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Helping hands, rodeo stuff, BJA and sweaty horses

Jan Swan Wood

I need to reride a little corner of country from last week. I told you about the Badlands Circuit Finals being in Deadwood in September. For you astute ones that caught that it ought to be a good ‘trippin’, you probably know it’s the Badlands Circuit Steer Roping Finals.

Little Clancy Goebel is home with his folks as of several weeks ago. He’s doing great and growing well. He was born in February and his actual due-date was June 9, I believe. He is a miracle baby, for sure.

I want to let you know about a fund that has been set up for Bart and Shannon Carmichael, Faith, SD, to help them with the overwhelming cost of rebuilding their place which was severely damaged in a tornado the end of May. Their house is still standing, though not in the original spot, but has enough damage they aren’t able to live in it. Their barns, shop, sheds and corrals are a total loss. Any Pioneer Bank will take those donations for that fund.



For those of you who are short of good deeds in the Great Tally Book, you might venture to Dupree, SD and help with the cleanup and rebuilding of that fine little ranch town. They got hit by at least four tornadoes two weeks ago and it cost them a lot of their business district and damaged many homes. Their centennial celebration is coming right up and I haven’t heard if they are going on with it or not. They just might, since they are tough, durable folks up in that country.

Belle Jackpot will be July 7 and 14, exhibition barrels at 5 p.m., BJA at 6.



Trevor Brazile is back in the rodeo arena before any of us expected it. He was unable to draw out with a Dr.’s release from the 50th Annual Daines Ranch Rodeo at Innisfail, Alberta June 16-20. His U.S. Dr.’s release wasn’t valid, so he decided to just go rope. He borrowed horses he’d never ridden for Tie Down and Team Roping and won both events (roping with partner Patrick Smith). He pocketed their Canadian prize money and said that his elbow isn’t feeling any worse than it was before. His Dr. had recommended another 4-6 weeks of healing before resuming his schedule. He had intended to go back on the road in time for the July 4th Cowboy Christmas run, but this just stepped it up a little.

Incidentally, Kelly Timberman, Mills, WY, won the Barebacks at that same rodeo. Always nice when they bring some of those Canadian dollars back to our side of the border.

In other PRCA rodeo action, Beau Franzen, Sidney, MT won the Tie Down Roping at the Belt, Montana rodeo June 19-20. Ty Tescher, Sidney, MT won the bulls with an 86 point ride on Brookman’s Wet Paint. Meanwhile, Jill Moody, Letcher, SD won the Barrels at the Pleasant Grove, Utah rodeo.

At the CNFR, Whitewood, SD’s Troy Crowser was in a three-way-tie for first in the final round of the Saddle Broncs at the CNFR in Casper last week. He ended up fourth in the average, too. Troy rodeos for Panhandle State University. I know there are some very proud parents around Whitewood and Sturgis!

I took in the slack at the Sturgis Wild West Days PRCA rodeo and got to see Jay Mattson, Deadwood, SD, rope. He ended up winning the All-Around for the rodeo with money won in team roping, tie-down roping and steer roping. Well done, Jay! He’s also a respected trainer of rope horses and often has a good one for sale.

I mentioned several months ago that some breeders of horses with the Impressive bloodline that were not N/N for HYPP (hyperkalemic periodic paralysis) were using a semen extender that they claimed would reduce substantially the gene for passing HYPP on to offspring. Well, as it turns out, Texas A&M tested it and found that it just doesn’t work. Once again, the only way to eliminate the risk of breeding a foal with HYPP is to NOT breed a N/H or P/P mare or stallion. Ever.

A young woman from Montana is being given a gift that is bound to renew her life. Katie Holland, Belgrade, MT, lost her right leg above the hip in a tractor accident some time back and hasn’t been able to ride since. Katie, 20, still shows her Paint horses in halter classes by leading them from her scooter, but she hadn’t ridden. Randy Bird, also wheelchair bound, invented a saddle some years ago that has enabled him to resume roping and even show at the Paint World Show. Randy is donating a Therapeutic Riding Saddle to Katie at the APHA Summer World show in Ft. Worth in July. Katie was able to try out a saddle earlier and the one she will receive is fitted just for her needs. Katie’s goal is to show at the APHA Fall World Show in November. Randy’s Web site is http://www.birdsaddles.com. Also check out the APHF Back In The Saddle project by looking at aphfoundation.org.

Here’s an update on some of the Bills signed into law in Florida and Missouri. Florida has now made it illegal to sell a horse as meat for human consumption. HB 765 prohibits the mutilation or killing of any horse and it forbids the transport, distribution, sale and purchase of horse meat for human consumption. Violators face felony mandatory minimum penalties with fines and prison time for each offense. This all started with horses being butchered right out in their pastures, with the owners finding the remains later. I’m afraid this will also put the transport of live horses for slaughter in the spotlight.

Missouri was trying to establish regulations and fees for horse processing operations but in the final version of the omnibus agriculture bill, that language was slashed. I suppose it’s back to the drawing board for them. They really did try though, so I applaud their efforts.

It’s starting to warm up here in the Northern Plains, so horse sweat will be more common. Did you know that an exercising horse can lose up to 10-12 liters of sweat per hour? That’s incredible. I always did appreciate a horse that would drink every chance I gave it because those horses never seemed to run out of steam. I had one that would even drink out of cow tracks in a hardpan and I sure never had to lead him back from anywhere. So, give your horse a chance to drink every time you can.

Well, I’ll pull up now and give my horse a drink. Send me your items and news so I can share it with everyone.