Saskatoon Ex kicks off with parade

Floats, dancers, horse riders mark start of event

People of all ages turned out to watch horses, dancers and colourful floats go by in the Saskatoon Ex parade.

Emil Vanpinxteren, 80, has attended the parade every year for about a decade.

Before that, he lived on an acreage, and would go to the parade when he could, he said.

“It’s just something I enjoy doing. I like the floats, I like the music. Overall I just enjoy going to parades. I always have.”

The Tuesday morning parade kicked off the first day of the Saskatoon Ex.

More than 100 entries made their way through downtown as spectators filled the sidewalks. Many families brought lawn chairs or blankets, while other people simply took a break from work and watched with coffee in hand.

“This is the first time in probably about three years that we’ve come, but we’re glad we did,” said Sheila Renauld, who brought her children, 11-year-old Noah and eight-year-old Olivia.

Olivia said one of the things she liked was seeing the ambulance. Noah said he liked seeing friends.

“We’ve seen a lot of friends today that we weren’t expecting to see in the parade.

“One of our close friends had a float and we didn’t even know about it,” Renauld added.

Both the Renauld family and Vanpinxteren said they plan to visit the Ex on Sunday for Family Day, when seniors 65 years and older get in for free all day, and children 10 and under can ride all rides on both midways for $20 all day.

The Ex continues until Aug. 12.