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Last Updated on Wednesday, 15 April 2009 03:50

Written by Christy Hemken

Casper - This fall the Wyoming AgXpo will feature a new outlet for talented Wyoming youth – the Wyoming AgXpo Youth Talent Contest Review on Nov. 21.
    The contest is open to non-professional Wyoming youth ages 10 through 20 and offers four categories – folk or country music, gospel music, Western poetry and Western storytelling.
    “We were thinking about entertainment for the AgXpo and a group of several of us came up with the idea of the talent contest,” says event organizer Scott Keith of the Wyoming Business Council.
    He says their attention was brought to the fact that the Wyoming Idol program, normally held at the Wyoming State Fair, is not going to happen in 2009 because of the tight schedule between the fair dates and the national contest finals. “We got to thinking we could do something similar for youth,” he says.
    “We’ve got a lot of talented young people in the state and nobody ever gets to see them,” says event organizer Milt Green of the UW Cooperative Extension Service. “At first I was thinking this could be for 4-H and FFA, but as we got to talking we thought we should open it to all youth.”
    Invitations have been sent to 4-H Extension Educators, FFA instructors and high school music instructors throughout the state.
    “The theme of our AgXpo is ‘Showcasing Wyoming’s heritage and agriculture successes.’ We wanted to make sure that any kind of talent we presented would publicly support the theme,” says Green. “Our contest categories are all consistent with our theme of Wyoming’s heritage.”
    A panel of AgXpo officials will review contest entries and select 15 to compete during the day on Nov. 21. Of those, five will be selected to perform that night on stage in the arena before a live audience. The contest will draw upon Pinedale cowboy poet Andy Nelson’s talent to emcee the program.
    Keith says the evening will begin at 7:30 Friday night and run in the same format as American Idol. “The judges will sit on stage with the performer and the emcee and they’ll have an opportunity to critique the performance as soon as they’re done. At the end of the night they’ll select one Grand Finale winner.”
    The Grand Finale winner will not be eligible for future contests but will be invited to return in future years to serve as a panel judge. Judging will be based on general appearance, quality of the presentation and overall stage presence of the performer.  Keith says cash prizes will be awarded, as well as others not yet finalized.
    “We’re encouraging schools and music teachers and people that know kids with talent to start talking to their friends and spread word of the contest around and hopefully we’ll have some good contestants,” says Keith.
    The contest is free to enter and there’s no charge to attend as a part of the AgExpo trade show. Keith encourages people to arrive at the contest early to take advantage of the trade show and the opportunity to be entered for door prizes.
    “I’ve had a lot of interest shown in the contest already,” says Green. “Many people have called to ask questions, and I’m really encouraged about participation. I hope we have a huge chore ahead of us in deciding who we’re going choose for the show that night.”
    For more information call Milt Green at 307-235-9400 or 307-259-1213. Applicants must produce and submit a videotape, CD or DVD of their performance by Oct. 24 to: Milton Green, University Extension Educator, University of Wyoming Cooperative Extension Service, 2011 Fairgrounds Road, Casper, WY 82604. Christy Hemken is assistant editor of the Wyoming Livestock Roundup and can be reached at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. .

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Last Updated on Tuesday, 20 July 2010 10:15

Written by Christy Hemken

Casper – “Until I met Ty Murray a while back, I’d never heard the word ‘try.’ To me, ‘try’ meant to make an attempt. What I found out was it’s not just a verb, but it’s also a noun imbued with tremendous meaning,” Cowboy Ethics author and advocator Jim Owen told those in attendance at the Wyoming Cattle Industry 2010 Convention and Trade Show.
“When someone says a cowboy has try, it means he or she is giving it everything they have,” continued Owen. “I asked Ty what was the secret of his success, and he replied that his mother always said he was born with an extra supply of try.”
The Convention and Trade Show was hosted by the Wyoming Stock Growers Association and ran June 2-4 in Casper, with the theme “Under the Constitution” and a focus on bringing the United States and its government back to basics, a message addressed by Owen’s work with the Code of the West and cowboy try.
Six years ago Owen authored his first book, Cowboy Ethics, after what he calls an epiphany while viewing the film Open Range, starring Kevin Costner and Robert Duvall.
“The film is about two cowboys on a cattle drive who stand up for what’s right against overwhelming odds,” said Owen. “I realized that all the laws, regulations and corporate ethical mandates in the world don’t begin to solve the real problem behind our country’s troubles. Something essential in our way of live has been eroded – the clear sense of right and wrong that can only come from within.”
Owen said the iconic cowboy, with his code of honor, self-reliance and courage is a larger-than-life symbol of everything that’s made America great. “I want to help keep that spirit alive and in some small way help get our country back on track,” said Owen of the new direction his life took as he began tracking down what’s now known as the Code of the West.
“I started researching the Code of the West, and I watched classic movies and read Western books to find the enduring code of conduct every cowboy knew, even though it was never written down,” said Owen. “I translated what I found to be the unwritten code into 10 principles, and found myself in a new career. Having stumbled on life changing inspiration, I found myself in the business of inspiring others.”
Today Jim Owen and the Code of the West are brought into corporations, high schools and universities across the U.S. to spread the message on the code of conduct.
“If we want to fix our country’s problems, we’ve got to get back to the basics and the fundamental principles of right and wrong, and the core values that built our country, and personal character that resides within rather than ethics manual,” said Owen.
Owen said the power of the Cowboy Code is that it couldn’t be more relevant. “We all need a solid belief system and a moral compass when pervading culture goes against what we know in our hearts to be true,” said Owen. “The freedom to believe what we choose is what America’s all about, but there are absolute truths we all need to recognize and embrace.”
Returning to the concept of try, Owen said he’s learned in the rough, dangerous world that shaped cowboy culture, try was the difference between life and death, and giving up meant you and others would die.
“Today our challenges are different and more complex, and global,” he said, specifically pointing out today’s young people who accumulate massive amounts of debt in getting their degree in the bleakest job market in decades.
“A lot of us seem to have lost our can-do spirit, and that means we’ve lost faith in the country’s future. If America ever needed try, it’s now. To me, try is a core value in itself,” said Owen. “Focus, determination and drive are the qualities all people of great success and accomplishment have in common. In these tough economic times, we all need our own supply of try, and that goes double for young people.”
The “Try Campaign” is a major new initiative launched by Owen that targets schools, youth groups, organizations and businesses, with a new book releasing this September.
“The Try Campaign will inspire especially young people to reach for the best in themselves,” said Owen of the initiative. “A lot of people are content to just get by, and being average is good enough for them. What I’ve learned in the last six years is as Ty Murray told me, if you give it 110 percent in whatever you’re pursuing, you’re a winner already regardless of the outcome. All it takes is all you’ve got.”
Christy Hemken is managing editor of the Wyoming Livestock Roundup and can be reached at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. .

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Last Updated on Saturday, 15 October 2011 01:00

Written by Saige Albert

Laramie – Lowell Catlett, Regents Professor in Agricultural Economics and Agricultural Business and Extension Economics and Dean of the College of Agriculture at New Mexico State University, joined nearly 150 participants at the AgriFuture 2011 in Laramie on Oct. 13 with a dynamic presentation on the future of agriculture and the unlimited opportunities available to young people in the industry.

AgriFuture 2011 marks the second year of the conference, which is geared toward bringing young people together with professionals and producers to learn and talk about agriculture issues. People from Colorado, Nebraska, South Dakota, Utah and Wyoming gathered for nearly two days to meet and discuss the opportunities in agriculture.

Catlett opened the conference by saying that today we are in the golden age of agriculture.

“No one knows about the future,” said Catlett, “Trust your own instincts and be ready for it. We’re won’t know the future, but we can talk about the things that are happening.”

Catlett began by emphasizing his “theory of the long nose.” By looking at the past and thinking about how we can apply similar concepts to future problems, he noted that the problems of the future are solvable.

The example of Barry Marshall, a medical doctor who won the Nobel Prize, provided affirmation that the past does provide answers for the future. Marshall read a paper that identified a specific bacteria as the cause of ulcers in cattle and deduced that a similar bacteria may be causing ulcers in humans.

“It was difficult because the dogma of the time was that ulcers were caused by stress,” explained Catlett. “Then, in 1991, the National Institutes of Health said that 92 to 98 percent of all ulcers were caused by that bacteria.”

“It’s the theory of the long nose in action,” said Catlett.

“Who would have thought that we could take corn and make ethanol? The moonshiners knew that,” quipped Catlett.

Further Catlett looked at the today as the golden age of agriculture.

“We’ve never had this in my lifetime,” said Catlett.

Catlett added that after providing for our basic needs of food, housing and security, Americans only spend 31 percent of their disposable income.

“I’m going to buy you food and let you eat almost one out of every two meals not at home. I’m going to buy you a home and pay your utilities, including hooking you up to the Internet,” said Catlett. “We spend the lowest percentage of our disposable income on necessities in the world.”

“Now what I’ve got left in America is 69 percent of the disposable income to play and buy crap,” added Catlett. “What you have is enough vibrancy for the economy to grow.”

Catlett continued that, as countries around the world start increasing their income, the consumption of meat increases.

“When you have more money, you start changing your diet,” said Catlett. “There was a four-fold increase in meat consumption in China in the last 10 years, most of it was poultry and most of it came from the U.S.”

“Growth is happening around the world, and that is why this is the golden age,” emphasized Catlett. “It isn’t just about calories anymore, it is about all the other things.”

Reflecting back, Catlett recalled the generation of baby boomers was concerned about subsisting and obtaining the basic necessities for life. This generation spent time saving money and putting money away into retirement and savings accounts.

“I’m telling you that there are only four million of those people left in the world, and in five years 90 percent will be dead. In 10 years the last generation whose mindset was about food will be gone,” explained Catlett. “We will live in the ‘dream space.’”

Dream space, as defined by Catlett, is the time when we have reached the levels of searching for self-actualization according to Abraham Maslow’s hierarchy of needs.

In agriculture, Catlett defined the dream space as consisting of niche and segmented markets, including organic, antibiotic-free and free range.

“I’m here to tell you that we should be proud of our differentiated market place,” said Catlett. “Agriculture isn’t just about calories and producing food anymore, it is just as much about all of the connection that we make. That is what the golden age is all about.”

As producers take advantage of options in their operations through value-added products, as well as things like hunting and the comforts of the agriculture lifestyle, the industry continues to develop.

Catlett further described a producer in Australia taking full advantage of opportunities by building a retirement facility on his agriculture land, offering the benefits of a country lifestyle and the comforts of home. Other producers who are taking advantage of opportunities are those who supplement their farming income through hunting or growing organic peanuts in New Mexico.

“We like to be around people, plants and animals,” said Catlett. “People are buying houses where there are grass and trees, and spending much of their money on pets.”

“Agriculture is the new gold,” continued Catlett, explaining that the industry encompasses and emphasizes the things that Americans seek and can obtain.

“It is about the most phenomenal opportunities ever available on the planet,” Catlett told students. “If you doubt, just remember Henry Ford, who said, ‘If I would have asked the American people what they wanted, they would have said a faster horse. I gave them something a little different and better.’”

“We’re putting in things we never dreamed possible,” said Catlett. “Get ready for it.”

Saige Albert is assistant editor of the Wyoming Livestock Roundup and can be reached at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. .

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Last Updated on Thursday, 10 September 2009 07:51

Written by Echo Renner

Hyattville — Cowboys, cowgirls and old timers kicked up their heels in the old Western cow town of Hyattville during the 100th Annual Hyattville Old Timer’s Celebration. The celebration was held in conjunction with the National Day of the American Cowboy, on July 25.
    An estimated 350 people attended the celebration, including U.S. Senator Mike Enzi and his wife Diana.
    Earlier this year Enzi sponsored a resolution in the U.S. Senate declaring July 25, 2009 as “National Day of the American Cowboy.” Governor Dave Freudenthal declared the same day “Wyoming Old Timer’s Day.” The Hyattville Old Timer’s Association, Guardians of the Range and the Ten Sleep – Hyattville Lion’s Club banded together to create a joint celebration for the occasions.
    Participants enjoyed a day of free family fun with a picnic, street fair, kid’s games and activities, critter rides, lil’ buckaroo dummy roping, a worn-out cowboy boot contest and a street dance with a live band.
    A cowboy parade added to the excitement, as did a kid’s Western coloring contest, a silent auction, raffles and a log branding. Local musicians, including the Karhu family, Hub Whitt, the Rannells, Larry Ilg, Mark Cheshier and Carol Blakeman provided live entertainment throughout the afternoon.
    In the worn-out cowboy boot contest Michelle Smith of Newcastle triumphed in the women’s division, while Dennis Lee of Ten Sleep took the men’s division, each winning a $50 gift certificate for new boots. Emma Mercer of Hyattville won the people’s choice award for the most unique boots.  
    Bill Gould of Meeteetse won the Henry “Golden Boy” .22 Rifle and Connie Bicknell of Basin won the $500 gift certificate raffle to the stores of her choice. Both raffles were sponsored by the Guardians of the Range.
    B. Joe Coy of Cody and Floyd Moore of Douglas were the high bidders for the Lightning C cattle brands the Guardians sold through sealed bids. Steve Jones of Meeteetse donated the brands.
    The Guardians presented Historic Family Ranch Awards to seven ranches owned and operated by the same family for at least 100 years within the area the Guardians serve – the Big Horn Basin, Big Horn Mountains and surrounding communities. Recipients include the Mullins Family Ranch at Manderson, Clear Creek Ranch at Buffalo, Paint Rock Angus at Hyattville, Larsen Ranch at Meeteetse, 91 Ranch at Cody, Bennion Ranch at Meeteetse and the Diamond Tail Ranch at Shell.
    During the picnic the Old Timer’s crowned the Old Timer’s King and Queen based on attendees who had lived in Wyoming the longest. The honors went to Curtis Larsen of Meeteetse (1916) and Martha Mercer of Hyattville (1918). Attendants included Eddie Dvarishkis (1920), Betty Cope (1924), Phyllis Strong (1924), Margarite Gregg (1927), Bob Black (1927), Marion Black (1929), Jerry Brown (1931), Rob Orchard (1932) and Odie Wilkensen (1935). Grace Carlson, age 101, rode in the parade but was unable to attend the picnic and therefore was not included in the royalty.
    The Greer Ranch, Herman Ranch, Old Timer’s and Guardians of the Range provided the roast beef for the picnic at the Medicine Lodge State Archaeological Site. The Paintrock Punchers 4-H Club served food and beverages downtown through the afternoon and evening.
    The Guardians of the Range, Hyattville Old Timer’s Association and the Ten Sleep - Hyattville Lion’s Club sponsored the revelry. The Guardians are a non-profit organization dedicated to sound science and community partnership in public land management. They address grazing issues on behalf of grazing permit holders on the Shoshone and Bighorn National Forests, the Cody, Worland, Lander BLM resource management areas and their surrounding communities.
    Guardians Executive Director Kathleen Jachowski says she is thrilled the Guardians could combine their Cowboy Day events with the Old Timer’s landmark celebration.
    American Cowboy magazine launched the National Day of the American Cowboy campaign in 2004 to acknowledge and preserve the heritage, history and culture of America’s cowboys and cowgirls. The late U.S. Senator Craig Thomas sponsored the first NDAC resolution and the first NDAC celebration occurred July 23, 2005. President George W. Bush issued a statement of support for the resolution that same year. After Senator Thomas’ death in 2007, U.S. Senator Mike Enzi took over as the Senate sponsor in 2008 and 2009. The resolution will have to be reintroduced each year until it is officially designated a national day of observance by the President.
    “The Hyattville community has reached a milestone – 100 years of celebrating the ranching heritage and the people that helped form the foundation for this great community,” comments Linda Hamilton, Old Timer’s President. “Great milestones like this one are a result of many years of dedication and a strong sense of community pride. We are proud that Governor Freudenthal recognized the importance of this celebration and declared July 25, 2009, as ‘Wyoming Old Timer’s Day.’”
    Hyattville, a Western cow town at the base of the Big Horn Mountains, was founded in the 1880s and was originally known as Paintrock until 1886 when Sam W. Hyatt became its first postmaster. Asa Mercer, author of the highly controversial – and now highly sought after – book, The Banditti of the Plains, also made Hyattville his home.
    Additional photographs from the celebration can be viewed at www.guardiansoftherange.org or www.hyattville.org.
    Echo Renner is a field editor for the Wyoming Livestock Roundup. For more information, contact Kathleen Jachowski, Guardians Executive Director at 307-587-3723 or Linda Hamilton, Old Timer’s Association President at 307-469-2272.