From beauty queens to radon levels to speeding Ferraris, the most viewed stories on the Western Wheel’s website in 2024 create an eclectic list.
Here’s a look at the articles that attracted the most eyeballs on westernwheel.ca during the past 12 months:
• Okotoks model crowned Miss Teenage Canada – July 17
An Okotoks teen took home a title coveted nationwide.
Seventeen-year-old Arianna Ramsay was crowned Miss Teenage Canada 2024 on July 14 at the pageant's national finals competition in Toronto.
"I'm very passionate about modelling and pageantry," said Ramsay, who last competed in the Miss Teenage Canada contest in 2021 before winning this year's banner. "With the title, I get to travel around the country, advocating and really just expressing my passions."
"Last year I created H.E.R.O. Canada," she said. "It's my online platform that I created on Instagram to spread awareness about the effects of bullying, what it really means to be a bully, and what being bullied can do to your mental health and how it impacts your lifestyle."
• DeWinton hobbyist selling home with massive model train layout – May 8
It’s the end of the line for a Foothills County model train hobbyist.
Over the last 25 years, Barrie Roberts built an impressive model train layout, with tracks laid inside and outside of his home in DeWinton.
“Men like myself are absorbed in this,” Roberts said. “You can get carried away, and I think I have.”
In his 70s and in a wheelchair, Roberts made the difficult decision to put the acreage, and all the train paraphernalia, up for sale.
The G-gauge layout inside the basement is museum quality and takes up about 1,000 square feet over two rooms, he said.
• Famous ranch in Foothills County back on the market – April 17
Foothills County boasts some high-end real estate, but a 480-acre guest ranch near Millarville is in a league of its own.
The Ranch at Fisher Creek, located a one-hour drive from Calgary, is on the market for $19.5 million, according to a listing on realtor.ca.
The ranch has a Hollywood connection and is where movie star Clint Eastwood stayed while filming Unforgiven, the Oscar-winning western that won four Oscars in 1993.
Billed as a distinctive equestrian estate, the property blends European sophistication with the rugged soul of the West, the listing says.
Beyond the 12,000-square-foot, five-bedroom house, other amenities found on the property include guest cabins, an indoor riding arena and an 11-acre lake.
• Radon levels in Okotoks and area among highest on planet, says expert – March 6
Groundbreaking research on radon levels in rural Alberta is a major cause for concern in the Foothills, according to a Calgary scientist.
Dr. Aaron Goodarzi, director of the Robson DNA Science Centre and lead of science communication for the University of Calgary’s Charbonneau Cancer Institute, has dedicated much of his decades-long career to studying radon, including recent tests in Okotoks.
"The Prairies, absolutely southern Alberta being part of the Prairies, Okotoks, the surrounding municipal district of Foothills, is indeed one of the largest radon-exposed parts of this world," said Goodarzi. "Now, if you take Canada as a whole, we're easily in the top five, and if you look within Canada, it's sort of a three-way tie between the Prairies, the Atlantic region and the North.
• Missing hiker found dead: Turner Valley RCMP – July 13
A hiker reported missing last week has been found deceased, according to a July 12 Turner Valley RCMP release.
The 66-year-old Edmonton man had last been heard from on July 5 while hiking, and was reported missing by family on July 6.
He had been hiking at Holy Cross Mountain, near Highway 541 in Kananaskis, said the RCMP.
The circumstances surrounding his death are not deemed to be suspicious, according to the release.
• Foothills family is facing $2,000 rent increase – April 4
After residing in the Foothills for the past six years, a local family doesn't know where it will be living in a few months thanks to receiving notice of a significant rent increase.
Jeremy Hill said he was told last month that his rent would be going up from $2,500 to $4,500 effective June 1.
Hill, who lives with his wife and one-and-a-half-year-old daughter on a property owned by the Okotoks Agricultural Society, first received a text message on Feb. 13 saying that he was facing a possible rent increase.
"We would like you to know that we are looking at a possible rental rate adjustment and that this would take place 3 months from now on June 1. We do have to give you notice, so please take this as your notice," reads the text message.
• Town forces Okotoks artist to remove sculptures from park – April 26
Okotoks may soon lose an iconic assortment of local art.
The many small sculptures along the Sheep River pathways have been marked for removal by the Town of Okotoks after a complaint was received about the art.
The man behind the sculptures, local artist Gordon Mackey, is disappointed by the Town's "formal request" for him to remove his art.
"It is very frustrating, but I'm faced with bylaw violations and whatnot," said Mackey.
The artist has put up over 100 of the small sculptures since 2022, and has already started taking down his artwork.
• Okotoks restaurant named one of Canada's most romantic – Feb. 2
Heartland Café has once again earned the "heart" in its name.
For the third year in a row, the popular Olde Towne Okotoks restaurant has been included in OpenTable’s Top 100 Romantic Restaurants in Canada list.
OpenTable, one of the most popular restaurant review and reservation platforms in the world, analyzed data metrics, including over 1.1 million user reviews, to create the list.
Just 16 other restaurants in Alberta received the honour, and Heartland is one of only two outside of Calgary and Edmonton.
• Foothills RCMP nab Ferrari driving 174 km/h – Sept. 16
A Ferrari was pulled over after the driver was clocked travelling 174 km/h in Foothills County on Sunday.
Police say the vehicle was speeding excessively and driving recklessly when it was stopped on a rural, two-lane road.
Alberta RCMP shared the incident on social media, saying that speeding is dangerous and puts people at risk.
Drivers in Alberta caught travelling more than 50 km/h over the posted speed limit face a mandatory court appearance where fines are determined by a judge.
• Employees rally in Okotoks and across Alberta, gov't responds – Sept. 8
AUPE — the Alberta Union of Provincial Employees — held a rally in Okotoks on Sunday, Sept. 8 to push for better wages, job security, working conditions and more.
Chapters and members from across different professions gathered at the Okotoks Health and Wellness Centre from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. to rally as part of an organized effort across the province.
"Almost all our members are in bargaining, ranging from healthcare to provincial government services, to education, to boards and agencies, and to municipalities," wrote the union in a statement.
According to Curtis Jackson, AUPE vice-president for southern Alberta, the provincial government is directly impeding the union's progress.
