August 1, 2004

IF YOU’VE got anything planned for August 12-15 strike them from your calendar and book a flight to the US of A - it’s time for the Stampede and World Famous Suicide Race!

Held in Omak, Washington State, the Stampede (omakstampede.org) is a chance for… umm… well, I don’t really know as this is yet another site that’s packed with nothingness. This is starting to get on my nerves – I spend literally minutes looking for sites for this column and when I find something that I think is interesting, offbeat and will make 350 words with minimum effort, it turns out I’ve got less to work with than David Beckham’s maths teacher.

I mean, what is it that makes the people responsible for these sites so bloody lazy/inept/careless that the history page, for example, is two sentences long? Here it is its entirety: "From its beginnings as an opportunity for local cowboys to get together and practice their skills (and maybe show off just a little) the Omak Stampede has grown to be one of the premier events in the Pacific Northwest. Watch this space as we add the bits and pieces that have combined to make the Stampede the great event it is today." In other words, the guy doing this page has ADD and has been distracted by a bee.

As for the Suicide Race, it could be a race between Cure fans for all I know. Here’s what the official site has to say: "From beginnings similar to the beginnings of the Stampede, the World Famous Suicide Race has grown to national and international fame and has been featured on several television programmes." Mr ADD strikes again.

However, thanks to Google I managed to discover that the race features 20 horseriders who race down a 33-degree slope called Suicide Hill and then race across the Okanogan River in order to win the $1000 prize. They train for most of the year for the race and it’s considered one of the most dangerous sports in the USA, being cancelled in 1999 after several horses died. Could someone email this to brian@komw.net, who’s in charge of the official site? Thanks.