Dodge lodgings ready for the ‘Ruckus’

 Last week, 40 little softball players piled into the Super 8 Motel on Wyatt Earp in Dodge City.
    This week, a German film crew is staying there.
    You never know just who will be visiting Dodge, and when they will arrive, but this is one time of year when our city can pretty much count on out-of-town guests.
    Well before the Ruckus — AKA Dodge City Days — begins, the area's businesses and city officials prepare for the annual wave of tourists, cowboys, beauty queens, carnival workers and Gunsmoke fans that arrive for the annual 10-day celebration.
    The city must be cleaned and polished, truckloads of food and beverages must be ordered, tents need to be pitched, horses groomed, rides and rodeo infrastructure set up — and that's the short list.

'A matter of degree'
    The people who provide lodging to Dodge's guests are ready to do their part.
    Area hospitality professionals say that accommodating a greater volume takes just a little adjusting for those who have been doing the job right all along.
    "Really, it's just a matter of degree. If you've got a good system in place, it just takes some tweaking to handle a big volume of guests," said Super 8 manager Anna Kilgore. "Our major change is ordering a lot more food. We have to stay on top of that, because we expect to be full for the duration of Dodge City Days."
    Kilgore said she's ordered much more of the food items that Super 8 uses for the motel's free breakfasts.
 "We serve boiled eggs, waffles, bagels, cream cheese, fruit, danish and juice," she said. "We don't actually cook it ourselves, but it's still quite a lot to handle, and you really need to stay on top of it."
    Kilgore said she doesn't hire extra staff for Dodge City Days, but does use her year-round staff of 17 a bit differently during the event.
    "Most of the time, the front desk person can handle breakfast, but at this time of year, one of the housekeepers takes over that job," she said. "The front desk person will already have their hands full. With up to a couple of hundred guests at a time, it's a big job just feeding everyone, never mind handling the front desk too."
    Kilgore said that although Super 8 has a few rooms open, she expects them to go fast. At $79 to $110 a night, Super 8's prices are pretty standard mid-range rates.
    "We'll be full, or very close to it, every day of the festival," she said.

A taste of home
    Over at the Boot Hill Bed and Breakfast, owner Kurt Scadden said he and his wife Enid don't really have to do too much to prepare for Dodge City Days.
    "We basically just keep doing what we do — we don't change what we offer," Scadden said. "We're small, so even when we're full, we're still able to offer our guests the same experiences and services that we do the rest of the year. Like all good bed and breakfasts, we offer personalized service and personal relationships — but in our own unique way."
    Scadden said that Boot Hill's small scale means that he and his wife don't have to make any adjustments when the place fills up.
    "Whether our five suites are full, or whether we have just one guest, it doesn't effect our approach and it doesn't affect the guests," he said. "Take our breakfasts, for example. Every morning, my wife cooks a feast of eggs, bacon, potatoes, homemade cinnamon rolls or croissants, fresh fruit, orange juice, coffee and tea."
    Kurt added that Enid will also cook up special orders of French toast, pancakes, omelets and oatmeal for guests. And at anywhere from $99 to $109 a night, he said, Boot Hill's rates compare very favorably to those of area motels.

Already packed
    The Holiday Motel has been completely full every night for the past two months, and owner Kim Huynh expects it to be full through Dodge City Days.
    Huynh offers modest rooms at modest rates. During the rest of the year, you can rent a room with mini-fridge and microwave for $175 a week. But that's one thing that changes during Dodge City Days.
    "We think it's fair to charge more during the Days, so we go up to $40 - $50 a night. It's still a great rate," said Huynh. "We've also been remodeling, mostly the bathrooms, but other than that, we haven't done a whole lot to get ready. That's because we're used to being pretty full — a lot of truck drivers are regulars here."

Reach Claire O'Brien at (620)408-9931 or e-mail her at
claire.obrien@dodgeglobe.com.