More fun and security coming to Saskatoon Ex in 140th year

For the first time since 1999, the Saskatoon Ex will be eight days long as the event celebrates its 140th year.

This year’s exhibition begins on July 31 and ends on August 7, which means the event will include the August Long Weekend.

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Dan Kemppainen, CEO of Prairieland, said the 2025 exhibition will include a lot of rides, and he compared the midway lineup to the Calgary Stampede.

“This means larger rides, an increase in ridership by over 33 percent,” he said. “To put it in perspective, we’ll be getting about 85 percent of the Calgary ride lineup, (which is) pretty impressive for a market that is one sixth the size of Calgary.”

Dan Kemppainen, CEO of Prairieland, said the midway this year will be comparable to the Calgary Stampede. (Alex Brown/650 CKOM)

The parade to kick off the Saskatoon Ex will be happening on July 30 at 10 a.m.

Some big names will be gracing both the SaskTel Grandstand and the Kickin’ Horse Saloon this year, including Metric, High Valley, Smash Mouth, Loverboy, Corb Lund, TLC, Steven Page, The Road Hammers, Lee Aaron, Danko Jones, The Washboard Union, Sass Jordan and Bif Naked.

Peter Jelinski, Prairieland’s manager of signature events, said even more musical performers could be announced in the weeks ahead.

It’s not a simple process to attract major performers to the Bridge City, and Jelinski said they have to start booking a month after the exhibition ends.

“We start in September, so this has been an ongoing process,” he said. “The lineup is something that this organization is always very proud of… We just always give it our 110 percent.”

This year’s ex is also a big milestone, marking 140 years since the fair was first held.

“We didn’t even announce everything that’s going on,” Jelinski said. “We’ve got some special plans for the 140th that we’ll be sharing closer to the event.”

One of the attractions this year will be a museum exhibit that looks back at the history of the event.

Security measures

Security concerns have grown at the exhibition over the past few years, with a number of bear spray attacks taking place.

But with a new head of security, the event’s organizers are hoping to avoid any incidents this year.

Patrick Barbar, the exhibition’s head of security operations, said staff have been working on upgrading security for a couple of years.

Patrick Barbar, the exhibition’s head of security operations. (Alex Brown/650 CKOM)

“This all started two years ago with significant investment on the part of Prairieland, which include the entrance screening as well as other measures I’m not going to go into full detail (on),” he said.

Barbar said the early results of some of the increased measures have been very encouraging.

“We have seen, statistically, a very sharp decrease in instances involving bear spray and other weapons,” he said.

“Although nobody can guarantee anything, especially when you’re hosting the largest event in Saskatoon… we’re very confident that these measures will help make the ex the family friendly, safe event that we want it to be.”

Barbar reminded those attending the exhibition to leave prohibited items at home to allow for a quick and easy entrance into the park.

“Those include knives, scissors, anything sharp, utility knives, pocket knives,” he said. “Alcohol, cannabis, and other intoxicants are also prohibited on the grounds, and finally aerosols such as bear spray and dog repellent.”