sinclair Gas Station. The mayor and Judge Joe Eisenbrandt have volunteered to be one of the dunkees. Ballantyne said he’s looking for other “prominent” community members, and people may even have a chance to dunk the fire chief. He’s also planning to have some type of child-friendly activities.

Also new this year will be a poker run, which will tentatively take place from Plains to Trout Creek and back from 4 p.m. to 6 p.m., and a drive-in movie will take place on the lawn of the Plains Community Park, also known as the pool park. In lieu of cars, people will watch the movie on blankets. Saner, who is coordinating the drive-in, is trying to find a projector and would like to make a 16-foot by 24-foot screen. Logan said the movie will began sometime around 9:30 p.m. The name of the movie had not been decided, but Logan said they may go with an old beach party movie. A community barbecue beach party will also take place there.

A few of the traditional events will be back, such as the ice cream social and turtle races, sponsored by the Rocky Mountain Bank, the annual parade, which will kick off at noon and go through downtown Plains again, and kids games at the Wild Horse School from 1 p.m. to 2 p.m. The archery contest will take place at 2 p.m. across from Plains Drugs and will once again be put on by Dave McGonagle.

Saner will again put together a car show, which this year will include a motorcycle category. He said the car show will have three categories — 1948 and older, 1949-1973, and 1973 to current. First, second and third place awards will be given in those classes, along with a People’s Choice trophy and a Best of Show. An Ugliest Truck Contest will also take place.

Logan said local vendors will be set up along the greenway on main street. Out of town vendors can set up at Fred Young Park.

Two popular Plains Day events will not be included in this year’s festivities. Logan said they talked about it and decided not to hold the cross cut competition, which usually takes places in front of the VFW. In addition, the Fear Factor, coordinated in the past by the Citizens Against Drug and Alcohol, was not listed.

Plains Day is sponsored by the Plains-Paradise Chamber of Commerce and was originally established as a way for local businesses to thank community members for their patronage. Those with questions can call Logan at 826-4409.