More than 30 mounts with the national police force are strapping on their finest shoes as they prepare to perform for crowds at the Abbotsford Agrifair this weekend.
The RCMP Musical Ride will perform a total of four shows at the Agrifair, with two on Saturday and one each on Friday and Sunday.
“It came into being from back when the RCMP used to be the Northwest Mounted Police. They would go on patrol, and come back to the forts at night, and to maintain their horsemanship skills and relieve a little boredom in the forts at night, they would do competitions between the officers,” said Const. Aaron Harder with the Musical Ride.
“So that turned into performances, and then eventually turned into what you’re seeing today … It’s 32 horses doing formation riding. Its formations come from our original routes of cavalry formations and it’s all set to music.”
The first performance salute will be accepted by Abbotsford Police Department (APD) Chief Bob Rich at 3 p.m. on Friday.
The second performance salute takes place at 12:30 p.m. Saturday and will be accepted by a representative of the family of Const. John Davidson, the APD officer who was killed in the line of duty last November.
Salutes will also take place Saturday at 4:30 p.m., and Sunday at 3 p.m.