Messages from March 2009
posted 3.31.09
I have the high school rotations updated for this weekend. Please look them over carefully. There were a lot of rotation changes for the ACT test, prom and school make up day. Make sure I have you where you are supposed to be. If you added events that you weren't entered in at Plainview, make sure I put you in those events.
posted 3.30.09
I appreciate all of the e-mails with your thoughts about last weekend's cancelled rodeos. I've printed them off for the Directors to read this weekend. I apologize for not responding to all of them but I feel like I am in a time crunch this week. If you are worried that your e-mail didn't get to me, just give me a call.
I am sorting the mail tonight and will start on the Hereford rodeos tomorrow. By Wednesday, I hope to post a copy of the entries for this weekend so everyone can confirm that they are entered and in the correct performance. This weekend is the ACT test, prom for several members and for the really unfortunate, a snow day make up on Saturday. Uggh!
I think I have a system for getting straight on the fees for the lost rodeo so I will start making notes on it tomorrow. I have already talked with several who will be exchanging their combined Plainview checks for a new Hereford check in the correct amount. This is not a problem.
Many of you were going to pick up your state packets at Plainview. I will have these at Hereford. There are a few moms who have notary stamps and they have offered to bring them to Hereford to take care of the forms that must be notarized.
Don't forget to bring your grades with you and your Tri-State scholarship applications.
Wrangler Division members need to bring their donations for the silent auction on Sunday.
I have the winning ticket number for the 50/50 drawing on Sunday at Vernon. (I had packed it away in all of the supplies I sent to Susan for Plainview and didn't write down the number.) It is a grey ticket - #853480. The total jackpot is $701. If this ticket is not claimed by the start of the PM performance at Hereford, then the money will go into the new drawing.
We will be having a membership meeting on Saturday during the break to accept nominations for the Board of Directors. There are EIGHT positions up this year. We will also vote on our spirit theme for Abilene.
posted 3.28.09
As of 12 noon Saturday, the Sunday rodeo at Plainview has also been cancelled.
Please note that this was not an easy decision to make. Personally, I feel it is harder to cancel a rodeo than to actually put one on. The planning starts months in advance and everything starts coming together in the week prior to your event. You feel you have so much invested in it already that you hate to see all of your hard work go to waste by canceling at the last minute.
Then you have to deal with the possible rescheduling dates which is a nightmare because people have already made plans thinking there was not a rodeo that weekend.
In the end, the Directors felt it was best to cancel both rodeos and due to rescheduling conflicts, the Plainview rodeos WILL NOT be rescheduled this semester.
This brings up a number of questions and I will try to answer as many as I can right now.
Q: The roads are fine here and the sun is shining. Why can't we have the rodeo?
A: Look at the area our membership covers. We go from eastern New Mexico to western Oklahoma and southeastern Colorado to south of Lubbock. The northern Panhandle has snow drifts of 6 feet or more and people can't even get out of their driveways. While we are aware that many of you left before the storm (or weren't greatly effected by it), there is a large portion of our members who cannot make it to Plainview - even by Sunday. The safety of the members comes first and we do want anyone to feel pressure to travel in treacherous conditions because they can't afford to miss earning any points.
Q: How do I enter for Hereford?
A: Your Saturday entry for Plainview will roll over to Hereford. It is the same rotation. If you had a rotation change at Plainview, please e-mail me so I will put you back in your regular rotation.
Q: What happens to my entry fees?
A: You do not lose your fees for the second rodeo. I may need some help with this if you paid for more than one rodeo in the same check. But we will get everything figured out as soon as possible.
Q: I couldn't come to Plainview, but I want to come to Hereford. Can I still enter?
A: Yes. You will need to e-mail me or call me on Monday. I will be driving all day Sunday so I cannot take phone entries until I get home. There will not be late fines if I am notified no later than Monday. You can bring your entry fees to the rodeo in Hereford.
Q: What about my grades / scholarship application I was going to turn in at Plainview?
A: You can bring these items to Hereford. The THSRA scholarship must be sent to the State Office.
Q: Why are the rodeos not being rescheduled?
A: There are too many conflicts with other weekends. For example: Many families already have plans for Easter weekend. The next weekend is the start of TCRA and JRCA rodeos. The Plainview club members can't just put on a rodeo whenever we ask them to. They have other plans also.
This is a pain for everyone involved and I am sorry to those of you out the expense of traveling to Plainview early only to have to come back home. But we can't control Mother Nature. If you are having trouble finding a positive side to this mess, look at the much-needed moisture we are finally getting.
I will be back in the office Monday morning and will do my best to clear up any more questions or concerns any of you may have.
posted 3.27.09
As of 9pm Friday night, the Saturday rodeo at Plainview HAS BEEN CANCELLED. The Board of Directors will be meeting again Saturday morning and it will be posted here by 12 noon what their decision is for Sunday's rodeo.
posted 3.27.09
PLAINVIEW RODEOS ARE ON FOR THIS WEEKEND.
Saturday's rodeo will have a delayed start time of 4pm. Sunday's rodeo will start at the regular time of 10am.
Use your own judgment as to whether you want to travel this weekend. To the best of our knowledge, the roads will begin to clear on Saturday morning. By delaying the start time, the families up north will have the opportunity to travel under safer conditions.
Report cards will be due and scholarship applications may be turned in, also.
Please be careful and have a great weekend,
posted 3.26.09
Another update:
The Board of Directors is having a conference call tomorrow to discuss our options for this weekend's rodeos. I will post their decision here by 1pm at the latest.
posted 3.25.09
Just a few updates for you:
The team roping idea for this Saturday has been overruled. So you are on your own for entertainment. Please remember that you are representing Tri-State when you are visiting local restaurants and motels.
I forgot to post the 50/50 winning number from Sunday and I don't have it with me. BUT it has not been claimed and there is just over $700 in it! Susan will have it with her on Saturday.
I have seen a lot of rain the last two days and it has been wonderful. I was going to try to bring some home with me but I heard today that snow is coming to the Panhandle. Try to stay warm and be safe traveling in the winter weather.
posted 3.23.09
Even though the Vernon Club is growing by leaps and bounds, it is still one of our smallest clubs. Yet they host one of our best weekends of the year. I didn't hear anything but positive comments about the new arena and the excitement is already growing for our Tri-State Finals coming up in June. Thank you Vernon Club members and all of the volunteers and non-members that helped out. It was a great weekend. By the way, did anyone notice how bad the wind was blowing on Sunday? Wasn't it nice to be sheltered from it to the point you didn't even notice it?
Official scores and results have been posted. I will work on updating the standings tonight and try to get those posted by morning.
I am expecting details on a team roping this weekend at Plainview (Saturday night) but I am going to be busy the next few days and may not get them up until Friday. For the most part, it should be the same as the one at Vernon - fees, limited entries, must have one Tri-State member on the team, etc. So plan to bring your extra horses and I will get the details up ASAP.
Check out the new listing on the news pages (under rodeo schools) about a "Practice with the Pros" FREE clinic. It is the weekend following the Altus rodeos - also Mother's Day weekend - and looks like one you shouldn't pass up.
I'm at Huntsville for the PRCA rodeo all week. It is a fun rodeo and one of the biggest ones I work all year. Just enough of a challenge to keep me on my toes keeping everything straight. But regardless of how much fun I have here, I always end up missing all of you and I hate that I am missing TWO rodeos this weekend! Susan Pool will be filling in for me at Plainview and is very capable of taking care of things in my absence. Don't forget to bring your grades to Plainview. And if you have any questions, you can always call me. The office phone is forwarded to my cell while I am gone.
Have a great week,
posted 3.17.09
The Vernon Club will be hosting a team roping jackpot as a fundraiser for their double rodeos this weekend. It will be Saturday night following the Tri-State rodeo in the 4-H Arena. They will be accepting the first 100 teams. You can rope 3 head for $40. One of the partners for each team must be a Tri-State member. More details will be announced on Saturday.
Stall reservations are not necessary for this weekend. When you get to the arena, find the stall office in the new building. Bobby will be there to take your rent and show you to your weekend accommodations.
For those of you who are not up-to-date on the happenings in Vernon, they have a beautiful new covered arena that we will be using this weekend. It is right next to the 4-H arena so if you remember how to get to that arena, you can't miss the new one.
posted 3.15.09
The spurs I mentioned in my last post have been claimed and so has the 50/50 ticket. I won't reveal the winner until I have the actual ticket to prevent any possible muggings. Ha Ha! I still have the JRCA jacket. I guess I'll be hauling it to the rodeos until it gets claimed.
I want to thank everyone for accommodating my request for early entries for Plainview. I know it was a pain. I've certainly got my work cut out for me this week, though, with 4 rodeos to set up and packing for my pro rodeo next week. When I come home, it will be time for state finals entry forms at the Hereford rodeos. Our spring season sure doesn't last very long!
Hope you all have an enjoyable spring break this week. See you at Vernon.
posted 3.10.09
Points are now updated for all divisions and I have to say, there are some tight races heating up in the Wrangler Division. With only two qualifying rodeos left, it will definitely come down to the wire to see who earns the year end event champion buckles. The high school still has several rodeos left in the next couple of weeks and we all know a lot can happen in a short period of time. To see how the event races are shaping up, check out the standings on the results page.
I brought home a few lost items last weekend: a pair of barrel racer's spurs with pink stones on the straps and a 2008 JRCA finalist coat, size small, that would probably be useful to the owner in the next few days with the cold weather we are getting. Call me if these items belong to you and we will figure out how to return them.
High school members need to be thinking about possible new Directors for the Board. We have several Board members who will be leaving after this year. This is your chance to shape the leadership of your association. Talk to parents that you feel would be a good leader for you and your event and see if they are interested in running for a director position. Nominations must come from the general membership and nominees must have a child that is a current member and will also be a member next year. We will take nominations in a few weeks and then ballots will be mailed to the entire membership.
posted 3.9.09
What a difference a day makes! Sunday was a lot nicer to us in the wind category, but it was still good to be indoor for the Wrangler Division rodeos hosted by the Happy Club. Thanks to everyone who helped keep things running smoothly.
High school payoff checks are going out in today's mail. I will get the Wrangler Division checks out in the morning. Entry fees will be deposited tomorrow.
Revolution Ropes is a new sponsor for Texas High School Rodeo this year and they were gracious enough to send some ropes to give to our Region 1 champions on Saturday. Here are the proud new owners of these ropes:
Region 1 header - Lane Ivy (rope and a cap)
Region 1 heeler - Michael Trujillo (rope and a cap autographed by Kinney Harrell)
Region 1 breakaway roper - Kelbi Arfsten
Region 1 calf roper - Reese Riemer
Tri-State ribbon roper - Shade Etbauer
No one claimed the 50/50 drawing on Saturday. It was a blue ticket # 367784. If you have the matching ticket, you have until the start of the PM performance at Vernon on Saturday March 21st to claim your prize. If it goes unclaimed, that jackpot will be added to the new drawing at Vernon. Thanks to the volunteers who sold tickets. I appreciate your help.
posted 3.7.09
Everyone owes the Canyon Club a HUGE THANK YOU for renting the Arena of Life today and keeping us out of the wind as much as possible. I don't even want to imagine how nasty and miserable we would have been outdoors. Thanks also to everyone who helped out today. It was a great start for the high school spring rodeo season.
If you are coming to the Wrangler Division rodeos in the morning, don't forget to set your clock for Daylight Savings time before going to bed. That's what I am going to do right now so I don't oversleep in the morning. We start at 9am with the first rodeo.
posted 3.4.09
Wrangler Division entries for this weekend have been posted on the Wrangler News page.
posted 3.3.09
Spring rotations have been posted here and on the schedule page. There are many of you who did not get your request. Please remember how happy you were last time when the computer allowed you to stay in the performance you requested. To those who got their request, be thankful and count yourself blessed by the computer gods.
Don't forget that you can do rotation changes at a rodeo if you have a conflict with a school related event. And if all else fails, give me a call and let me know what's going on. I might be able to help.
BOYS EVENTS GIRLS EVENTS TEAM ROPING
DAYLIGHT SAVINGS TIME BEGINS this Sunday. Just when I thought I might get back into a good work routine, I lose an hour of sleep! On the bright side, I love having daylight later in the day.
Wrangler Members be sure to set your clocks on Saturday night. Our first rodeo on Sunday will start at 9am followed by a 1/2 hour break and then the afternoon rodeo.
posted 3.2.09
What a great weekend in Vernon for the Wrangler Division!The new Wilbarger County Events Center is awesome! It was pretty neat being the inaugural event in a brand new arena. The decision-makers in Vernon and Wilbarger County deserve a huge thank you. They did a good job.
I have results from both Wrangler rodeos posted. I will get points updated soon (definitely before this weekend!) Payoff checks will go out in today's mail.
High school members: I should have spring rotations posted no later than 5pm on Tuesday on the schedule page. I know you are excited about this weekend's rodeo and finding out your rotations, but calling me before then will only slow down the process.