Miners and Trappers Ball

Part of Fur Rondy is the Miners and Trappers Ball. It is held the second Saturday of the festival and is a fundraiser for the Lions Club. There are 3 components of the Ball. In one section of the room is the "dance component" a band and a dance floor. But, in the second section, the awesome section, is a stage for judging the other 2 components--the "Mr. Fur Face" competition and then the costume contest.

Mom, Kerry, John, Michael, and I spent most of our time in the competition area. The "Mr. Fur Face" competition was quite funny. It is both very serious and very not serious. (You'd have to be there.) The hosts who were from Channel 2 were great. There are lots of different categories and Michael even entered the "Wolf" category. (He's number 6.) Mr. Wolf is debonair and stylized... Michael made the first cut, but wasn't in the top two. Number 2 ended up winning Mr. Wolf. The man with the long gray beard won Mr. Pole Cat. Will Merrill is the man with the super long red beard and he won Mr. Red Fox. The man in the overalls was visiting from Texas and he won Mr. Alaskan Whaler. (He said he was grateful to be in a state that appreciated his facial hair.)

The costume contest would have been fun to watch, if not for the world's worst (or close) hosts-- Lauryn and Marcus (also of Channel 2). YIKES!! They made the "Best in Show" hosts look competent. (I've included a little "Best in Show" reminder so you've got a comparison.)



Marcus, in contrast, had the following interaction:
MARCUS- So here we have a bar girl.
SALOON GIRL 1- Well, a pregnant saloon girl (patting her stomach)
MARCUS- (Turning to her friend)... Two pregnant bar girls!
SALOON GIRL 2- I'm not pregnant.
MARCUS- Sure you are... you can tell us in a minute.

Seriously!!! That and he kept calling the Mad Hatter "Willy Wonka" and when another Mad Hatter came up on stage he also called him "Willy Wonka". It was a train wreck!!

Ultimately, we ended up leaving. Too gruesome.