This weekend was the last rodeo Mylea has scheduled to participate in for the season, and so we headed to Scottsdale to watch her compete at the 4-H State Competition at West World. Friday we woke up early and headed to Sun City West so I could visit Sue at Crown of LIfe and perform some yearly maintenance on their network. After we headed to World of Tile and looked at tile to replace the carpet in our home. If you head that way, talk to Ryan. He took pretty good care of us.
We then headed to our hotel, the Wingate off the 101 in Scottsdale near Westworld. I would recommend this property for the stay and amenities, should you ever have a reason to be in North Scottsdale. The kids enjoyed the pool, the gym had great Procor equipment, and the breakfast was filled with many choices.
Saturday morning we got up and headed to the Arena. The roping was way behind schedule, and Clancey and I ended up helping with the barrier. It was very sad as the livestock were sick, small, and some were even blind. It made it hard for the kids to compete appropriately and some parents were upset (with good reason). I ended up flagging the breakaway, and during the tie down I had to flag the start and then run down and play safety for the kids. The lady running the Gymkhana (pronounced GYM-KAAAAAHHHH-NA in Maricopa County) came up and talked with me and I ended up volunteering to help. I flagged the rodeo, and Clancey and I even got to rake the barrels and poles. (Hand raking made it hard to provide an equal opportunity for each contestant.. at least that is what one mom came and told us and she said we were not doing a good job). It was hot, long, and slow but Mylea competed amanzingly getting a 2nd in the Poles, a 4th in the Barrels, and a 5th in the Goat Tying.
*A great side-note that needs to be addressed is that the horse Mylea is riding the Barrel Racing photos is Chemo. He was born on the day that my late Grandfather, Marlen Rogers, had his first Chemotherapy treatment. He is the only animal on the Ranch still alive when my grandpa was. That horse has taken me to 4-H State so my dad could rope on him. (His first trip was a bit exciting, being at the State Fair grounds with all the carnival rides) He then took Clancey, and now Mylea is riding him at Westworld this year. He is an amazing horse and definitely is an inductee in the Roger’s Ranch Hall of Fame! That old man is a great animal and still takes care of us to this day. Thanks bud.
We finished off the day, dusty and dirty at Outback Steakhouse for a meal with the family and Jenn Booth. The hotel pool was nice and Mom and Clancey even pulled their pants up and chilled at the Jacuzzi. Sunday morning, we all got up, and packed and headed home. We are headed to Saint Johns to see Gwen which will be a nice end to the weekend.
