Pony Express

Official Newsletter of the NSRA

Set a Goal Now!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Is your dream to be on the 2007-2008 Australian Team.

National Directors Report

JUST how good are our Australian youth competitors in the world of rodeo? They are equal to any rivals and guess what the rest of the rodeo world is talking about our kick arse Aussie kids from down under. They went to America on a mission and they concurred not only in the Wrangler Division but the High School Division also.

 Australia has its own World Champion in the Rope and Tie event. Clay Bush from YASS tied his 3 calves down in record time to be a clear winner at Gallop New Mexico. We had 2 ropers in the top 4 going into the final and had luck been on our side with knocked poles / barrels and broken barriers Australia could have had more kids into the final.

 Springfield Illinois was the place to be for the National High School Rodeo Finals. We had 24 competitors and Jackson

Gray from Tamworth really made the rest of the world take a good look at the Cutting talent Australia has to offer. A week

out from the finals Jacksons horse was lame and vetted out so with the kind offer from Rowdy Richards [from central

Queensland] to be able to share her horse he was on a mission. He only got to ride the horse once in practice and proceeded to make a statement and that he did after the last round Jackson finished 6^th and remember he was competing amongst the best in the world. Sue Hart from Washington [ the Cutting Horse Coordinator]  came up to me and said those AUSSIE kids are good.

We had a bunch of our competitors watching the last round of the rodeo to see if they would make the final cut to make

the top 20 for the final round but luck was not on our side.

 Australia has some of the most talented competitors in the world and we can thank the likes of the ABCRA / CRCA / NRA

and the NCHA for the effort they have put into there junior programs. The NSRA is proud to be affiliated to these assn’s and

as we grow more people are getting to go to the USA with our champions and come home with new ideas and realizing that

we do live in the best country in the world.

 Every competitor and parent that gets the opportunity to go to the largest competitor rodeo in the world comes home a

 winner. Most of these people would never get or take the opportunity to travel and the NHSRA is the vehicle that creates that opportunity. You will meet some of the nicest people get to see some of the most amazing sights and the best part be part of the largest rodeo in the world.

                 See you in the dust

                       BOB

National Secretary Report

What an eye opener it was travelling to America to witness the NHSRA Finals; seeing two arenas running side by side with two announcers going. I was fortunate enough to have the opportunity to meet and work with some great people.  On the Wednesday I volunteered to be an interviewer for the Scholarship program where I worked side by side with other State/Provincial Representatives.  By doing this I gained an insight as two what is expected to obtain a NHSRA Scholarship, so next year if it is your last year with the Association consider going for a Scholarship.

Congratulations to Kahla Butler and Jackson Gray who both received a scholarship; the amounts vary to what you can receive from $500.00US upwards.  This may sound a small amount but every bit helps when you are chasing a dream to get to College.

The Missouri Team graciously hosted a Team Barbeque for the Australians, I over heard some of the boys say it was a waste of time but by doing things like this, you meet people and if you ever decide to travel back to the States to rodeo you have an opportunity to have somewhere to stay as well as make lifelong friends.

We were also lucky to be invited to an International Cookies and Icecream luncheon – that was an eye opener.  By partaking in this event we then got included in the Saskatchewan  Pizza and Pop afternoon, so all in all the Australians were most welcome although a few of the Team Members chose not to participate in the gatherings.

Unfortunately not many adults/chaperons went along with the Australian Team which caused a little bit of discontent - evidently.  There was a complaint put to the National Director that I did not stay in the same hotel as the Team – nor did he.  At all stages prior to going people knew this trip was to be Garry and my honeymoon so I do not apologize for this.  I can hold my head high though as Garry and myself worked extra hard partaking in all activities and promoting Australia

A big congratulations goes to Kahla Butler and Stehanie Young who sang the Australian National Anthem – well done girls.

On the way back a few of the Team elected to have a 4 day stop over in LA, where we went to Disneyland, California Park, Universal Studios, Orange County beach and also the Hollywood night tours.  Overall we had a good trip and I highly recommend it to everyone.  The only noticeable thing we weren’t keen on is the food – America is a very unhealthy place.  Unless you hunt out where the few good places to eat are you will find burgers and fries and fries and burgers.  They eat very limited fruit and vegetables as take away so by the time we got back to Australia everyone just wanted normal food.

Next years NHSRA Finals are going to be held in Farmington New Mexico, again I met some of the committee and have contacts with them.  They are very keen to help Australia and will provide a list of horses that will be available for lease.  So why not start now and plan ahead to get there.  The experiences and friendships you gain are invaluable.

Hope to talk to you all soon

Tracey

MEMBERSHIPS ARE DUE - When completing paperwork please make it legible, as the American Form is sent the National High School Rodeo Association head office and causes a major drama if it is not legible.

The Minors Release form which is on the back of the NHSRA Membership form MUST be signed by a Justice Of The Peace.  In several instant’s  I have had paperwork I just cannot understand the writing on thus you miss out on Newsletters etc.  If you change address let me know!!!!!!

 Thank you’s from the Wrangler Divisions Team

·        Warren and Sherrene Mathews and family for sponsoring the team

shirts, caps and Bags for the Wrangler kids

·        Brigalow for part sponsorhip of the shirts and to Bob for organising

the embroidery.

·        To Queanbeyan City Travel for organising travel at the last minute

·        To Shandelle for singing the National Anthem for us in Gallop.

·        To all the parents and friends for helping with the goats at the

·        rodeo in Gallup

·        Vodaphone for donating a phone to raffle.

Wrangler Division National Finals Report 2007

Wow what a great trip!

I had no idea when we left to go to Gallup that our kids would perform so well and achieve so much in our first year.

For those who haven’t yet heard Clay Bush from Yass won the Rope and Tie title. Congratulations go to Clay for such a great performance.

We also had some other very good results as we went through the week.

Justin Locock won the first round of the Rope and Tie and Clay Bush placed fourth. Calla Mathews placed 19^th in the first round of the Barrel race ( out of 150 girls).Calla also ran the fastest time of the first round in Poles but unfortunately hit a pole on the last turn.

Clay, Justin and Calla all made the Short go and really made the competition sit up and take notice.

Every member of the team performed well and some were very unlucky not to make the short round. Rodney Ray ( Rude) Mancell just missed the short round of the Bull ride by a couple of points. The Chute dogging steers were tough and Justin Locock had a good second round run of  5 secs but after loosing his first steer was out of the running. Justin Dorrington and Rodney Ray both got their steers down but unfortunately were a bit too long for the short go.

Some of our girls had a tough time with horses making their trip a little disappointing from a competition point of view but I am sure they made up for it in the fun stakes.

The Gallup people were great and our kids were a big hit with many of the other kids. A lot of great friendships were made and I am sure they will last a life time.

The facilities at Gallup were great but I am sure it would be nicer if it wasn’t so hot.

The ability if our kids to compete so well on strange horses prompted a flood of offers from people at Gallup to furnish horses for our kids next year so we will certainly be in an even better position for great results in 2008.

I am confident that the Wrangler program will help our kids prepare for competition in the senior ranks and make them better all around competitors here. They now know they are as good as the best in the world and I am sure there will be no stopping them form here.

I was fortunate enough to make the trip to Springfield as well and see the senior team achieve some of their best results ever. It is really becoming evident that this competition is helping improve our kid’s rodeo skills and I would encourage any parents out there that can help to contact us and help drive this great association forward and make it available to as many kids as possible.

Many thanks to all the parents who helped at the Gallup finals. As the new kids on the block we were unfortunately saddled with goat duty so I would like to give a special thanks to all those guys who helped out with the goats. We were highly commended for our support and our great knowledge of stock. Big events like this don’t happen unless people help out and most of the labour at the finals was all voluntary.

I look forward to our Team being bigger and better next year so to all those Wrangler kids who want to be part of it get your memberships paid and get practicing.

Our Accommodation for next year has already been booked and to avoid the problems we had this year with airfares I have already booked 40 tickets for next year so we could get the best possible prices. These can be kept on hold for us till next year so many thanks to Queanbeyan City Travel for their assistance.

We have a new sponsor for this coming year Vodaphone. They have kindly donated a phone for us to raffle and I will be sending out tickets to all Wrangler members for that very soon.

If any parents have any ideas on fundraising or know any one who would like to sponsor our association please don’t hesitate to contact us so we can hear your ideas and get those funds rolling in.

Emerald Rodeo will run again in the New Year and I know we have rodeo dates coming in thick and fast so keep an eye on the newsletter for those dates.

Cheers for now

Toni

The annual NHSRA/AYHC On-Line Auction is now up and going. Over 30 items are already available and more will be added weekly throughout the auction. So keep checking back to view the new items and check on your bids.

Proceeds go to the NHSRA Scholarship fund and the AYHC Grants and Scholarships Fund. Several nice items have been donated by NHSRA and AYHC sponsors as well as members and other donors.

The auction will be live for two months and will close on September 30, 2007.

To log on to the auction you can link from either the NHSRA and Wrangler Division sites or go to www.horsecityauctions.com

Thanks to NHSRA sponsor Horsecity.com for their technical support of the auction and for hosting this annual event which raises between $5,000 and $10,000 each year. Let’s make this year a record breaker!!

THANK YOU FOR YOUR SUPPORT!

Kent L. Sturman, Executive Director

National High School Rodeo Association, Inc.

Tahitian noni Equine formula

Hi everyone, my name is Kahla Butler many of you may know of me already.  The events I mainly compete in are Barrel Racing and Pole Bending.  I won 2006-2007 NSRA Barrel Racing Title and tied for NSRA Pole Bending Title.

My horse’s name is Cheeko, he is 21 years of age but you wouldn’t know it just to look at him.  He has won me many titles in the 4 years I have owned him.

I have attributed our success to the Equine Noni juice given to him daily.

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Only one week after I began feeding the formula to my horse Cheeko I began to notice an improvement.  Cheeko’s coat became shinier, he built up more muscle, he became more alert and his performance all around improved dramatically.  At least 1 second was cut off each of his barrel race runs and he began to look younger everyday.

If you would like to know more about this wonderful product please do not hesitate to see me at rodeo’s or give me a call 02 4356 1029 or 0427 217 844

Why not approach your local Rodeo Committee and see if they would like to dual affiliate with the National Student Rodeo Association – it can only benefit you in the long run.

Copyright © 2007 NSRA. All rights reserved