Paso Robles Marks 95th Pioneer Day
By Camille DeVaul · Fri Oct 10 2025
Paso Robles is preparing to mark a milestone with the 95th Annual Pioneer Day on Saturday, October 11. The daylong celebration will bring together longtime families and newer residents for traditions that have shaped the community since 1931.
The parade down Spring Street remains the centerpiece, filling downtown with antique tractors, horse-drawn wagons, marching bands, sports teams, and community groups. Around the Paso Robles City Park, families can enjoy the famous free bean feed, the Whiskerino Contest, reunions, and countless other hometown activities that have made Pioneer Day one of the city’s most cherished events.
This year’s Pioneer Day Committee is chaired by Lori Woods, whose family history is deeply intertwined with Paso Robles. She first joined the committee in 2009 and has since played an active role in coordinating the parade and other festivities. Her local roots stretch back generations, with family members involved in some of the earliest Pioneer Day traditions.
“My favorite part [of the parade] is seeing all the faces of the participants and even the spectators when the lineup is going down the streets,” Lori remarked. “It’s the eyes lighting up, seeing the little kids along the streets there at the beginning waving their flags, seeing everybody get excited, jumping up and down because they’re hearing the band, they’re seeing the fire trucks. That’s my favorite part. It’s really the parade going down and knowing that this is gonna be our 95th. That’s something special. It’s kind of an honor to be in a position when it has been going on that long.”
While the annual celebration is steeped in heritage, new traditions continue to emerge. Following the Gymkhana at the Paso Robles Event Center, the Pioneer Games will return, having been so well-received last year. Events will include the Hay Hurdle Relay, Hay Loading, Tug of War between the Bearcats and Greyhounds, Antique Car Potato Race, Women’s Truck and Trailer Backing, Tractor Stake Race, and the Crawler Tractor Pull. Like Pioneer Day itself, the games are free and open to the community.
Leading up to the main event, the community has already honored this year’s Pioneer Day Royal Court. The court includes Grand Marshal Gary Tucker, Queen Lorraine Cagliero, and Olivia Anderson of the York Mountain area, along with five attendants representing communities across North County. Festivities in their honor have included the Pioneer Royalty Dinner, Old Timer’s BBQs, Lady’s Luncheon, and Kickoff Party, setting the stage for the October celebration.
Pioneer Royals are an integral part of the Pioneer Day traditions, and you will be able to read more about this year’s court in this issue of Paso Magazine.
Lori adds, “If you look at the past parades and then look at the lineups even from last year and this year, not much has changed, which is kind of a cool thing ... [it] shows the generational traditions that have been instilled in our community. And it still thrives today.”
Ninety-five years after its debut, Pioneer Day continues to unite Paso Robles as a true hometown homecoming — where history, tradition, and community strength take center stage.
October 11 Pioneer Day Schedule
7 a.m. | Traditional Bean Cooking Begins
Paso Robles City Park
8 a.m. | Children's Pet Show
14 years and under, Paso Robles City Park Gazebo
8:15 a.m. | Little Cowboy / Cowgirl Contest
Paso Robles City Park Gazebo
10 a.m. | Pioneer Day Parade
Starts at 16th & Spring Street
12 Noon | Free Bean Feed
Paso Robles City Park
12 Noon | Carnegie Library & Historical Museum Opens in City Park
12 Noon | Pioneer Park/Museum Activities
2010 Riverside Ave — Antique Tractor & Wagon Display and Vintage Engine Show
1 p.m. | Horseshoe Pitching Contest
Paso Robles City Park
12:30 p.m. | Whiskerino Contest
Paso Robles City Park
1 p.m. | Gymkhana
Paso Robles Event Center
3 p.m. | Pioneer Games
Paso Robles Event Center
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