On Wednesday, Phyllis, Cameron and I walked to the Ellensburg Rodeo arena. Some preliminaries were going on but the real activity began on Thursday. We watched three riders in the steer wrestling (bulldogging) event where a horse-mounted rider chases a steer, jumps off the horse, on to the 
animal and wrestles it to the ground. Two of the three managed the feat, the third missed.
I was more impressed with what followed. The young steer and the participant’s horse had to be dealt with. So, an accompanying rider caught the horse and another -seemed to be young ladies — followed the steer {note the animal knew where to go} across the arena where it exited to the holding pens where about 80 such animals were in temporary abundance. In the 37 years of residency in the Kittitas Valley 
that is the second time I have seen any rodeo activity. We went many years ago to a practice session when a student wanted us to watch her participate in barrel racing. I remember her last name began with a Z. (both photos are snagged from the web)
We went because Cameron wanted to visit with Yakama Nation folks that set up tepees near the grounds. His off-day is Wednesday and the Rodeo and County Fair don’t officially open until Thursday. The tepees where set up but there wasn’t a single person to be found.
Cameron is an avid reader of history of the natives of the Columbia Basin and coastal Washington State. Since 2014 there has been a campaign called “We Are Still Here” to raise awareness about the ongoing issues faced by Native Americans. The tepee encampment is (now) promoted to advance that agenda, Cameron hoped to learn about how they think about the future of the Tribes.
Photos can be found by searching with:
“Yakama Nation Ellensburg Rodeo”
A story is here: Yakama Nation
As a final note: It rained on the opening, Saturday and Sunday – cool and wet. Monday (the biggest day) looks to be nicer … 68° and mostly sunny.
Meanwhile, I have been working on railings for the deck and to design a fail-proof warning and exit from the deck for those over 6 feet tall. More on this next week. The problem exists because, as an addition to an existing house, the height was constrained because I didn’t want a step-down to the deck from the room.
Nancy’s need for a “walker” and sometimes wheel chair made me think of the accessibility of houses. So, I had the ramp installed in the front as part of the remodel, and the deck surface is compatible with the floor of the room it is adjacent to. This stuff would be easy and less costly if done as new construction. With a house originally built in 1980, all remodeling is more complicated and compromised.
Keeping Track
On the Naneum Fan
John