How'd They Get the Halter on that Horse!

Aww, the crazy ramblings in my head.

The world….what a fabulous place! Millions of pictures & stories to be told every second!

The other day….

The bulls swaggering down the alley….bright blue sky with a few big white puffy clouds perfectly coloring in the sky. Always seeing pictures….stories & moments of perfection caught for a second in your mind. The title of the picture would have been “Returning Home from Battle Victorious” ….yes, I name the pictures in my head : ) The story that was being portrayed was that of triumphant rodeo bucking bulls galiantly making their way off the truck & down the alley back to tell all their friends of their victorious weekend! Much as warriors returning home to their village to tell their family of their victory.

(yes, this is exactly what was running thru my head as I opened the big log gate & the bulls trotted down the dusty alley towards me....lol)

OK…..let’s get out of my head….It’s too scary there to stay very long!

The last couple weeks have been a whirl wind! Lil’ Red Roan & Rodeos have been keeping me on my toes! Thank the good Lord above! Doing what I love & getting paid for it!

This adventure starts out heading to the CSI college rodeo! Nothing out of the ordinary…right……WRONG! I had to make my maiden voyage of 2010 in the FREIGHTLINER! Oh geez! There was a whole lot of … I think I can…..I think I can…..I think I can...being chanted along the 3 hour drive! I MADE IT…. In one piece & so did the truck & all the stock! Yay!

I ran into a team roping friend that owns his own trucking company at the Flying J truck stop. Aww, let’s just say that I was more than embarrassed when he told me he saw me pull in. : ) He gave me some helpful hints for the road. (That’s right….I was being a Lounge Lizzard, swapping stories with my trucker buddies…haha)

I’m gonna cut this story short. Overall, CSI was a great rodeo! CSI has an wonderful rodeo team. They put on a great performance & it was a pleasure to work with them. It was a priveledge to be able to be a part of their production! Also, a shout out to the amazing crew that Hoggan rodeo had there! With that many talented people gathered together, it is pretty easy to go home triumphant at the end of the day!

Without further ado….here is one story that just can’t go untold!

The HALTERED HORSE

The last performance of the rodeo has came to a close. We are getting ready to trail the horses back out to their pasture. I head out to the hill to close the gates & open the gates to the pasture. There are about 4 gates that have to be closed so the horses don’t escape. All of which are high traffic areas for timeys getting to their trailers. By the time I get the 4^th gate closed…the 1^st one I started with usually has to be double checked again. This fun lil’ game is the reason I stand guard out on the hill…to ensure that the gates aren’t opened & horses turned loose.

I holler for the guys to send the horses. My gates are closed & the pasture is open. Standing in the dark up on the hill awaiting the horses. The bucking horses not used in that performance were already out in the pasture. They made their way up to the hill to greet me. That nights rodeo horses come loping out of the building & meet with their comrades. As I look thru the herd of horses I see a……horse with a halter on it. Ugg, some timey’s horse must have gotten loose & I was joined up with the bucking horses. I make my way into the middle of this sea of bucking horses. I get a hold of the lead rope but she isn’t wanting to lead very well. Dragging me by Satin Sheets ( a beautiful blue roan bucking horse) & all but running the lead rope under her tail. I turn loose of the lead rope not wanting to get kicked by a bucking horse. All riled up by all the bucking horses, I’m sure. I slip around & get ahold of the lead rope again. This time trying to get close enough to the fence so that I can take a wrap around a post to snub her up. Thank the good Lord above I couldn’t get her close enough! She drags me across the hill top again & I start YELLING for the guys at the door for help! HELP…there is a horse with a halter on! (ugg…seriously…..I can’t even catch a stupid timeys horse) A bull fighter & a CSI roughy make their way outside to help me. (thinking I’m crazy) No, there is actually a horse with a halter on it. The three of us can certainly get her cornered up & caught. The rest of the bucking horses are tired of being ran around & head out to pasture. I set out to turn her back. ……Nope….their is no bluff in this ol gal & she didn’t even bat an eye at me trying to stop her. SERIOUSLY! Ugg….so the guys & I head out around the bucking horses afoot & in the dark. We sort of a small set of horses to bring in with her. Well, sort her off & catch her. I’m on the gate & the bull fighter is sorting. Holy mackerel….! There are 3 of us & we still can’t get her cornered up! After try after try after try….I’m fed up! Let’s run her back in the building. I run down to the building, thru the side door & holler for the big door to be opened. The rest of the crew inside….now thinks I’m crazy also. Why? They ask. Just open it! I have a horse with a halter on. They open the door & we run in the haltered horse with 2 other bucking horse companions.

Low & Behold……..This black & white mare is packing a number 4 brand on her hip (our rodeo company brand) & a 100 number brand! HOLY CRAP!!!!! This is 100 MISS LIZ…..one of our bucking horses! We run her into the stripping chute to get the halter off. This mare was not even in the short go performance! How in the heck was did they get the halter on this horse! If I was truly evil, I would make you wait to hear the rest of the story…like I did.

HOW did they get a halter on that horse?????! This question pledged me all night! It propably would have plagued me for years if it wasn’t for a random turn of events. David & I get to the rodeo grounds to load the rodeo stock & head home. Well, nice girl had parked in front of the loading chute. Her pickup was locked & no one could find her. No problem, we had to gather, sort & do a few things before we loaded. The college team was there cleaning up & a some of the kids came out to help us gather the stock. One of the guys says….Oh, there might be a halter on one of the horses. I don’t even hesitate.....before following with a ….HOW DID YOU GET A HALTER ON THAT HORSE!!!!????

He proceeds to tell us that she had got stuck in the fence the afternoon before. She was pinned with a leg thru the fence. Her hips were pinned so she couldn’t really move. They put the halter on to help get her out but once they’d freed her…..They couldn’t get the halter back off! LOL…..wow, that would’ve plagued me for life if I wouldn’t have heard the rest of the story!

I would also like to thank the college girl that locked her keys in the truck. After we were sorted & ready to load….the truck’s owner still hadn’t surfaced. After about an hours time….a group of inexperienced criminals finally perfected our breaking in skills. The trucks wheels had been left turned to the left so…we pushed the truck up hill & out of the way so the semi could back in. All a new experience for me, which I appreciated learning new skills. But most importantly, THANK YOU….because if that truck wouldn’t have been parked there….I might never have know how a halter got on that horse!

I made the trip home from Twin Falls safe & sound. My shifting has improved with every mile . ( I still don’t love it but I can successfully move forward ;) The last couple weekends, I was grateful for that trip because it made the short trips the Freightliner & I had to make by ourselves seem a lot easier! Hoggan rodeo was doubled up so everyone went their separate ways for the weekends. First & foremost I need to thank my family for helping me get ready to go & taking such good care of me. Regg is real good about making sure everything will be smooth sailing for me. Thanks for all your help Regg! You rock! McKell & Ellie were great help too! Crystal & I hauled to Leadore & got along great! Wonderful rodeo weekends! Aww, I love spring!

So I’m gonna cut these weekends tales short too. Mud Lake & Leadore rodeos went really well! Thank You to District 1 for allowing Hoggan Rodeo to be a part of your rodeo season! That being said, I will finish out with a few hilarious lines that just can’t go untold!

· Mud Lake’s rodeo went well. Survived the truck driving again. Horses that weren’t supposed to be much had there trips & just fired right out of the chute. ( I told Regg & David it’s because I’m a better flank man ;) The highlight of the rodeo however had to be when this bronc stalled….I was flanking & headed him out at the same time! It was awesome! Still not sure how that works but it was awesome!

· Being a GIRL is awesome! (It’s not everday you’ll catch me saying that” The weekend of Mud Lake, my Uncle asked me if we’d had any complaints. I said No, no one had said anything to me. Well, next weekend I would find out why……They didn’t know who to complain to! Like I said earlier….Being a GIRL is awesome! The next 2 stories, you’ll see what I mean.

· I’ve loaded the horses . My first bronc rider is just about ready to nod his head….when a timer hollers down from the announcer stand…. “WHERE’S the Flank Man?! We need a FLANK MAN?!” I am standing right there. My hand is on the flank….lol! I casually raise my hand. I don’t know where the flankman is but I think I can handle it : ) lol…made me laugh

· After we get our rough stock bucked, the pickup man & I are filling water troughs. A kid comes up & asks the pickup man who the stock contractor is? He really needs to talk to them. (Keep in mind that the pickup man & I are the ONLY ones standing there) The pickup man replies, smiling, I don’t know. I’ve never met them before. The kid rambles on about how he knows Pat O’Maley but he doesn’t know these guys. (for the record, this is the second weekend in a row that I’ve taken the stock to this Districts rodeos. I brought the exact same timed event stock as the weekend before) SO I ask the kid what he needs? He tells me that a Doggin Steer is bad & needs pulled. I tell him that I will let them know. As he goes to walk away, the pick up man says, Here, let me introduce you to your Stock Contractor. I reach out & shake his hand. The kid replies with numerous vowels….AAAA….UUUU….AAA….Oh….AAAA…Oh… all in a stammering type reply. He finishes out by saying the steer is real bad. Needless to say, my phone call to report into my Uncle David this time consisted of “There might be complaints…just no one knows who to complain to!” I loved it! Haha…what a great weekend!

Spring has sprung & a rodeo season is under way! There are a few stories from the last couple adventures! I hope you enjoy them & I will have lots more soon to come!

See You Down the Rodeo Trail!