BevLive: at the Finals

Note from Heather: I'm a little late posting this, because of the Amanda-and-Roz crisis.  Sorry!

*****

I'm parked, unhitched, showered, and safely ensconced in my camper at Sturgis. Always so nice to get where your going.

Had a wonderful time at the Woodbury's. Not only did they feed me supper, provide ewes and a thousand spectacular acres to train on, but they took us all out to lunch in Buffalo. A wonderful hiatus on my trip–so nice to see old friends and get to revisit one of my favorite fantasies, the perfect Wyoming ranch.

I held Finals try-outs while at Woodbury's, and after running Hemp and Mirk I have decided to give poor, patient Hemp his chance to run. Mirk has done a great job, just missing the finals at both Meeker and Soldier Hollow but he's done a lot for a really young dog and I think I'll give Hemp his turn. Hemp has more experience than Mirk, and while he can be harder to run I think his hard pushing style might suit these sheep a little better than Mirk's more diffident approach. We'll know Wednesday if I was right.

Had a nice practice at Woodbury's; all the dogs were quite nice on their Dorpers. They're not much like range ewes, but it was a wonderful chance to give everyone a good run on sheep they could easily control and gain some confidence from working.

Gave Bill the day off. He damaged a toe nail on Friday and is still sore. I hope it's all better by the time he runs this coming Friday. I'm giving him a few days off to rest after Meeker and let him heal up. I feel he is for sure my best shot here.

I got to Sturgis at 7:00 and the parking area was already quite full. It was getting dark so I didn't get a chance to look over the field. There will be plenty of time tomorrow.

I looked for somewhere to wash the camper all the way here from Buffalo but no luck. So it's covered with mud. I stopped at a rest area and hosed off the door and the jacks. But it's quite a sight.