Happy Trails With Dawni O'Bryan

For the cowboys and cowgirls going to school, the excitement of the new season of junior high, high school, and college rodeo is nothing short of exhilarating. This ramping up has gotten the practice pen busy, horses freshly shod, living quarter- trailers prepared, and hopes high.

The theme for the county fair that is being held in Lamar is Stars, Stripes, and Summer Nights. The theme lets everyone know that it is a little taste of Americana and a shared love of summer.

Life is not always fair, but oh, if it was. My play on words is actually referring to the county fair.

I love this time of year and I dread this time of year. It is bittersweet.

There is nothing like the great outdoors for enjoying the fresh air and beautiful scenery. There is just a whole new world when you get beyond the four walls of a building.

Cowboys and cowgirls travel many miles to places and competitions with their trusty equine friends in tow. Horse trailers have come a long way from the days of old of a half-top stock trailer.

There are many facets that make the sport of rodeo unique. The teamwork of human and animal is probably the most highlighted uniqueness.

With spring in the air, horsey happenings are going on everywhere. Here are a few that have been on my radar.

Even dating back before the days of the Marlboro man advertisements on television, there has been a mystic allure for young men to become a cowboy and do cowboy things. If a young man was raised a cowboy, it is a natural progression to step into those roles if he so desires.

I have recently experienced one of life’s difficult inevitables. Animal lovers, of any kind, can relate to my story of heart hurt.

If you have been around cowboys for very long, you know that the cowboy hat is one of the most important pieces of cowboy garb. They are very concerned with its shape, style, and usefulness.

Rodeo and most equestrian events are considered “cowboying” and are part of the wild west in nature. Man versus beast or man in partnership with beast put into competition is always challenging and entertaining.

Even though I wasn’t in the band or the military, I love the word March. It is because of what the month of March symbolizes-new life.

He was born in February of 2005, a little stud colt out of mare “Jens Smoky Night (Sugar)” and the great cutting horse stallion “Big Swing” owned by Kyle and Amanda Spitz. He wasn’t very big, and Dr.

I continue to be “wowed” by the small town generosity I have seen over and over. My husband and I were talking about the fact that this kind of munificence and support doesn’t happen in a large city where people rarely even know their neighbor.

It has been a rough January. The wintertime blues can be real and hard to get past.