On Sept. 29, 2012, nearly 150 brave pioneers made the arduous trek from "Missouri" to "Oregon."
On Sept. 21, 2013, we'll do it again!
Bad news first: If you are reading this, you have missed the first-ever Oregon Trail Live.
Good news second: We're doing it again! Next year! Mark your calendar, bookmark this page, and begin strategizing on how best to avoid scurvy.
Good news third, too: There are some fantastic photos from the event! Check them out here, here and here!
Good news second: We're doing it again! Next year! Mark your calendar, bookmark this page, and begin strategizing on how best to avoid scurvy.
Good news third, too: There are some fantastic photos from the event! Check them out here, here and here!
Here's what you missed the first time around. Highlights included, but were not limited to:
• We had 10 challenges, everything from rafting the river (running a gauntlet of roller derby girls on roller skates, dressed in blue and armed with pool noodles) to pushing 200 pounds of meat up a hill (actually, a 200-pound man in a wagon who spouted historical meat facts).
• Tidbits about trail history were on signs, hidden around the museum grounds. To successfully pass their "homesteading exam," teams had to find and memorize answers to their questions.
• Side attractions included a life-size replica of a Conestoga wagon, a petting zoo with barn animals, a blacksmith, a beer garden featuring 10 beers from around Oregon, and live music from The Strangled Darlings and Right On John.
• One of the most popular events was Bury the Dead, during which the ill-fated fifth member (a paper doll that teams had decorated, named and given personality to) was buried in a tiny graveyard while contestants sang sad funeral dirges. There were multiple Mitt Romneys (sorry, Mitt!)
• Many teams constructed their own tiny wagons, came in costume, and had extensive back stories. A personal favorite were the Robo Reenactors, who were all dressed as robots, and announced they had come from the future to show humans the folly of their wagon-traveling ways.
• Winning teams took home bedazzled wagon wheels, a very old cowbell for the Historical Enthusiasm Award, and a Lincoln Log set to the team who made the most attractive homestead.
• The event was such a success that we've already scheduled next year's. We'll see you brave pioneers on Sept. 21, 2013.
• Tidbits about trail history were on signs, hidden around the museum grounds. To successfully pass their "homesteading exam," teams had to find and memorize answers to their questions.
• Side attractions included a life-size replica of a Conestoga wagon, a petting zoo with barn animals, a blacksmith, a beer garden featuring 10 beers from around Oregon, and live music from The Strangled Darlings and Right On John.
• One of the most popular events was Bury the Dead, during which the ill-fated fifth member (a paper doll that teams had decorated, named and given personality to) was buried in a tiny graveyard while contestants sang sad funeral dirges. There were multiple Mitt Romneys (sorry, Mitt!)
• Many teams constructed their own tiny wagons, came in costume, and had extensive back stories. A personal favorite were the Robo Reenactors, who were all dressed as robots, and announced they had come from the future to show humans the folly of their wagon-traveling ways.
• Winning teams took home bedazzled wagon wheels, a very old cowbell for the Historical Enthusiasm Award, and a Lincoln Log set to the team who made the most attractive homestead.
• The event was such a success that we've already scheduled next year's. We'll see you brave pioneers on Sept. 21, 2013.
The Oregon Trail game is a registered trademark of Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, and we are pleased as punch that they are letting us do this.
