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Jan Swan Wood: Cold breeze, Engessor wins, more tie down and breakaway, meetings, clinics, shows

Boy, someone sure left the gate open between here and the arctic this past week! It got down to +2 here on the creek and had daytime highs of the teens with high wind. Kind of makes one wonder what they did with their summer wages. It’s probably safe to put the flipflops away for the season.

You’ll be glad to know that the thermocube that I had the heat plugged into in the well house somehow died this fall. Of course, it didn’t give notice or anything, so I spent two invigorating days with my hind end in the wind, hunched over the pipes inside the tiny door of the well house, thawing out the labyrinth of pipes to restore water to the house and corrals. I was sure relieved to get that all straightened out and have water again.

Congratulations to Spearfish, S.D.’s Taylor Engessor! She won the L7 Arena’s fabulous breakaway roping Nov. 4 and I understand that she banked $12,000 for the win. If you think you’re a rodeo hand, you’ll find out if you go up against an Engessor in the arena. She and her clan come to win! Congrats too, to the Gilberts of Buffalo, S.D. for hosting such wonderful event at their barn.



The W Arena, Cody, Wyo., is having a Rope 2 Win Tie Down and Breakaway Roping Nov. 17, enter at 11, rope at noon. Cash only. Great added money too. Call for details to Ben at 307-899-2837 or Kate at 307-899-5031.

The Gillette High School Rodeo club will be having a meeting Monday, Nov. 19 at the Campbell County Sheriff’s office, Gillette, Wyo. The board will meet at 5:30, club at 7. They have high point buckles on hand and want all the input they can get for the upcoming season.



There will be a Horsemanship Clinic with Levi Hostetler Dec. 15-16 at Westwind Equestrian Center, Casper, Wyo. It’s $200 for the weekend and you must pre-register by Nov. 30. Call 307-680-5362 for info.

The S.D.Reined Cowhorse Association will be having their annual meeting on Saturday, Dec. 1 at The Lodge, Deadwood, S.D. The board meeting is at 3 p.m., Stallion Stakes Owners at 4 p.m., general meeting and elections at 5 p.m. Fresh ideas are always welcome!

The Black Hills Sorting and Cutting Club has set the team sort dates for Dec. 2, Feb. 10, and March 10 at the James Kjerstad Event Center, Rapid City, S.D. If you have questions, call Sherry Sidle at 605-381-3781.

You have time to get your working horse tuned up for the KPH Arena Ranch Horse Series which will be Jan. 19, Feb. 9, and March 9. They will have ranch riding, ranch reining, ranch trail, with open, non-pro, youth, green horse and rookie divisions. It’s $20/class, enter that day by 8 a.m. and the show starts at 9. The arena is 11 miles south of Gillette, Wyo, on Hwy 50. Call Ashley Villmow at 307-680-5362 for info. You can check out the whole deal at http://www.kluzperformancehorses.com.

Wyoming is going to have horse racing again in 2019! The dates have been approved for Gillette, Evanston and Rocksprings. You can see the schedule at http://www.wyominghorseracingdata.com.

It can get busy this time of year and one can get so busy they take for granted that fat, healthy horses turned out in a good pasture with plenty of water will be able to take care of themselves without being checked daily. I had checked a group of horses two days ago that were all fat and sassy, no problems. Today they happened to be close to the road through their pasture, so we took a moment to check them over. We gave everyone a little cake and some petting and while doing that, the senior member of the group bustled over for a handout with a muzzle full of porcupine quills. They were fresh, like maybe this morning, as she wasn’t drawn up from not grazing. Grazing would have been impossible for her as they were in both her top and bottom lips and around the bottom of her nostrils. We had a halter along and pliers, so I held her while my son plucked quills. She was not impressed but finally let him get them all. She was pretty grumpy but not too grumpy to eat a handful of cake when we were done. It would have been a sad thing if we hadn’t seen that and a week or so went by with the mad dash of fall work. We might have lost that fine old lady.

I’m going to get off this windy ridge and call this circle ridden. Have a wonderful week! F