The National Championship Chuckwagon Races Labor Day weekend in Clinton, Arkansas by Jennifer Jones I had the privilege of attending the National Championship Chuckwagon Races on Labor Day weekend in Clinton, Arkansas. For those of you who have not been to this event, I will share my experiences. When we were about a mile away from the venue, we saw a blur of white on the hillsides. From a distance it looked like scattered trash. The closer we came to the entrance I realized that what I mistook for litter were acres and acres of white campers on the hills and in the valleys, as far as you could see. As we waited at the entrance for our armbands, there were people horseback everywhere you looked. There were 2-horse wagons and 4-mule wagons going here and there. I heard later that 5,600 horses and over 30,000 people were in attendance. Camper after camper, and make-shift tarp-and-trailer "tents" were jammed into campsites next to each other. Some horse trailers and campers looked very expensive, while others looked like they were held together by thick rust and made in the 1950s; yet their owners were just happy to be there. There is something exciting about being in a place where so many people who all love horses and the lifestyle around horses are gathered! We couldn't wait to get our campsite set up so we could ride around and see everything. Riding horseback down the dirt roads around all the campsites took three hours just to see all the campers. The next day we rode a trail up and down steep hills, across rock-bottom creeks, and through gorgeous green meadows, stopping to let the horses drink creek water and eat grass, and let our horses (and our bottoms) rest. The third day we rode up to the vendors’ area where we bought a 'Gus' cowboy hat, drank homemade Root Beer, listened to a concert, and danced the two-step. When we went back to where we had parked our horse, we walked by lines and lines of horses’ rumps just to claim ourown horse, waiting tied to the rail. I felt like I was back in time, during the Old West. Each day we rode a short distance over to the main area and watched the chuckwagons race. Most of the fans stayed on their horses’ backs while watching the races. Small wagons raced against each other with their "outriders" leading the way. Then the classic (larger) wagons raced. Ambulances on site were on stand-by and were called several times. I saw a girl outrider fall off of her horse; she hit the dirt hard and tumbled like a rag doll, end-over-end. Scary! Lots of excitement! We heard later that everyone was OK. If you enjoy strolling around in the moonlight on horseback, cantering through green meadows, meandering on twisting trails up and down mountains in the Ozarks, you'll enjoy the National Championship Chuckwagon Race next Labor Day weekend 2010! It is about a four-hour drive from Fayette County: go west on I-40 to Little Rock, then to Conway, AR. Once at Conway, take Exit 125, turn right onto US 65 North and follow it to Clinton, AR. Then get behind a horse trailer and stay in line! For more information about the National Championship Chuckwagon Races, other events, and more photos, see http://www.chuckwagonraces.com/.