The 10 women of the 2017 tour of the Prairie Women on Snowmobiles (PWOS) accompanied by a crew of eight with a van and flatbed truck, pulled into Kamsack late Sunday afternoon to spend their first night of the tour.
The snowmobilers parked their machines at Nykolaishen Farm Equipment before checking into their rooms at the Duck Mountain Motor Inn and attending a supper reception at Lam’s Restaurant, where the Kamsack Sno-Drifters snowmobile club not only paid for the supper, but also presented the group with a cheque of $500.
Five representatives of the Kamsack Cancer Self Help Group were in attendance and Jan Derwores, on behalf of the Group, presented a cheque to the women.
Receiving the cheques on behalf of PWOS was Kelly Kim Rea of Pelly, who is the current president of PWOS.
Kamsack Mayor Nancy Brunt welcomed the riders to Kamsack and invited them and their crew to the Prairie Grain Bakery the next morning for a hot breakfast courtesy of the Town of Kamsack.
Kamsack breast cancer survivors were called up to receive special pins that the PWOS group have had made. Receiving pins were Jan Derwores, Diane Larson and Winnie Koroluk.
On Monday morning the Prairie Women on Snowmobiles were greeted with plus Ceslsius temperatures and freezing rain as they left the motel to arrive at the Prairie Grain Bakery on main street where Glen Boychuk and John Luu were waiting to provide them with breakfast before they headed out for day two of the tour.
Muffins, cheese and fruit trays, along with bacon, ham or sausage eggers and warm, gooey cinnamon buns were all made available to the riders.
Regarding the morning rain, one of the riders remarked that in 2011 the PWOS encountered freezing rain and ice conditions during their ride.
Helping to get the 10 riders and eight support team members ready for their second day of the ride, which was to have stops in Rhein, Yorkton, Theodore and Foam Lake, were two members of the Kamsack Cancer Self Help Group, Adeline Nykolaishen and Jan Derwores, who had helped with serving and subsequent clean up.
“The PWOS riders make such a huge commitment,” said Derwores. “Not only do they work tirelessly to raise donations that go to cancer research, but also they devote the time they commit to the tour, leaving their families and work on hold for the duration of the ride. They put in an incredible amount of effort.”
The ride is a large part of the annual tour, but the riders are quick to point out that the organizers do a tremendous amount of work behind the scenes to make the tours happen.
Joan Phinney, in her second mission as a core rider for PWOS, was born and raised in Edmonton and now lives in Kindersley. She said that no sooner will Tour 2017 end, than work will begin for Tour 2018.
The organizers work hard year-round making plans and putting the tour together, she said.
One of Tour 2017’s core riders, Karla Gervais of Yorkton had raised a total of $37,794.85.
Persons wishing to make donations to the PWOS Tour 2017 are encouraged to go to the website www.prairiewomen.ca. The tour is to be wrapping up on day six, which is February 3, in Star City.
