Great Beater Challenge 2021

It’s called the Great Beater Challenge, a convoy of the damned taking place over two days and about a thousand kilometres. The concept is simple: cross your fingers and drive a junker cross-country down some of the most remote roads ever and survive the ordeal. Interestingly most cars made it – and there was some real rolling turds we wouldn’t dare take up the block, let alone on an expedition of this caliber – although for quite a few, we suspect, it might have been their last trip. Next stop – Buck’s Auto Parts.

It’s no race, but a crazy adventure and treasure hunt of sorts – we’ll fill you in soon enough. We shadowed this motley parade, some forty cars in total and it was AWESOME! The great plains of southern Alberta and Saskatchewan were the backdrop along with villages that dotted the route – some are still recovering. There’s ghost towns too and once we reached the land of living skies, many historic grain elevators.

Each year’s route is different, as is theme and the latter in this case was in honour of our friends from Saskatchewan and the event titled “Flatland Fails”. We’ll always remember this nutty weekend and the characters who participated. We can’t wait to show you, so let’s hit the road. It’s going to be a BIG one and perhaps the longest-winded piece we’ve ever posted.

Day 1

1 Lethbridge) It’ begins and first up, it’s Brother’s Beer Wagon, a 1982 Ford LTD. 140hp baby! Multiple spare tires were a just in case measure and recommended by organizers given the remote places to be travelled. Cars were mostly driven by teams (here three siblings) and the extra person (or people) were for support and encouragement. Or so they were told, but in reality were there to help push the car when it calved or to do the grunt work changing a tire.

1) The Great Beater Challenge 2021 is about to begin!

BTW, roadworthy skins were mandatory and the car had to be mechanically sound in critical areas (brakes for example), but cosmetically nothing mattered. The uglier, the better!

2 Lethbridge) Goldmember is a 1983 Dodge 400 convertible and the tattered state of the cloth gives new meaning to the term “ragtop”. Up or down, you were still out in the open. The devil on our shoulder hoped for rain and the fun spectacle that’d come of it, but no such luck. Still the team had to contend with all the dust and by the end of the Beater Challenge needed a good hosing down. This is one of about ten thousand convertible Dodge 400s made and production only spanned two years.

Decorating a car was encouraged and resulted in bonus points being awarded. While many chose a Saskatchewan theme (Rider or Pilsner adornments were popular), these guys went their own way. That’s Beater Challenge organizer Peter Brook in back, basking in glow that is the absurdity of it all. Feel the buzz.

3 Lethbridge) If participants added certain Saskatchewan accoutrements, so running boards or as seen here, clearance lights, they gained additional points. The game was not just about getting there but looking ridiculous doing it and the points that come with it. This has to be the most half-baked attempt ever, but it’s in keeping with the general theme.

4 Lethbridge) Here’s a 1960 Plymouth Valiant and other than here at the start, it was never seen again. Surprisingly, most cars made the journey, but for some like Buzzin’ Half Dozen here, it was to be for naught. One of the more interesting cars at the event and one of the oldest, it’s too bad it tanked so early.

5 Lethbridge) This is Canadians in an Acadian, a 1979 Pontiac Acadian (rebadged Chevrolet Chevette). Those who know us will understand why we were secretly rooting for this one. The rules of the event state no car should be worth more than $700 and meeting that criteria was not a problem here.

6 Lethbridge) Be proud of it! Already Disqualified is a 1981 Buick LeSabre and interesting story (bro) your author owner one just like it for years (two door though), in two-tone green none the less. You could not kill that thing, in spite of efforts to do so and with that in mind, we suspected this team would do okay.

7 Lethbridge) There were several free ice cream/free hug vans participating and this was one of the drivers. Thanks for the disturbing mental image. Anyone seen Pennywise?

8 Lethbridge) Team Y’allternative drives this 1984 AMC Eagle. This was an early CUV and quite capable for the time, but never made in huge numbers. AMC – remember them? Into the 1980s they were an also-ran compared to the Big Three (GM, Ford, Chrysler) and few years after this example was made, folded in the latter firm. This car appeared to randomly stall at times, but made it home.

9 Lethbridge) At the driver briefing. Teams were told what to expect, reminded to follow the rules of the road and so on. Or else!

10 Lethbridge) Here’s the mascot for the The Dog House, a 1990 Oldsmobile Delta 88. The sign’s a joke of course. We we’re witness to this car breaking down later in the Beater Challenge, but they got it going again and it finished.

11 Lethbridge) Event organizer Peter goes over the rules and for those who don’t follow them to the letter, it’s the firing squad. Or so a driver told me. That Peter doesn’t mess around.

12 Lethbridge) Those golden locks are fabulous and this is Saskatchewan hockey hair if we’ve ever seen it. Play for the Broncos? For those who don the skates out in those small prairie communities and battle, this type of do has never gone out of style.

13 On the road) With vast stretches of nothingness, it was recommended participants carry extra gas and many found creative ways to carry them. This is 989 or Bust a 1997 Mercedes-Benz C230, which finished I guess, but we never saw them again after this encounter.

14 Foremost Alberta) The Flatland Fails guidebook tells you everything you need to know. It not only details the route, but gives hints in regards to hidden treasures to be found along the way or describes the fun little tasks to completed. Both add to your points total and it’s not just about finishing the trip but making it an adventure.

15 Foremost Alberta) Our Buick friends were loaded down.

16 Foremost Alberta) This 1951 Hudson Hornet, belonging to Roy Marko’s Garage was the oldest car in the group and that’s the 1930s built Leismeister Garage as backdrop. On a previous visit to Foremost we shot a Then & Now from about this position, but looking the opposite direction, and you can see it here: Then & Now: Foremost Alberta.

17 Etzikom Alberta) Another challenge stop taking place at the Etzikom Museum. Certain tasks were worth more than others and the one here was particularly valuable – to find a little plaque attached to an exhibit. You had to submit photos of finds as proof and these points could make or break a team’s odds of winning. Nice Oldsmobile Cutlass – another cool story (bro) and our oldest boy had one like this as a teenager.

18 Etzikom Alberta) One of many windmills at the Etzikom Museum and while we’ve never visited the place before, we hope to one day.

19 Etzikom Alberta) This 2001 Saturn is Soup and those oversized mirrors are sure to be appreciated in Saskatchewan. “Ohhh, nice!” – some old farmer we passed. They made a makeshift pickup box of the back seat and trunk and placed a motorcycle there. Something to get them home if the car tanks? They made it back, as it turned out, but the participant behind (Space XXX, a 1990 Isuzu Space Cab), did not.

20 Manyberries Alberta) The railway is a memory but the old train station remains in town and was some years converted to a home. We visited it once: Manyberries Alberta railway station.

21 Manyberries Alberta) In downtown and there’s not much going on. The Southern Ranchmen’s Hotel has been closed for a while, but in the past we stopped by a for beer. Here: Beer stop. Team Protege, driving a 2002 Chevrolet Cavalier is seen passing and by Manyberries standards this counts as gridlock. One more cool story (no more, I promise) a few BIGDoer-mobiles back we owned a Cavalier just like this. Please don’t mock us. Same exact colour, same year, but we know it’s not this one as it went to the great scrap yard in the sky after a t-bone inncident.

22 Lost in SE Alberta) The loneliest stretch of highway ever and this gravel road is the storied #501 (#13 once in Saskatchewan). It’s like the Bermuda Triangle of roads and cars go in, but don’t always come out. Other than our convoy, we saw no one else and you’d have to be nuts to drive this alone. Doubly so in winter. There’s no towns, no farms or ranches out this way and just the expansive prairie. You might as well be on the moon.

23 Highway #501) Breakdowns were inevitable but there were a number of truck/trailers belonging to F.A.R.T. (the Fast Action Recovery Team) shadowing the convoy if help was needed. A good push and the Dog House is on, then later after repairs was back on the road.

24 Consul Saskatchewan) One of these things is not like the others. Someone set up this display in front of their business and both Poor Man’s ‘Vette, a 1986 Chevrolet Chevette Scooter and the Chevy pickup called Frank (totally lacking creativity but lame efforts are what it’s all about) posed together for a photo. Both vehicles completed the trip.

25 Robsart Saskatchewan) Participants were encouraged to sight-see as time permitted and here it’s a quick stop in this almost ghost town. That’s the former Robsart Hospital, over a century old and empty for most of that time. You’re looking at Team Premier Klein’s 1988 Ford Crown Victoria, a big V8 land barge and every times it’s filled up there’s localized gas shortages.

26) Cadillac Saskatchewan) This was the turn around point and everyone overnighted in the town campground. Hold on Cadillac it’s going to get rowdy! Byline: A vintage Cadillac was supposed to participate in the Beater Challenge, but no-showed I guess. The town’s name is not in reference to the car, but still wouldn’t have it been cool? The entourage was well spread out by this point and stragglers arrived well into the night.

27 Cadillac Saskatchewan) Team BIGDoer was hanging with DanOCan (linkie-poo to see a video of the event: DanOCan Great Beater Challenge) and here’s our view that evening. Spectacular! If you want to learn more about that grain elevator in back, go here: Prairie Sentinels – Cadillac Saskatchewan.

28 Cadillac Saskatchewan) Everyone knows Pilsner is the official cold beverage of Saskatchewan, and it’s revered with an almost religious fervour. Here we went a little outlaw, but were not too obvious about it. Just drinking a Kokanee here could get you a butt-whooping.

29 Cadillac Saskatchewan) Give this one a wide berth. If this Chevrolet van is “Vandits” on the entry list, I guess it didn’t finish. With so much going on, and participants often well spread out, it became hard to keep tabs on everything and sometimes we lost track of certain teams.

Day 2

30 Cadillac Saskatchewan) Morning greets the group. That’s Ice Scream, a 1996 GMC Safari and in the end, they finished second in points. Gotta love that hillbilly set up – an old lazy-boy and van seat? That’s priceless! Saskatchewan is the land of living skies.

31 Val Marie Saskatchewan) A stop at the 1927 built grain elevator, which has been restored and an attraction in town.

32 Climax Saskatchewan) Okay, let’s get the jokes over with…how long did it take to reach Climax? More than a day…and we were exhausted…and we slept through part of it too! Here’s a “you know you’re in Saskatchewan when” photo if there ever was one. A good Climax quip, recorded on video and with the elevator as backdrop, was worth forty bonus points to teams.

33 Climax Saskatchewan) This became the only time we saw this 1955 Oldsmobile Rocket 88 and the log shows they didn’t complete the challenge. Taxi! We did a railway speeder tour out of Climax a few tears back and you can see it here: Riding the Rails in SW Saskatchewan – Part One and here: Riding the Rails in SW Saskatchewan – Part Two.

34 Frontier Saskatchewan) The only problem doing the Beater Challenge in Saskatchewan is that it was sometimes hard to separate the players from locals. This old farm truck was not participating but would have fit right in. With all these digs, those Saskatchewan boys are going to have our asses next time we’re there. It’s all in fun and we have roots there, but quite honestly what’s the fascination with that football team…oopps.

35 Near Divide Saskatchewan) Along another gravel highway at a remote crossroad community centre and cemetery, we see the Beer Wagon is going strong. By the way, we tended to see more of certain participants than others – with the group sometimes well spread out it was bound to happen – and in particular saw a lot of this car and that Dodge convertible.

36 Cypress Hills Saskatchewan) At every stop, we were witness to a similar hoods-up displays. It was not odd to see some car up on jacks and being worked on either and that’s the nature of the beast. There’s always something needing attention in a Beater, be it a leaking hose, questionable electricals or that odd clunk that has no definable source yet persists. Most teams carried a full compliment of tools, spare parts, and of course fire extinguishers just in case.

That is a microwave oven on the roof of the one car. Road popcorn?

37 Cypress Hills Saskatchewan) A break from the road…to hit the road in a series of go-cart deathwatches to end all…or maybe just for fun. Bonus: 100 challenge points!

38) Trans Canada Highway) Cruising with the top down (not that they had a choice) and in style. In spite of the tattered cloth roof, this old car wasn’t in bad shape and seemed to be rather problem free that we saw.

39-40 Medicine Hat Alberta) At the world’s biggest Tepee (or is that Teepee or Tipi – no one seems to agree) this is Fast Junk, a 1977 Oldsmobile Cutlass Supreme. All things considered, it was one of the best looking cars in the Beater Challenge and seemed to be running well enough. Gas cans: good idea. Chain steering wheel: too cool! Some kind of dance video was being filmed in back…but I didn’t say good dance video. Tik Tok stuff no doubt.

41 Bow Island Alberta) Breakdowns were a regular occurrence for many teams, but we can’t seem to find these guys in the entry list. Maybe regular travellers not in the challenge and with a bit of bad luck? In the chaos we noted this as a participants photo, but we might be wrong there.

42 Bow Island Alberta) A photo of Pinto McBean got you thirty points and isn’t he a cute little legume?

43 Lethbridge) At the finish line, where it all started the day before – we call these folks survivors. No warriors! Interestingly of of thirty nine entries that started the challenge, thirty two completed. Given the poor state of the cars participating, that comes close to being a miracle.

44 Lethbridge) We never saw more than brief glances of the the winner (the aced it by a large margin) and the honour of King Beater goes to “Festering Festiva”, a 1992 model made into a pickup. They were just too quick for us most of the time I guess. The car’s looking a little worse for wear, but then again, what else would you expect. Go Riders! One those plates is like a free pass in the province and will open doors.

Going to need a little bug-off there.

45 Lethbridge) Teams Premier Klein, seen earlier, and Team Harlequin, the latter driving this colourful 1995 VW Golf. They came from the factory like that. Note the look of complete satisfaction on those guys….or is it relief?

46 Lethbridge) Fitting with the theme…

47 Lethbridge) Nice doggie.

48 Lethbridge) The start and finish was at a casino in Lethbridge, at the little used furthest parking lot. Got to wonder what the people in that rolling mansion though when surrounded? They were lounging in the shade when the convoy started arriving but soon retreated inside and were not seen again. Don’t look them dear…they’re hillbillies…and rednecks…and probably married to their cousins.

Collectively, we could take all the cars in Beater Challenge, add up their value and they wouldn’t equal the cost of replacement windshield wipers on that rig. Quite the opulent home on wheels, it came a Cadillac SUV trailing behind.

That’s B21, a 1992 Ford Mustang with the rare factory “trailer park package”. The spoiler is fabulous! Bonus points for putting in the least effort possible and while normally this might be a disparaging comment, here we applaud and cheer.

49 Lethbridge) In keeping with the cheap-o theme, here’s one of the trophies (third place winner here). Their rig was Hobo Holiday, a 1989 GMC Pickup. By the way, our friends in Goldmember (Dodge 400 convertible) came in second. We looked at their team photo at the Great Beater Challenge website…electrical tape nipple covers are a nice touch.

Afterglow

How the Challenge works: It’s been running for a number of years, save for 2020 (thank you Covid) and is more than just point A to point B thing. It’s not that, but a fully immersive let’s thrown caution to the wind and have a grand time kind of experience. You’ll remember it forever.

Sure surviving is important but it’s thinking person’s game too. Consider this: older cars start off with more points. Ditto if the car or maker has a less than stellar reputation for reliably. There’s points for creativity, costumes, how far you came to participate, how you applied the theme and so on. It pays to go all in and plan the attack. There’s honour at stake, bragging rights and a crappy trophy!

Here’s examples of how points are awarded….

A British car (is anyone so brave?): 125pts. Defunct automaker: 100pts or more, most likely to fail: up to 200 awesome points, vehicles purchased from community bulletin board and not the internet: 100pts. How about a field rescue for 100pts? If ad read “ran when parked”: 20pts. Sleeping in or on your car: 200pts. This years feature car (Chevy Cavalier): 150pt or fifty more if a convertible.

Then there’s the Saskatchewan theme. Running boards: 100pts, clearance lights: 50pts and Rider memorabilia, 50pts. Nothing for a mullet though.

Random thoughts: To twenty year old me these would have been nice rides. At least one participant mentioned having the police called on them. Don’t know why – there’s nothing at all suspicious looking about any of these cars. Even if we didn’t show you every car in this post, we did photograph all but a few.

If anyone was nervous doing the Flatland Fails editions, it didn’t show. We see a few participants of this Beater Challenge are doing 2022’s race. Gluttons for punishment or something?

Best moment ever: watching that AMC Eagle stalling multiple times even before the event started. We saw this and knew right away the Beater Challenge was going to be something amazing.

2) Giving rag-top a whole new meaning.

Lastly: Great: “Of an extent, amount, or intensity considerably above the normal or average.” Beater: ”A dilapidated but serviceable car.” Challenge: “A task or situation that tests someone’s abilities”. (All Oxford Dictionary.)

The Great Better Challenge tagline reads: “Stupid Cars, Stupid Cheap, Stupid Fun.”

Yeah, and it’s sure a good time.

Know more (new tab): Great Beater Challenge and to see a video of the event capture by a friend, go here: DanOCan Great Beater Challenge.

Drop by often for an endless stream of new and interesting content being post regularly.

They’re saying…

”Chris and Connie’s posts are among the best of the blogs out there. In fact this is my go to guide for where to explore in the summer. I like how well organized it is which allows a person to select from epic hikes to nearly forgotten history. Last year we did the Dakota crash site hike that I saw here first. It was challenging but very rewarding, especially for photographs. Another challenge for us is to find places that Chris & Connie haven’t been yet.” Glen Bowe.

More fun adventures…
River City Classics @ Eamon’s Garage – Classic cars and an iconic gas station.
YEGPIN 2018 – Vintage pinballs and vids!
Riding the Rails in SW Saskatchewan – Part One and Riding the Rails in SW Saskatchewan – Part Two – two days of burning down the track.

If you wish more information on what’s seen here, don’t hesitate to: contact us!

Date of Adventure: August 2021.
Location(s): Alberta and Saskatchewan.
Article references and thanks: Peter Brooks and all the participants of the Great Beater Challenge Flatland Fails edition.

3) Extra points awarded for clearance lights!

4) The last we saw of it.

5) We were secretly rooting for this one!

6) Ready for the highway.

7) Not creepy at all.

8) This one had a little stalling problem.

9) Saskatchewan bound.

10) The car, not the dog…

11) Organizer Peter gives a briefing.

12) His hair is perfect.

13) Carrying extra gas was a wise idea.

14) “Flatland Fails.”

15) Loaded down.

16) The oldest car participating was this ’51 Hudson Hornet.

17) A challenge stop along the way.

18) At the Etzikom Museum.

19) Here comes Soup.

20) This former Railway Station is now a private residence.

21) In downtown Manyberries Alberta.

22) This is the middle of nowhere you’ve heard about.

23) F.A.R.T. trucks shadowed the convoy.

24) Photo-op stop!

25) Ghost towns were sometimes a backdrop.

26) Overnighting it.

27) Good evening from Cadillac Saskatchewan.

28) Illegal and smuggled in.

29) Free hugs!

30) The convoy greets the morning.

31) A points stop in Val Marie.

32) You know you’re in Saskatchewan when…

33) This one mostly eluded our cameras.

34) It was sometimes hard to tell locals from participants.

35) Down a remote and dusty road.

36) At every stop it was a scene like this.

37) Time out for a little go-cart fun.

38) Cruising in style.

39) In the Hat.

40) While some kind of dance video is filmed in back.

41) A regular occurrence.

42) Pinto McBean in Bow Island.

43) Made it!

44) A little worse for wear…

45) We call them survivors.

46) Nice touch.

47) Good doggie…

48) The rolling mansion is surrounded!

49) An el-cheapo trophy in keeping with the theme.