“I just had to fight through the burn,” said Scott Ridgway with a laugh, as he explained how hoisting several chunks of meat and 12 kilo turkeys, two to five packages at a time for three frantic minutes, actually became a little physically challenging near the end.
But it was well worth it, as Ridgway checked $3,645.52 worth of groceries (most of it being meat and poultry) out of the Southern Plains Co-op grocery store last Thursday afternoon.
Cheered on by his wife Janine and daughters Emily and Rachel, Ridgway sprinted straight to the meat counter when the horn sounded to begin the spirited race against the clock accompanied by theme music from the movie Rocky` that blasted through the Co-op’s audio system.
A fully stocked fresh and frozen meat and poultry section became barren in a little over two minutes. With a one-minute warning, Ridgway, who had, by now, filled five or six shopping carts, sprinted over to the nearby frozen turkey and chicken section where he found a mother lode of picnic hams along with the big frozen birds. He popped about a dozen of those into one cart and reached for another cart nearby.
In the sprint from one meat section to the other, Ridgway’s cart ran over a cardboard display stand featuring dozens of boxes of Stove Top stuffing. About six of those boxes inadvertently fell into his cart..
When the horn sounded to end the spree, Ridgway lifted his arms in the air, Rocky-like and finally caught his breath.
He then made his way over to No. 7 checkout counter where his previously loaded carts were waiting for him as was checkout cashier Karin Mostoway and Leanne Frank, who helped pack the meat into delivery boxes while general manager Brian Enns and grocery manager Jamie George pulled in delivery dollies to cart the meat to Ridgway’s waiting van.
“Boy, that was fun. Thanks so much to the Co-op and the Mercury and everyone who arranged this contest. It was a real smooth setup,” said Ridgway, commenting on the contest and its promoters and sponsors.
“I managed to stack most carts right to the brim,” he added gleefully as he finally got a good look at what he had actually stacked up and thrown into the carts.
“The total amount was higher than I expected. I didn’t want to fumble a lot, it was all about execution,” he added with another laugh as he invoked sporting terminology to explain the adventure.
“I tried picking up five or six packages at a time, but I dropped half of them just trying to throw them in the cart, so I took it down to two or three at a time and that worked.”
Prior to the start of the spree, Ridgway donned a Mercury headcam that recorded his race to the meat counter and the rest of the action. He posed for a few pictures with his family and Cooper the Co-op’s mascot.
Asked if he had a plan, prior to the start, Ridgway said he was going to keep it simple.
“I’m heading to the meat man. It’s barbecue season.”
“It was great fun, lots of excitement even for the regular shoppers who just got out of the way and watched the action,” said Mercury sales manager Cindy Beaulieu, commenting on the contest and the results.
After it was over and the final checkout slip was confirmed, the Ridgway family headed out to their well-stocked van at about 4:30 p.m.
“I have no idea,” said Janine Ridgway, with a chuckle when asked “what are you guys having for supper?”
