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About Wallowa County chieftain. (Enterprise, Wallowa County, Or.) 1943-current | View Entire Issue (Sept. 11, 2019)
NEWS Wallowa.com Wednesday, September 11, 2019 Gayle Stegmann, of Rathdrum, ID, waits her turn in the parade. Stegmann took fi rst in the Mounted-Individual category. Brian Cook and Lydia Wahls put Mary and Jean through their paces in the heart race. Mule Days: Weather dampens attendance, but not competition Continued from Page A1 and dangerous lightning. Bolts struck the metal barn and the arena where bar- rel-racing was underway. “Lightning just rolled down and through barn. And the people in the arena could feel the ground shake when it struck out there,” Lozier said. “It was very lucky that no one was hurt. But it knocked out the power, and all our sound and P.A. equipment. With a lot of hard work, Jay (Connolly) got every- thing up and running for Sunday.” Con- nolly had already been recognized as the 2019 Mule Days Top Hand for outstand- ing volunteer service and support through the years, and he proved once again why he was this year’s Top Hand. The entrants hailed from across the Northwest and California, with many from northern Idaho, the Tri-cities area, Spokane, and the Walla Walla valley. The mules included draft crosses out of Belgian or Percheron mares, racing mules that were bred from very speedy quarter horses, and mules for riding whose mothers were Paints, Tennessee Walkers, and Appaloosas. There were events to appeal to mule affi cianados of all stripes. The fast- est-paced and most dramatic included the Heart Race for wagons and teams, speedball, pole-bending, barrel racing, and the jump-off challenge for riders. In the Heart Race, a driver guided his or her two-mule team through a heart- shaped course that required both speed and fi nesse in making sharp turns. Win- ning time for the galloping mule team was less than a minute. Pole bending required that a mule-back rider weave through a set of tall skinny poles set 22 feet apart, and then race back to the fi nish line. Speedball required riders to gallop up a 50-yard course, drop a golf ball into a narrow cone and then gallop back to the fi nish. The galloping part was pretty easy for most, except for one mule who rodeo-ed across the fi nish. The trick, and place where some contestants came to grief, was getting the ball to actually fall into the cone. There were strength events, includ- ing the log pull. And there were lots of events that most people associate with horses rather than mules: English plea- sure, Western pleasure, and trail rid- ing, to name a few. The English plea- sure class was the largest show class at Mule Days, with 25 mule-mounted entrants who slogged, jogged, and can- tered around a sodden arena. The winner was of Bend, Oregon. As it has been every year since 1980, the 2019 edition of Mule Days was a family event, with contests and activities for people of every age, from stick mule races to the oldest attendee, age 92. The visitor who came the farthest for Sat- urday’s show hailed from Dodge City, Kansas, and lots of visitors who came through the gate said home was Lewis- ton, or Boise, or Kamiah, Idaho, Pendle- ton, Portland or Bend, Oregon, Tri-Cit- ies, Washington, or other places equally distant, as well as folks from Wallowa County. With the 2019 Hells Canyon Mule Days wrapped up, it’s time to start planning for the 40th one next year. “It’s going to be really special,” Lozier said. Hells Canyon Mule Days winners garner awards By Bill Bradshaw Wallowa County Chieftain Ryleigh Phillips and her mule Traveller, of North Powder, brought home the most awards Sunday at the end of the 39th annual Hells Canyon Mule Days. Competing in the 13 and younger brackets, she won in high-point gaming and high-point performance. Winning in the 18-and- older bracket for high-point gaming was Matt Fournier, of Bend. Anna Wolfrum, from North Powder, won in the 14- to 17-year-old bracket. Winning in the 18-and- older bracket for high-point performance was Pam Fournier, of Bend. Delanie Ellsworth, of Deary, Idaho, won in the 14- to 17-year- old bracket. Lydia Wahls, of Echo, took home the Sportsman- ship Award, while Brett Grinde, of Battleground, Washington, received the Hard Luck Award. The latter award is for a participant who under- goes strange circumstances during the course of travel to Mule Days or while here, Mule Days President Son- dra Lozier said. Winners received cus- tom belt buckles designed by Tennessee mule artist Bonnie Shields, and coffee mugs and ribbons by Pam Stitzel, of Wallowa, and Carisa Yaw, of Joseph. Arena Director Clay Freels, of Enterprise, received a special award for his work. Sponsors included Thompson Auto Sup- ply, Eagles View Inn & Suites, Community Bank, Wallowa County Cham- ber of Commerce, Carpet One Floor & Home, Bank of Eastern Oregon, Wal- lowa County Chieftain, Ed Staub & Sons, Les Schwab Tire Center, Superstation KCMB 104.7 FM, Deb’s Apparel and Kellermann Logging. Winners of categories in the parade included: Working Western Mules: First: Muriel McKenzie, Rathdrum, ID; Second: Dennis Brennan and Lydia Wahls, Enterprise, OR Mounted --Individual: First, Gayle Stegmann, Rathdrum, ID, Second: Elly Pageant, Davenport, WA. Mounted Group: First, Bennett Family, John Day, OR; second: Heart-2-Heart Ranch, Parma, ID. Comedy Costume: First, Misty Bork, Sumpter, OR; Second: Athena Bork, “We took our daughter to Dr. Allen on several occasions, and we were extremely happy with the care we received…” -Enterprise Mom Dr. Allen is a family practice physician and doctor of osteopathic medicine. Call Dr. Allen to schedule your appointment today! 541-426-7900 Mountain View Medical Group 603 Medical Parkway (next to Wallowa Memorial Hospital) Enterprise, Oregon 97828 We treat you like family 601 Medical Parkway, Enterprise, OR 97828 • 541-426-3111 • www.wchcd.org Wallowa Memorial Hospital is a equal opportunity mployer and provider Sumpter, OR Parent-Child: Heather and Ryleigh Phillips, North Powder, OR; second Eagle/ Franssen group, Pullman, WA. Junior, 13 and under: Trent Price and Gabe Price, Whitehall, MT. Team Drawn vehicle: Neal McCool, Amity, OR; second Brian Cook, Irri- gon, OR. Non-equestrian Foot power: Wallowa County 4-H court. There is a lot of bad and incorrect information out there – GET THE FACTS! before signing up for Medicare supplements Kathleen Bennett 616 W. North Street, Enterprise, OR 97828 541-426-4208 A17
