My Schedule

Of course all of this is God willing and the creek don't rise (or more accurately assuming my job permits) as my mama used to say, also have some blanks here that will fill up most likely as time goes by.

Feb 6-7 Dogshow Atlanta
Feb 13-19 Daytona, FL
Feb 20 & 21 ASFA trial Atlanta
Feb 25-Mar 4 NM
Mar 6-7 AKC trial Louisiana
Mar 13 & 14 show in Franklin TN
Mar 20 & 21 -not sure but either Louisivlle or a 1 day ASFA trial on 21st in GA
Mar 25-29 -ASFA ACoD & BOD meeting
Apr-17-18 AKC trial Perry GA judging
Apr 23 & 24 judging at Hanover PA

Winter Itinerary

Oct 31-Nov 1 judging an ASFA event in Omaha,NE
Nov 5-Nov 8 ProBullRiding finals in LV,NV
Nov 13, 14, 15-Columbia KY for ASFA (I think)
Nov 21 & 22-open
Nov 26-Thanksgiving (one with Archie and his children and grandchildren, and hopefully one with my son his wife and her parents, egads too much food to think about)
Nov 28-ASFA Region 7 Regional judging
Nov 29-ASFA trial GA
Dec 5 & 6 AKC show in AR (maybe this is tentative)
open the rest of the month probably working Christmas and Christmas Eve to build comp time hopefully will leave Dec 30 for New Mexico and be gone through Jan 8 or 9.

Labor Day Weekend 2009 and Fall Itinerary

First the Itinerary
Sept 5, 6 , 7 -hiking SMokies
Sept 13, 14-2 days of Rock Climbing school at Red Gorge River, KY
Sept 19 judging Borzoi Sweepstakes in Atlanta, GA
Sept 26-27- nothing, canceled my canoeing trip with the boss, my Mother says she wants to visit and wanted me to cancel something and that was the first thing I could take off my plate
Oct 3-Toastmasters District contest Springfield TN
Oct 4-judging ASFA in Knoxville
Oct 10 & 11 another free weekend
Oct 16 & 17 -Toastmasters District Conference in Nashville
Oct 24 & 25 judging AKC trial in Reidsville, NC for MAHA
Oct 31 & Nov 1-judging ASFA trial in Omaha, NE flying out on Oct 30
Nov 5, 6, 7, 8 -Professional Bull Riding Finals in LV, NV
Nov 14, 15-free weekend
Nov 21-22 -free weekend
Nov 28-region 7 regionals Calhoun GA, will drive down to attend this
month of December is free for now

Today I am trying to get ready for 3 days of hiking in the Smokies. Hope to have lots more photos to upload when I get back..

November NM itinerary

Looking at a November calendar it appears that:

Friday November 21 my van will be PACKED and ready to load out. I'll be arriving home at 4:15 PM, loading Kix and Vger for sure and then (To the right is what I really hope to see a good bit of! ie. Borzoi chasing rabbits) probably Beckett and Charo (and probably Umber who goes everywhere with me) for the long drive West. I expect I will arrive in the Little Rock area between midnight and 1 AM Sat morning. Name of the game will be drive drive drive, walk dogs when I get to either a hotel North of Little Rock ( there's a pretty nice motel 6 there I've stayed at or go to my friend Rebecca's, Rebecca is South of LR and more comfortable to stay with dogs by far so even though it adds time to my drive the next morning I think probably Bauxite is where I'm headed. This piece of the trip is about 30 miles to I40 for me then 288 miles West out of TN, then another 150 into Arkansas.

Saturday November 22 wherever I'm leaving from I hope to get up and be on the road by say 7 AM, my atlas says Oklahoma is around 330 miles across so hoping to cover the 150 across the rest of AR and then through OK to arrive in Northern TX maybe by 3 PM? Gotta have a dogwalking in there somewhere after leaving AR. There's 176 miles to cover in TX and there is a canyon that I really want to see (Palo Duro) just south of Amarillo, and of course Cadillac Ranch which I have driven past but didn't get photos of before. So my timing for this I'm not sure of. I'd love to be at my friend Leonore's house Saturday night but realistically I am thinking maybe staying at the Blue Swallow in Tucumcari if they will allow dogs. This would keep me from staying on the road past when I should really be off of it and I get to take photos in the canyon, CR and maybe a great sunset in Tucumcari. I love the mesalands.

Sunday November 23rd I hope to be up and at em again by 7 PM maybe earlier, looks like I have around 150 miles to cover to get to Leonore's Rancho Abordo in Sandia Park which is quite close to Sandia Peak so I am hoping to be there say nineish in the morning (I'll try not to get terribly distracted on the drive over . So maybe after 2 days and around 1600 miles on the road with 4 or 5 furry riding companions maybe Leonore will be up for "local" sightseeing that day. I'd like to hit the Peak/tramway and then afterwards drive up Turquoise trail and actually stop at some of the cool places on that route, there are a number of ghost towns I think and ruins of old ghost towns.

Monday November 24th-You know there is so much to do in this state it is unreal but I have tried to look at things that won't drive me to death before a weekend of walking in the desert . I think Monday will be spent going to Quarai, Grand Quivera and Abo at Salinas Mission National Monument, they are all in the same vicinity south of Sandia, maybe also hit Sevilleta NWR on the way back up to Sandia. If not Sevilleta then maybe the Very Large Array near Socorro NM.

Tuesday November 25th I hope that I am not driving my host crazy by then or that my dogs are not. You know what they say about fresh fish and out of town guests, they both start to smell after about 3 days . Leonore mentioned Chaco Culture National Historical Park and said "like no other place on earth". For my part I never feel closer to God than those rare moments I can be in a vast wilderness. The first overlook at Yellowstone where Yellowstone Lake glitters like the biggest sapphire in the world made me weep. I cry at anything maybe it's being middle aged. When I was driving through Gila National Forest back in February one of the overlooks (Emory Pass) at 8200 feet has a 40 plus mile vista. I had to get some paper towel out for that one. Miles and miles I'd drive and never see anyone, however I am now digressing from my November itinerary and getting maudlin. I am sure whatever Leonore comes up with to do will be spectacular, she lives in a state with rare wild beauty everywhere and most of it I haven't seen.

Wednesday November 26th-Gosh I guess I'll save the rest of it for another blog entry. I will say that I am really looking forward to Leonore's authentic New Mexican Thanksgiving!