Welcome to
Gate Farm Home of
"Diamond C
Montana Jack"
Leslie Heulitt
HC 78 Box 27
Rock Cave, West Virginia 26234
304-924-6176
e-mail to:
montanasmama@hughes.net
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Submitted
to Western Mule Magazine OUR
FIRST SHOW, CHEERS FOR EARS 2001 It was Wednesday July 26, 2001, after months of planning things down to the minutest details we were ready. The ribbons, awards, pub glasses, tee shirts, caps, watches, buttons, along with lots of goodies to give out donated by our sponsors were packed and ready to go to the show ground. So were the computers complete with our new horse show record keeping software program, the timer, music to play during breaks, coolers and cases of soft drinks, juice, bottled water, fruit, candy and snacks to get us, our judges and the rest of the volunteers through two days of hard work in the hot July sun. We had made and received hundreds of phone calls, sent and answered thousands of emails, spent hours of computer time working on class lists, the show bill and all sorts of other things. We built the backdrop for our banner, a sandwich board for the sponsor listings, a bridge, some other things for the courses and a bunch of portable pens. We had extra trashcans and porta-potties. We had two big tents coming so people would have some shade. We did the advertising, built a honking big website, had garnered support from all over the country and Canada, we were excited, the first annual Virginia Cheers For Ears Charity Donkey and Mule Show was going down this weekend. Wednesday afternoon as I was finishing up loading my hee-hawler it started to sprinkle a little rain down. I had book marked the weather site for the show area on my computer and was keeping pretty close tabs on the long range weather forecast. They were calling for a small front to be moving through bringing showers for the next few days but that was supposed to move on off leaving us with a clear weekend. Since I would be traveling towards VA. along with the front I blew off washing the truck and hee-hawler, no sense doing all that work to drive in the rain. I spent those few extra hours doing all those last minuet things one has to do before leaving the farm for 5 days, so I was in high spirits and good to go. Thursday morning I check the forecast and it looks good, still calling for a nice weekend. It’s raining lightly when I leave the farm, by the time I hit the interstate its coming down pretty heavy, an hour later its turned into a torrential downpour with patches of pea soup fog. I’m leaning over the steering wheel white knuckling it trying to see and keep my speed up to at least 50mph so the tractor-trailers don’t run right over top of me. Durn! I think, it’s going to take me forever to get there at this rate. A little while later it was double dirty durn, I had missed my turn off for the short cut over the Midland trail!! Now I could count on at least 2 more hours of windshield time before I got there. I did have the occasional warm and cozy thought that THIS TIME I had whipped the leaks in my gooseneck and THIS TIME I would have a dry bed. Arrive I finally did right at dusky dark to find my buddy Bob Smith already comfortably camped out with his hinny West Virginia Sunshine. Shortly after that Robert Seddon and Gale Barclay pulled in with their minis, we stayed up pretty late chewing the fat and when we all turned in it was still raining. Me to my, leaks have triumphed over caulking again, wet bed! Friday things were a buzz of activity, rain or no rain there were things to do and we did them. It would shower for a while and look like it was going to clear than shower again, off and on all day. But everyone was still saying it was going to blow over, spirits were high and folks were starting to arrive pulling rigs with donkeys and mules inside. Friday night all was ready and it was still raining but we held the hope close to our hearts that it would blow over by show time. Well those hopes were dashed, that front had stalled out and was idling right over our show. Saturday greeted us with a chill drizzle and it proceeded to rain a cold rain of varying degrees all day, we sure didn’t have the turnout we hoped for but the folks who did come showed their hearts out, repeatedly getting themselves, their animals and their tack soaked! We found out that the expensive computer program we had purchased was not all it was cracked up to be and we were sure glad Cheryl had those tents put up. Too hot and too sunny was not going to be an issue at this show but it sure was nice to get out of the rain, they helped keep the spectators around and the venders dry. What we didn’t know at this time was that there was major flooding going on in areas all around the show grounds, also in North Western N. Carolina and in South Eastern W. Virginia, many folks who wanted to come couldn’t even get there!! Our NMDA Sunday show wasn’t exempt from the rain either it just wasn’t quite as cold. They also got their selves, animals and tack soaked and we finally threw in the towel late in the afternoon and called the last few “fun” classes off because nobody was having any fun, it was just pouring down the rain!! The only thing that saved us was that the rain came straight down for the both days, no wind, no thunder, no lightning, just rain, rain, rain. Yep, we just got plum rained out both days the show committee was not in good spirits. I woke to a soggy deserted show ground Monday morning, broke camp, packed up the hee-hawler and grabbed a couple of trash bags and went out to police the grounds so the hunter, jumper, dressage people couldn’t say anything bad about us long ear folks and guess what!! There was NO TRASH to pick up!! Thanks everybody!! I’ll let you in on a little secret, Cheryl said she went around and picked up bags of trash to clean up after the last horse show to get ready for our show!! As I pulled out of the grounds the clouds parted and the sun was shining once again. We learned a lot about putting on a show, we made new friends, renewed old friendships and developed a core of people dedicated to this show and what it stands for. We, the show committee, would like to gratefully and humbly thank all you volunteers, all you sponsors, all you spectators all you vendors, our photographers, our Judges, Paul Hutchinson and Leah Patton, and most of all, those of you who came and rode, drove and walked your wonderful mules and donkeys in all the classes you could so we had a show!! Thanks all of you SO VERY MUCH for your support. Well they say every cloud has a silver lining so now I’ll give the good news. Rain will not be an issue for the 2002 Cheers For Ears Charity Donkey And Mule Show!! Cheryl had called The Roanoke Times paper trying to get us some press coverage and had been kind of poo pooed off. It must have been a slow news day because of the rain so a reporter did come out to the show. We got a wonderful write up in the Sunday Roanoke times complete with two color photographs and not one cute, funny or derogative comment on the donkeys or mules, totally positive press! The article generated interest from not one but two TV stations!! Who both came out Sunday afternoon! So we also got great coverage on the 6 and 11 o’clock news programs on both stations. Next thing you know Cheryl’s getting a call from the President of the board of directors of the Virginia Horse Center, he read the paper, saw the news spots, he wants to know if we would like to pick a date for our show in the BRAND NEW covered arena they are adding to their facilities this winter!! Well hells bells of course we do!!! That’s where we wanted to hold the show in the first place but the only open date was in January! The Virginia Horse Center is a WORLD CLASS facility with every amenity. Our arena barn alone will have 170 stalls, indoor wash racks, round the clock security, 15 full camper hookups for starters and plenty of room for primitive camping. The indoor arena will be so large we will divide it into two rings and have classes running simultaneously! The Virginia Draft Horse And Mule Association is joining up with Cheers For Ears next year and putting on the mule pulling classes many of you had requested and yes there will be ear challenged equines competing there too. Many of these folks pull horses and mules and that was the deal but hey, they will bring in loads of spectators and we are delighted to have them on our team. Speaking of spectators the Horse Center is also hosting a big Quarter Horse Show the same weekend as Cheers For Ears. That will also bring in even more loads of spectators who will be drawn to our arena like moths to a flame!! What a great opportunity to show off our long ears. They may come in laughing but they will leave thinking. Maybe we can even grow some ears on them!! So the show date for Cheers For Ears 2002 has been set, mark your calendars for May 25th and 26th 2002!! The 2001 show got rained out and we took a bath too, we bit the bullet, made our lemonade, our glasses are half full and we are already making plans for 2002. All of you who say you want a big east coast show please help by sponsoring a class and get your buddies to sponsor one too. All of you who say you want a big east coast show, please consider making a donation to the Cheers For Ears fund and get your buddies to make one too, it takes more than hope and good wishes to put on a show of this size. All of you who were so generous with your sponsorships and donations in 2001 we need your continued support and your buddies too! All of you, and this is the most important request, all of you who say you want a big east coast show please help us fill those 170 stalls!! That means you and you and hey you over there on the back porch, you all need to bring your donkeys and mules and get your buddies to bring their mules and donkeys too, without you there is no show! You can keep up with the 2002 Cheers For Ears show information, view our 2001 show photo album and the class results by checking our website at, http://www.usipp.com/gatefarm click on Cheers For Ears. From The Other Side Of The Mountain, Leslie Heulitt
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