Stampede goer's enjoy the sights and sounds of the Medicine Hat & Exhibition Stampede Midway during its final evening on Saturday.--NEWS PHOTOS BRENDAN MILLER
bmiller@medicinehatnews.com
There’s just something special about Midway nights.
Faint screams in the background grow closer with each step toward the entrance gate as watchful parents pull wagons and strollers as excited and agile teenagers wearing white ‘all you can ride’ wristbands wiggle their way through the crowds.
The fading sun briefly paints the warm summer skies with orange and red hues before fading grey and deep blue, and eventually black. Time for the Midway lights to shine.
Dizzying bright colours whirl to the screams of the young and old seeking a thrill, mixed with the ambient sound of the ringing and whistling from the bells and horns of the Midway games. The sounds of the clink of a ring hitting a glass bottle or the sirens following a water-gun shootout match.
Deeper into the Midway, faint screams become sporadic piercing shrills as those with a strong enough stomach wait in lineups as they watch fellow riders twist, free fall and experience an sharp increase in G force.
Smiles of jubilation on the faces of some, panic and fear resonate from others. Hats fly off the heads of laughing children as they are tossed up, down and upside down.
The evening is warm. For some, a snow cone or lemonade hits the spot. Others indulge in carnival classics like corn dogs, cotton candy and mini doughnuts. The smell of deep-fried dough and sweet sticky syrup can be impossible to resist.
A young couple holds hands as they walk toward the Vertigo swings, while a mother takes a cellphone photo capturing the joy of her child riding the Merry-Go-Round. Two young boys check to see if they are tall enough to ride as a grandmother makes memories playing whack-a-mole with her granddaughter.
Meanwhile, an elderly couple sits together quickly on the bench, soaking in the sounds and sights silently, they have chosen a seat with a great view of what’s to come next.
A loud hiss followed by a burst. Fireworks race toward the night, cracking and booming and filling the Midway sky. Children’s eyes light up wide as they cheer on the show. Crowds, families and groups of friends gather together as bursts of coloured flames illuminate the Midway below.
As the final firework fizzles from the sky marking the end of another edition of the Medicine Hat Exhibition & Stampede, many will remember the memories they made during that summer Midway night.
There’s just something special about Midway nights.
