Chanse Vigen racing in the Dash at the Battle of the Foothills 2025. Photo courtesy WPCA/Shellie Scott

By Erika Rolling

Chuckwagons

Vigen wins Battle of the Foothills Championship

Jul 28, 2025 | 12:16 PM

Grande Prairie native and chuckwagon driver Chanse Vigen has taken the competition for the second year in a row down in High River.

Sunday night had very muddy track conditions for the finale of the Battle of the Foothills 2025.

Despite the unideal conditions, a nearly full capacity crowd still showed out and were enthusiastic to watch the chuckwagons race.

After everything wrapped, it was a successful title defence for Vigen, with his outriders Rory Gervais and Ethan Motowylo, winning the 2025 Battle of the Foothills Championship Final heat with a penalty-free time of 1:20.51.

Vigen won the championship from barrel number four by a small 5 one-hundreds of a second over Cruise Bensmiller who placed second from barrel number three. Dustin Gorst finished in third place overall in the championship final from barrel number one, with Evan Magee, who was making his first career appearance in a championship final, placing fourth overall from barrel number two.

This title makes it the third of the chuckwagon racing season for Vigen, who has won the Medicine Hat Stampede, the Calgary Stampede Rangeland Derby, and now the Battle of the Foothills.

The World Professional Chuckwagon Association’s next stop on the Pro Tour will be at the Strathmore Stampede starting Friday, August 1.