It won't just be the horses and riders competing for cash at this weekend's Spruce Meadows National.
Nearly 2,000 supporters are expected for the second annual Show Your Spirit competition, where non-profit community groups and organizations will battle for more than $10,000 between noon and 2 p.m. today and tomorrow.
Each of the 34 teams competing today and 36 Sunday will receive $500 for showing up and five purses of $1,500 will be handed out for enthusiasm, along with a $5,000 grand prize.
"That's a lot of pop bottles," said spokeswoman Jill Mooney. "Everyone leaves with something, no-one goes away empty-handed.
"Spruce Meadows is here because the Southern family wanted to give something back to the Calgary community, so this fits very well with what Spruce Meadows is all about.
"It's affordable, it's a place for families, and it's a place for groups like this."
There's only one requirement in the CN Rail and Sun Media-sponsored event: Teams need to stand out and be loud.
"It's a very simple concept," said Mooney. "Just come and cheer. It's Show Your Spirit, so we tell people to dress up, have a good time, bring props.
"Last year, the Canadian women's bobsled team had a little mini-bobsled they were trucking around in, the Irish dancers were here in their sparkly costumes and there's a couple animal rescue groups that bring dogs."
Groups need to have at least 10 members to compete, but most will be a lot larger.
"On Saturday there will be about 870 people (competing) and on Sunday, it's over 1,000," said Mooney.
Being able to raise at least $500 in one day is huge for local non-profit groups, said Ian Wilson, spokesman for the John Petropoulos Memorial Fund, which works to improve safety for emergency service providers.
"For us, it's great because we're a smaller charitable organization," said Wilson.
"To get ($500) just for showing up, that might not mean much to a larger group, but for us, it's dollars well-needed."
Competing for the second time, Wilson contended his team will be "small but vocal."
"There's only going to be between 10 and 20 of us, but we're going to be loud."
