Saddle Up On Super Sunday
The weather doesn’t matter.
Bob McMurray and the Idaho Youth Ranch Riders saddle up their horses in winds that drop the temperature to 30 degrees below zero - and they pay for the privilege.
“We get together, kick the stirrups, tell stories,” Bob says. “It’s a good way to meet new neighbors.”
And raise money for Bob’s favorite youth organization, Coeur d’Alene’s Anchor House. Since 1983, Bob’s trail rides have raised $15,000 for the group home for boys with any variety of personal problems.
He organizes three or four rides a year to commemorate such notable days as Super Bowl Sunday and his April 18th birthday. Dozens of riders turn out, prepared for a sally through field and forest, stream and tavern.
“Someone rode his horse into a bar once and it became a tradition,” Bob says. “This year, I did it.”
Cowboy Bob’s always had a soft spot in his heart for troubled boys. He saw dozens while he taught boxing in Coeur d’Alene for 25 years.
Bob learned the sport as a boy from an old hermit who lived near the McMurray family ranch. A motorcycle accident knocked Bob out of the semiprofessional ring as a young man, so he began teaching boxing.
“I saw a lot of anger, frustration in some boys,” he says. “In the ring, they’d get their energies going in the right direction, win trophies, scholarships.”
Horses were a great energy release, too. Bob knew that from his own boyhood, and introduced some of his young boxers to rodeo riding.
Job changes put Bob on the road in a truck in 1983. He closed his boxing club, but didn’t give up on his boys. A friend he’d met through boxing worked at Anchor House. He told Bob most kids there had family problems and got nothing for Christmas.
That’s when Bob asked friends if they’d pay to go on informal trail rides to raise money for Anchor House. They were game.
He organized an overnighter from the Garwood Tavern to The Pastime Club in Athol and back, then another into the Green Monarchs above Clark Fork.
A dozen riders went along the first year. Now, groups average 60 with some rides attracting more than 100. Bob asks for $15 a head and negotiates good deals for meals, rooms, dances and entertainment.
“The boys always look at us and wonder why we give them money,” Bob says, chuckling. “We like to.”
Bob’s Super Bowl Sunday ride leaves at 10 a.m. Jan. 30 from state Hwy. 41 and Van Buren Avenue in Spirit Lake. Riders stay overnight in Athol and return Jan. 31. Everyone should bring a snack and a drink. Bob’s arranged a steak dinner, entertainment and breakfast. Cost is $15. For details, call 773-2320.
Draw, partner
The design on Coeur d’Alene’s Art on the Green poster, T-shirts, buttons, etc., always wins exposure to thousands, so budding artists take notice.
The festival of visual and performing arts has launched its annual contest for this year’s design. It doesn’t cost more than time and effort to enter, so get busy. Your effort could net you a $300 prize.
There are few rules. The deadline to enter is March 22. Call 667-0651 or 667-9346 for details.
Over the counter
The chitchat at Andy’s Pantry in Post Falls the other day covered preparations for the next New Year. These folks weren’t concerned with confetti and champagne.
They were talking about which foods stockpile the best in case the country crashes as 1999 becomes 2000. Rice, tuna and noodles were favorites.
Someone suggested storing food in airtight garbage cans. Hmm.
How are you preparing for the potential Y2K breakdown? Educate Cynthia Taggart, “Close to Home,” 608 Northwest Blvd., Suite 200, Coeur d’Alene, ID 83814; send a fax to 765-7149; call 765-7128; or e-mail to cynthiat@spokesman.com.