Ronan still buzzing after Pioneer Days, fair festivities

When you combine a fishing derby, a kiddie slicker rodeo, a demolition derby, multiple street dances and a parade in Lake County, it can only mean one thing: Ronan Pioneer Days.

“Pioneer Days was incredible,” Katrina Baltz, of Pablo, said. “We come every year. We definitely come out to support autism awareness.”

“Making the Pieces Fit,” an effort to raise awareness about autism, was the major theme of both Pioneer Days and the Lake County Fair. Headed by Charlie Cote, whose son Decker has autism, the theme was thought up to spread the word about the prevalence of autism in this community, as well as around the nation.

“Ten years ago, 1 in 10,000 children was diagnosed with autism; today it is 1 in 50,” Cote said. “Throughout Pioneer Days, we offered free autism screenings, and screened  75 kids. Maybe we caught one kid with signs of autism; if we did, the whole thing was worth it.”

Aside from autism awareness and the free screenings, Pioneer Days  featured a varied schedule of entertainment for young and old alike. Friday morning saw kids come to Ronan City Park to try their hand at the fishing derby. Using their own rods and maneuvering for position, young ones fished for angle trout out of a 9-foot tub, hoping to catch a fish to take home with them.

Later on Friday night, the crowds moved to the rodeo pavilion to watch the Bull-A-Rama, certainly a crowd-pleasing event. Revelers capped off the night with a street dance on Main Street. Blue Onion provided the tunes as many attendees danced until the early morning hours.

Saturday brought another packed bill from early in the morning until late at night. A 3-on-3 basketball tournament, pancake breakfast, 5K run and a volleyball tournament were a few things people could participate in. If kids ventured out to the airport, they could take a 15 minutes flight with an experienced pilot as part of the Exipermental Aircraft Association “Young Eagles” program. Nels Jensen of Charlo, one of the participating pilots, was excited to see the positive attitude in the kids, and hopes to see even more participation at the upcoming Polson fly-in on August 15.

“We’re trying to single out kids who are interested in flight,” Jensen said. “We want them to fill out log books when they fly so they can work towards becoming pilots.”

The Kiddie Parade and Kiddie Slicker Rodeo were two good chances for the very young to get involved. Sheep riding, stickhorse races and chicken and pig scrambles had the crowd roaring with delight and clapping in appreciation. The fun continued out at Mission Valley Speedway as the sounds of stock car racing and demolition derby echoed around the valley.

Sunday afternoon found Main Street Ronan lined with residents from around the county waiting for the start of the fair finale: the big parade. Kids waited anxiously with bags to fill with candy as the parade procession started at St. Luke’s hospital and made it’s way down toward U.S. Highway 93. Muscle-car’s engines roared, tractors honked and ambulances flashed their lights as people waved and chased down treasures on the side of the street.

The parade was a fitting end to a fun-filled weekend that kept the community happy and entertained.