It’s a ‘shell-abration’ in Yukon

By Cara Pattison
Contributing Writer

It was a real shell-abration at Yukon’s “Friday Fun Days” as the 45^th Annual Turtle Races ensued in City Park.

Kids aged 5-11, armed with slowpokes named Shelly, Shelby, Sheldon, Tiny, and even Bacon, came to see who, ironically, had the fastest turtle in town.

Twenty-three kids participated in the event, and most brought their turtle entourage to cheer them on.

The Yukon Community Center Kids Camp came to watch the fun, making attendance at a whopping 50 turtle fans.

After a round of ribbons were presented for the smallest, largest, and best dressed turtles, the actual races began.

Kids sat in a large circle and placed their turtle on a part of the circumference.

When announcer Nick Rice shouted “Go!” on the microphone, the race was on. Rice is Yukon Parks & Recreation’s special operations supervisor for special events.

Kids let go of their turtles and watched them race towards an outer circle that indicated the finish line.

While some turtles were shell-shocked and stayed in their homes, others ran at a literal turtle’s pace.

The old adage, “slow and steady wins the race,” did not necessarily work in these speed categories.

First, second and third grade winners from each category ended up shuffling home with a ribbon shelled out by the City of Yukon.

THE WINNERS

This year’s top winners at the 45^th Annual Turtle Races were:

LARGEST TURTLE

Eli Burger “Charlotte” (18 inches)

SMALLEST TURTLE

1. Holden “Tiny” (1 inch)

Large Race

1^st: Eli Burger “Charlotte”

2^nd: Carson Bowen “Kristene”

3^rd: Kendra/Kelsy Shiery “Emerald”

Medium Race

1^st: Kingston Nottingham

2^nd: Austin Gepford “Hester”

3^rd: James Roberts “Spot”

Small Race

1^st: Kids Camp “Timmy”

2^nd: Blake Israel “Leonardo”

3^rd: Brenna Israel “Mikey”

Best Costume
1^st: Carson Bowen “Sombrero”

2^nd: Blake Israel “Leonardo”

3^rd: Brenna Israel “Mikey”

For more information about Friday Fun Days, call Yukon Parks & Recreation at (405) 350-8937.