8 Seconds

"It's boots and chaps
It's cowboy hats
It's spurs and latigo
It's the ropes and the reins
And the joy and the pain
And they call the thing Rodeo!"
- Garth Brooks

We experienced a taste of this thing they call "Rodeo" Saturday Night at the Nephi Ute Stampede. The Ute Stampede has been a Balle family tradition since I can remember. What started out as a camping trip to the KOA, complete with fishing, hiking the turkey trail or to the "crick" with Mike, Dad, Grandma & Grandpa, Kristian, Hillary, & Tara, the horse parade, an occasional water snake, the classic parade, snow cones (always picked red), and the best rodeo there ever was has now become a picnic of some type and of course, the timeless attraction, the Ute Stampede. Life changes, traditions evolve, and KOA's burn down, but we continue to make new memories and cherish the moments we have together as a whole family.

Uncle Lee (My Grandma Balle's younger brother) invited us all over for a BBQ. Highlights included our 2 year old cousin Ivan and my 25 year old husband making "vroom vrooming" noises on the stationary four wheelers, learning from Uncle Lee that beef bullion and onion soup keeps burgers moist and hot, and finding out that my grandma (in her youth) not only tipped over occupied outhouses, but also de-railed a train, swung out on a swing in front of cars to give them a scare, rode a horse with FOUR other riding companions, and found some one's hidden beer in the "crick" and dumped it down the stream. She sure is an accomplished woman and I am proud to have her as my grandmother!



Now the Ute Stampede is very dear to my heart and by far the best rodeo I have ever attended. There's something magical about the undying patriotism, the rodeo queens, the blend of rock and country music played, the constant banter of the rodeo clown and announcer, the smell of dust mixed with manure, classic rodeo burgers, the way my grandmother keeps scores in her program, buck'n broncs and huge bulls, and the one and only Cotton Rosser. I can close my eyes and be there in a instant. A little nostalgic? Maybe.




However, there are also a few things I would like to point out that you can only see at the Ute Stampede in good ole Nephi, Utah.

Hair like this...


Apparel like this...

Mustaches like this...(yes, the tips are waxed - just like Captain Hook's)

Even a little Bruin Spirit for us UCLA fans...

Mormon Missionaries...

A burger like this...

and hops like this...


Oh how I love the Ute Stampede and all the memories that come with it!