77th Annual Wallace Gyro Days begins Wednesday
Photo by CHANSE WATSON/ The Gyro Ball rolls to the finish line under the 6th Street Bridge in Wallace last year.
WALLACE – This week marks the 77th running of the Wallace Gyro Club’s Lead Creek Derby. The festivities start Wednesday, June 13 when the Gyros take over programming on KWAL for a day in order to help sell tickets for the Lead Creek Derby. Mike Hull, Radio Day Co-Chairman, provides more information, “Radio Day continues to be a huge part of Gyro Days. We have a big barbecue at the station and people come by, eat, buy some tickets, and join the Gyros as they broadcast across the Valley. Wallace Gyros will host different shows throughout the day.”
On Thursday, the carnival begins on 6th and Cedar Streets in Downtown Wallace.
“We’ve got the same great carnival again this year that we had last year. They’ll have rides and games and we encourage everyone to come to Wallace on Thursday or Friday night or all day and night on Saturday to enjoy the carnival,” Gyro President Chris Pfahl said.
Thanks to several Silver Valley businesses and individuals, once again the Gyro Club has provided free passes to the elementary school age children of Mullan and Wallace. Those free passes were handed out through the schools before the conclusion of the school year.
Friday night provides added excitement as the Wallace Elks Drum & Bugle Corps will parade around town playing from their large repertoire of cheerful tunes.
Saturday kicks off the Lead Creek Derby as the ball drops at noon at the Last Chance Bridge in Mullan. The honor of dropping the ball in the creek this year is being given to one of our own local members.
The large ball floating down the creek is a unique sight to see for everyone. The crowd watched the ball all the way down the creek as the Gyros help make sure it doesn’t get hung up on trees or shrubs. Once in Wallace, the large crowd, the carnival, the winners and all the associated festivities combine for a terrific time.
The Gyros are currently selling tickets that will each be assigned a computer generated time that it will take for the ball to reach Wallace. The buyer of the ticket with the assigned time that is closest to the actual time wins the first place prize. First prize is 50 Silver Dollars. There are 13 other cash prizes paid, so people are encouraged to purchase tickets at local merchants or restaurants in Wallace. The sale of these tickets is how the Gyros fund local scholarships and various other youth activities every year, as well as provide financial support for the carnival.