It’s unanimous – the 84th Pioneer Day was a roaring success!
The color guard marches along as the crowd stands with respect during the 2014 Pioneer Day Parade. Photo by Meagan Friberg
Crowds turn out to enjoy a full day of activities, food, and fun
The 84th Annual Pioneer Day kicked off at 8 a.m. with a pet contest and continued until the early evening hours on Saturday, Oct. 11, with committee members saying the day was a roaring success.
Paso Robles Joint Unified School District Superintendent Chris Williams emcees the Little Cowgirl contest on Saturday. Photo by Meagan Friberg
“We started the day early, with locals coming out all dressed up to enter their pets in five different categories,” said Pioneer Day Committee Member Karli Twisselman. “We had a lot of fun and the judges had some difficult decisions to make.”
Pet Contest results:
Most Colorful – cowboy cat, Puff, shown by Lydia Stanley
Best Behaved – German Shepard dog Sargent, shown by Acel Patterson
Best Look-alike – The Karate Kid and Dog, Stetson, shown by Colton Campmas
Most Unique – cowboy rooster, with little saddle and halter, shown by Buster Koester
Judges Choice – Oreo the Sheep, loaded up for the long haul with a bed roll, gold mining equipment and more, shown by Chance Koester
At 8:30 a.m., the Little Cowboy and Cowgirl Contest and the Pioneer Boy and Girl had its largest crowd in recent history, with 23 entries in the 0-3 Cowgirl contest alone.
“The turnout was amazing,” said Twisselman, “and we are so grateful to all those who came out early dressed in their best western and pioneer gear – everyone looked great.”
Little Cowgirl & Cowboy results:
Little Cowgirl – ages 0-3, Cheyenne Baxley, 3
Little Cowgirl – ages 4-6, Faith Patterson, 6
Little Cowboy – ages 0-3, Gunner Perales, 14 mo
Little Cowboy – ages 4-6, Taylor Twisselman, 5
Pioneer Girl & Boy results:
Pioneer girl – ages 0-3, Topanga Needham, 2 1/2
Pioneer girl – ages 4-6, Annabelle Peterson, 4
Pioneer boy – ages 0-3, Landon Plascencia, 1 1/2
Pioneer boy – ages 4-6, Chance Koester, 4
“The committee would like to extend a special thanks to Farm Supply for donating the first place prizes of 
Schleich toy animals for the children as well as the dog and cat treats and toys for the Pet Contest winners,” said Twisselman. “We would also like to thank Vics Café for donating the coffee, Smart and Final for donating the flower bouquet and a special thanks to Paso Robles School District Superintendent Chris Williams for emceeing the event – he did a wonderful job.”
In addition, Twisselman said the judges for the contests were “amazing.” The 2014 judges were Sascha Zvolensky, Central Coast Landscape Products; Cameron Abdallah, Central Coast Trailers; and Ofer Cherbinsky and Ahsia Abdallah from Atascadero Pet Center and Emergency Hospital.
Pioneer Day Parade
Volunteers with the Camp Roberts Historical Museum wow the crowd during the Pioneer Day Parade with their newly-refurbished Army cargo truck. Photo by Meagan Friberg
After the contests, a large standing-room-only crowd gathered along the streets of downtown Paso Robles for the highlight of the day – the 84th Annual Pioneer Day Parade. As in years past, the parade started at 16th & Spring St. and then continued around the downtown city park.
Following behind the color guard near the beginning of the parade route, a group from the Camp Roberts Historical Museum thrilled the crowd with their newly-refurbished Army cargo truck towing a field artillery piece. According to museum volunteers, the truck carried some of the local guys who sold papers and shined shoes when they were just boys for the soldiers at Camp Roberts during WWII and the Korean War.
“It was a fantastic parade,” said Margaret Wicks, Pioneer Day Committee Treasurer. “There were horse teams, a rolling stock of tractor and buggies, bands, floats, vintage cars, and more. We even had a 20 Mule team – actually it was a 16 Mule Team, but it was great; the finale of the parade.”
Wicks said the day held “something for everyone,” adding that the turnout for the day’s events was “very, very good” and a large portion of the crowd stuck around for most of the afternoon.
“It was a bit warm on Saturday, but the community really turned out and had a great time,” she added.
Bean Feed in the Park
The annual Bean Feed in the Park was enjoyed by all. According to Larry Eastwood from Vic’s Café, 10,000 servings of beans were prepared, with all of the beans served to the crowd and none left over.
“Larry has been helping prepare the beans for about 40 years,” Wicks said.
Larry and his team of helpers – namely, Paso Robles Lions Club members, prepared approximately:
- 1,000 lbs. beans
- 325 lbs. meat
- 300 lbs. onion/peppers
New activities, display keep crowd entertained
In conjunction with Pioneer Day, the Paso Robles 125th Anniversary Planning Committee sponsored additional activities that had the crowd celebrating well into the early evening hours. An old-fashioned bake-off was held, an ale and beer garden to benefit local nonprofits was offered, old-fashioned kids’ games were played, and music from Monte Mills and the Lucky Horseshoe Band led the street dance.
The Paso Robles High School marching band entertains the crowd during Pioneer Day with their rendition of the PRHS Alma Mater. Photo by Meagan Friberg
“The added activities were a great complement to the contests and parade, and they brought a few new elements to the park,” said Brenda Clouston, Pioneer Day Promotions Chairman and Parade Official.
Clouston said there was tremendous response to the display of antique tractors, the Army cargo truck from Camp Roberts, and more at 12th Street between Park and Pine following the parade.
“As the various tractors and the truck from Camp Roberts finished the parade route, they parked for a display – it was great for people to be able to look at them up-close and ask questions,” said Clouston. “I am hoping this will be an annual tradition – the kids, especially, had a great time at the display.”
Full results for the 2014 Pioneer Day will be available after the committee meets this week, including results from parade entries, the horseshoe pitching contest, and the Whiskerino contest – check back with Paso Robles Daily News soon!
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