The 5th Annual Cowboy Ball, sponsored by the Rockin’ RC Rodeo Committee and the Ravalli County Fair, will be held this Saturday night, February 13, at the 1st Interstate Building at the Ravalli County Fairgrounds.
Each year a different project is selected and the proceeds from the ball go to that project. The theme for this year’s ball is “Bring the Horses Back to the Fairgrounds.” For over 40 years, the 4H horse project show has been the weekend before the actual fair and by the time the fair rolls around, there’s not a horse to be seen. The committee hopes to change that this year. While the 4H horse Show will still be held the Saturday prior to the Ravalli County Fair, the 4H members will bring their horses back and exhibit them at the fair. The 4H members will be doing demonstrations using their horses throughout the fair.
But they need stalls to keep their horses in during the day. That’s where the Cowboy Ball comes in. The proceeds will be earmarked for a new stall area adjacent to the arena. There will be 26 stalls built on the west side of the roping stock pen north of the arena. An additional 14 stalls will be built along the fence separating the open bleachers from the rodeo ground. Fairgrounds manager Deborah Rogala estimates there will be 30 horses coming in for the fair. The panels will cost about $100 each and they will be available for sale on Saturday night. These will be offered for sale during the early part of the ball and then finish out the live auction.
“It will take about 150 panels to build these pens,” according to Rogala.
The Cowboy Ball is more like a carnival than a dance early in the evening. There are raffle tickets to be bought, contests to enter, and cards to buy for Cow Pie Bingo. This popular event features a recently fed calf, a pen with numbers on a grid on the floor, cards corresponding to the numbers on the floor, $20 (to purchase said card), and a bit of excitement to encourage the calf to, well create a cow pie. It’s basically a Split-the-Pot with a little country ambiance added in.
Other contests include a dance contest at 6:30. There’s also a contest for the Best Hat, Best Boots, and Best Britches. It’s $5 to enter each of these contests. There’s a Lucky Card Draw, the Heads or Tails Game, and even a chance to squirt a commissioner. Actually that’s squirt a commissioner’s face on a cup and knock it off the sawhorse. All of these contests will have great prizes so be sure and spiff up your boots, dust off your hats, and press those britches. Sharpen your aim, too.
The raffle is actually a feed bucket raffle. The items are grouped together into ‘baskets’ and then a feed bucket placed in front of each offering. Baskets include a ‘Little Buckaroo toy basket’, a spa basket, horse items, art and photographs. You can increase your chances by putting all your tickets into the bucket you want. The raffle winners will be drawn just after the live auction.
There are about 13 live auction items. They include a custom Double H handcrafted beaver cowboy hat valued at $850, a whiskey and bourbon basket donated by The Fort Owen Ranch, the Dessert of the Month with a special dessert each month from some of the valley’s best bakers delivered right to your door; and along the culinary lines, there will be a ‘Celebrity Chef’ dinner for six with Bitterroot Star publisher Victoria Howell cooking at the Stevensville Hotel. Artwork includes “The Spirit of the Big Sky,” a matted photograph by Mark LaRowe, a triptych on canvas entitled “Chilly Cattle” by Jean Schurman; and for the horse in your life, a matching headstall and breast collar. There is a 2016 Fair and Rodeo package that includes six Sky Box seats for Friday night’s rodeo, carnival tickets, and a BBQ dinner for six. In all, between the Feed Bucket Raffle and the live auction, you can take care of your valentine all year long. There may even be a puppy or a mini pig there.
Up in Smoke will be serving up their delicious barbeque throughout the early evening, and the Rainbow Bar will be running the no host bar. The band 406 will be on hand to provide good dance music for all. This is a don’t-miss event. Admission to the event is $10. For more information, call the Fairgrounds at 363-3411.