Guthrie’s ‘89er Celebration Announces the Great Bed Race, Guthrie High School Jazz Concert, and the Fort Riley Cavalry Return

The upcoming ‘89er Parade and Celebration (April 18 - 22) in Guthrie promises more exciting events as the ‘89er Committee finalizes plans for the traditional celebration of the birth of our state. The City of Guthrie is working hard with the American Legion to bring ‘89ers participants a bigger and better celebration each year.

On Thursday, April 20th, one of the funniest ‘89er events, the Great Bed Race, will begin at Honor Park near 300 West Harrison Avenue, across from the Oklahoma Publishing Museum. Teams of 5 will race decorated homemade beds down Harrison Avenue from Honor Park. Each team has a theme, and the bed decorations and team costumes are always hilarious.

To kick off the race, the Guthrie High School Jazz Concert will begin at that location. At 5:30 p.m., the Guthrie High School Jazz Band and Jazz Choir will perform for all race spectators. The bed race will begin at 6:00 p.m.

Bed race teams from all walks of life are welcome, from businesses to community groups to families. The registration fee is $25. Contact the Guthrie Chamber of Commerce to register and to get more information about race rules.

The Chamber is also in charge of the ‘89ers Jail again this year. Revelers are encouraged to wear their ‘89er Buttons to avoid being arrested, but there is no guarantee that the ‘89ers Cowboy Cops won’t pick you up for looking menacing. The jail will be in front of the Chamber of Commerce office on Parade Day (April 22nd).

In addition, the Fort Riley, Kansas, Cavalry Commanding General’s Mounted Color Guard’s Encampment Exhibition and Reenactment is returning this year, with four shows on Friday and Saturday, April 21st and April 22nd. The Color guard will be performing each day at 3:00 p.m. and again at 6:00 p.m. just before the start of the WRCA Professional Rodeo at the Logan County Fairgrounds.

From privates to officers, the men and women of the Fort Riley Commanding General’s Color guard (CGMCG) recreate the colorful spectacle of the American Horse Soldier, portraying the U.S. Cavalry as they appeared in the mid-to-late 19th century. They demonstrate their horsemanship and perform mounted drill and weapons demonstrations.

The mounted demonstration is an exhibition of skill and precision required of a cavalry horse soldier. It includes various drills using the 1861 Cavalry Light Saber, .45-caliber revolver and the 1873 Remington .45-caliber lever action repeater rifle.

Soldiers in the CGMCG are assigned to the Headquarters and Headquarters Battalion, 1st Infantry Division.

The CGMCG represents Fort Riley and the U.S. Army in a highly professional and polished display of cavalry horsemanship and military tradition. The honor that it is to have them here in Guthrie as part of our ‘89er Celebration again cannot be overstated. The ‘89er Committee and the American Legion Lebron Post 58 encourage locals and visitors alike to show them respect and appreciation for their time and their service.