in which the top turtles qualify to represent their city in the Canadian Turtle Derby. Boissevain is now host to a turtle racing hall of fame and a large statue of a racing turtle. Initially crowning the Canadian Champion Turtle at the event, in 1974 they invited a top American turtle to the event to race the Canadian winner. The American team consisted of Lyle Parish, Howard Mitchell, and "Toby" the turtle. Several thousand people attended the final race in the competition. Although the race was initially close, the Canadian turtle was victorious after the American turtle fell asleep halfway through the race. Boissevain held the Derby for 30 years, with great success. In its heyday, 16 turtles per heat, with 27 heats, vied for the Canadian title. If a turtle won its heat, it raced in one of three semi-final heats of 9 turtles each. The top three in each of these then raced for the Canadian Championship. In parallel, international heats were held to determine an international champ, usually from USA and often the team that raced at Zack's in Sausalito, CA. Then, the Canadian and International champs duked it out for the World Championship. World record time, for the 25 foot diameter carpet track was 16.8 seconds. Most successful stable was Klip N Beatty Stables, from Winnipeg and Calgary (Bruce Klippenstein and Doug/Danny Beatty). They won the Canadian championship 4 times and the World Championship 3 times (1977, 1978, 1990). Klip N Beatty Stables were invited to organize the Alberta Turtle Racing Championship at the 1981 Calgary Stampede. Their promotion included the World's First Flying Turtle Race (in partnership with Hot Air Balloon Association), a float in the Stampede Parade, and daily broadcast of the races on CHQR radio. Turtle racing has also been popular among the British, as well. Members of the British army held turtle races on the foothills of Mount Olympus while stationed there after World War II. In the 1970s, a British organization known as the New World International Turtle Track Commission began hosting a world championship event. The 1974 event saw attendees from nine countries bring over two hundred turtles to the competition. The championship was rocked by a scandal, however, after it was discovered that one turtle had wheels from a toy car taped to its shell. The organizer of the event later lamented that this scandal occurred just as "Turtle