While more than 200 riders were out for rounds 7 and 8 of the Alberta Motorsports Association (AMSA) Southern Alberta races hosted by the Drumheller Off Road Vehicle Association (DORVA) over the long weekend, it was local riders who shone on the track.
    The DORVA event is quickly becoming one of the premier events for the tour on its schedule during the season with 260 Alberta riders coming to take on the track from Friday until Monday.
    “The DORVA members are a bunch of really strong racers and definitely they are a force to be reckoned with,” said Casey Christensen, race director and vice president of DORVA.
    He is especially proud of his sons Barett and Deckin who performed well.
    “They pretty well ran first and second in all of their motos,” he said. They also ran in larger classes with smaller bikes and continued to do well.
 The reputation of the races continues to grow over the years. This is not only because of the well run races but the track. Even on non-event days, the track is busy.

    “We have a lot of traffic coming from southern Alberta and even Edmonton down. It is becoming a very well used facility and everyone loves it,” said Christensen.
    While DORVA quietly goes about its business, there is often dozens of racers from out of town riding every week. On the Sunday before the races they were 48 on the track with the families in tow at the facility.
    “A lot of the racers are calling it one of the best events in the AMSA Series and one of the best tracks for riding,” said Christensen. “We probably had 500-600 coming through the gates this weekend with riders, family, supporters, sponsors and spectators…it has an economic impact on the businesses in Drumheller.” 

A small stretch of Taylor Siding Road continues to slide. Alberta Transportation hopes to have a repair plan in place this season.

Alberta Transportation is still looking for a solution for a chronically sloughing Taylor Siding road.
    The Mail last reported on this problem on Highway 841, close to where it connects to Highway 569 in Wheatland County near Dalum, last September. At that time, it was reported that three seasons had passed with the problem continuing to rear its head.
    Since that time, area residents said there had been some attention given to the stretch of road, but again it has fallen into disrepair.
    The highway is classified as a resource road, there is a couple of oil and gas based installations along the road, making it relatively busy.
    Tony Chelick, operations manager for Alberta Transportation says they are aware of the problem.
    “We did do a project last fall, but it did fail again this spring,” said Chelick.
    They are now looking at a way to make a more lasting repair.
    “I did bring in a geotechnical consultant and he has been out there and done a review. He is putting a design together as we speak,” he said.
    Chelick said they are hoping to put together a project in the near future, but it is dependent on a few factors.
    “So far we are planning to do it if we get the design done, get a contractor lined up and it is within budget,” said Chelick.
    Last season one of the difficulties with getting the road repaired in a timely manner was the lack of contractors following the flood that were available. He said the highway maintenance contractor Carillion will have a better handle on how available contractors are for such a project,
    “We hope to deliver a project this year,” said Chelick.