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UPCOMING EVENT
PINE COUNTRY CLASSIC Flagstaff, Arizona September 1-3, 2012
T
he wind whistling through the canyon sounded eerie and a little unnerving. It would come and go and when it was silent, that was even more unsettling. Cade** took a deep breath and looked at his horse. The paint had never relaxed and that bothered Cade more than the shrill whistle through the canyon. When the paint turned his head and looked up Cade followed the piebald’s gaze and his blood ran cold. He slowly and methodically cocked a shell into the chamber of his rifle and lay down in the crevice of the red rock. He did all he could to breath slowly hoping it would steady his hand. The paint shifted and turned and continued to watch above his head. Thank the good Lord the pinto was a watchdog. When Cade ventured to look up again the hunters were gone. That was odd and Cade continued to watch his horse. They had to have tracked him into the canyon. No wonder his nerves had been on edge. He wondered if he could make it to the crater of the volcano. The hunters were superstitious and they would never follow him there. The forest was a good days ride from the canyon floor and by the time he made the climb to the top it would be dark. Suddenly his skin prickled and his piebald shifted his weight. This time he didn’t look up but stared straight ahead and blew a warning through flared nostrils. Cade had sat still long enough. He mounted and holstered his rifle. He was a good twelve miles from Flagstaff and that was his only hope. The paint was anxious and sensed Cade’s anxiety. Fear does strange things to a man. He took to the trail and when they topped out of the canyon the paint was ready to run. Cade held him in check knowing full well he might need him before the dim lights of the settlement came into view. It was going to be a long night. Flagstaff will welcome USTRC team ropers to the Pine Country Classic the weekend of September 1st through the 3rd. It will be a weekend worth noting on your roping calendar. With lots to see and do plus the fun of a good USTRC roping it will a weekend to share with family and friends. Surrounded by natural wonders like the Grand Canyon, Flagstaff offers dozens of inns, a multitude of hotel and motel accommodations, conference and meeting venues, more than 200 restaurants, numerous night spots, and a variety of cultural, historic and scientific attractions. Visitors from all over the world are attracted to the clean mountain air, year-round outdoor recreation opportunities, historic downtown charm and the Western legacy of pioneer ranchers, railroad builders and lumbermen. Some of the West’s
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