Chanse Vigen, Jamie Laboucane, Jason Glass advance to Rangeland Derby championship heat
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By virtue of finishing as the top three drivers in the aggregate standings through nine nights of racing at the Rangeland Derby presented by Play Alberta, Chanse Vigen, Jamie Laboucane and Jason Glass advanced to race in the Calgary Stampede's $80,000 Championship Final Heat on Sunday.
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As the top two drivers all week, Vigen and Laboucane pretty much had their spots locked up heading into Saturday, while Glass still had some work to do to guarantee his position.
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'They're both very strong,' said Glass, who came into the night in third spot and held onto it thanks to posting the night's second fastest time of 1:11.90. 'They've got some beautiful horses in the barn and they're both driving fantastic. All the credit in the world to both of those guys.'
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After finishing third in last year's final heat at the Rangeland Derby, Vigen immediately set his sights on making it back to the Calgary Stampede's championship dash for cash.
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'It's the only reason why I'm racing a wagon right now is to try to win this show,' said Vigen in early April just before the start of the Calgary Stampede Canvas Auction. 'It's that simple. It's that black and white. This is why I got into the sport. This is why I'm still in the sport. This is what I'm here for.'
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It's the fourth trip to the final for Vigen, who also made appearances in 2017 and '18 when Kurt Bensmiller won his third and fourth Rangeland Derby titles.
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During his quest to win the ultimate wagon racing prize in Calgary, 'The Rangeland Derby Rockstar' has been a sponge for information on how to get better.
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'Of course, you never stop learning,' said Vigen, who has won back-to-back World Professional Chuckwagon Association Pro Tour driving titles. 'You'll learn until the day you retire. I've gathered that from people like Kelly Sutherland (the record-holding 12-time Rangeland Derby champion) and Rick Fraser that have had really decorated careers and lengthy careers and they never stopped learning until they were out because horses have a way of tricking you.
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'It's a very complicated game that we're playing. It looks very easy when you're just watching it on television or watching it live, but there's a lot of moving parts. You'll never get it figured out. There's no formula, so as far as the learning curve, it never ends.'
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