• From the President
• Budget Update
• ASGRA Meeting schedule
• Did You Know?
• News 'Round the Corral
• 2002 Rodeo Schedule
• Volunteers Needed
• 2002 Calendar of Events
• Indoor Rodeo This Month

Guys and Gals:

I hope that each of you had a wonderful Valentine's and President's Day. I wanted to share a few things with you this month, and I promise this letter will be shorter than last month's.

I am happy to announce that Scott Smiley generously responded to my January appeal and volunteered to become our Treasurer. His appointment was confirmed by the Board at the February 8th meeting. Scott holds Bachelor's and Master's Degrees in Finance and is a CPA. He serves as Treasurer for his employer and provides the same services to his church. He brings a wealth of experience to this position and the Board looks forward to working with him.

When the contract for our current host hotel was negotiated two years ago, we were unable to secure a booking on our regular rodeo weekend for 2003. A series of citywide workshops on the weekend after Labor Day completely booked all hotel facilities large enough to accommodate our Friday and Saturday evening dances. Since the revenue and goodwill generated by the dances is essential to our continued success, a change of weekend was required. There were no September bookings available and the October possibilities placed the rodeo too far into the month to be safe from chilly weather. We've therefore elected to schedule Stampede 2003 for Labor Day weekend-August 30 and 31, 2003. We are finalizing plans with the Capital Hilton and I'll keep you informed of our progress. There are no plans at present to permanently relocate to the Labor Day weekend.

With Scott Smiley as an example, I'm hoping that more folks will step forward and volunteer their skills and services. We still need a Secretary, a Social and Entertainment Chair, a Public Relations Chair, and a Rodeo Director. Since these positions are essential to our success, the current members of the Board have to double up responsibilities. Please help the Association by stepping forward for one of these positions. Please contact any member of the Board-our email and phone numbers are in the Newsletter and on the website. Check it out and help us out!

If you haven't visited the website recently, you'll be excited to see the changes! Cowboy Frank-our Web Master-has implemented a number of format and content changes that greatly improve navigation and communication. We're getting nearly 2,000 hits on the site each month. Give it a look and see what's new.

Hoping to hear from you soon!
Gaither Pennington, President

The Board of Directors unanimously approved a proposed 2002 budget at its December 8th meeting. The budget was based on the actual expenses from 2001 with the exception of providing additional funding to support a full 2002 Convention delegation and some additional funding to support fundraising activities. This budget proposal is conservative and projects the Association to have a positive ending balance of approximately $9,366.00. The Board hopes, with your help, to increase attendance and secure additional funding for Stampede 2002. These increases would further improve the end-of-year balance. Please contact Bruce Forchheimer via email to see what you can do to help improve ASGRA's financial health.

In accordance with the By-Laws, the budget proposal was presented to the General Membership for review and approval at the February 24th General Membership meeting. At that meeting the membership requested some changes to specific line items and the budget has been referred back to the Board for approval at the March 12 meeting. I urge you to attend the March 24 membership meeting at 4pm at Sheridan's so that the amended budget can be formally approved.

Any member interested in a detailed summary should contact me by email at . A copy of the detail proposal will be provided by return email.

Gaither Pennington, President

All Meetings are scheduled for Sunday afternoons. Exact times and locations TBD. Stay tuned!

• March 24
• April 14
• May 19
• June 23 (Anual By-Laws meeting)
• July 21
• August 18
• September 15
• October 27 (Election meeting)
• November 17

Rodeo Production Meeting: August 27

Board of Directors meetings
March 12, April 9, May 14, June 11, July 9, August 13, September 10, October 8, November 12

Other ASGRA membership Benefits include:
• No cover charge at Remington's for members with their cards on Friday and Saturday nights
• A 10% discount on purchases at Red River Western Wear
• A 10% discount on purchases at Carols Western Wear
• A discount on Stampede tickets, when ordered with membership renewal
• More to come as details are worked out with more local businesses!

Remember, ASGRA trail rides are the first Sunday of the month at 11:00am!
Weather permitting, we will be holding a trail ride at Piscataway Ranch in Clinton, MD at 11:00 am on the following days:
March 3rd: Bundle up for a ride through the late winter woodlands!
April 7th: Get a first glimpse of new spring blossoms in a relaxing woodland setting!
For further information and to RSVP, contact Glenn at (703) 538-2225.

Royalty Benefit Alert!
Miss ASGRA 2002 hosts Spring Bonnet - a benefit for PetsDC and SMYAL Friday April 5th, at Sheridan's. Show starts at 10:00pm - be there

Dance Party
The first Friday of each month, Sheridan's will be having a country western dance party. There is NO fundraiser on these nights - NO COVER and the drink specials are $2 domestic beer and rail drinks. Come out and two step to your heart's delight! Hope to see you there soon!

• Cowtown Rodeo 2002 TGRA Fort Worth, TX March 29-31, 2002
• Big Horn Rodeo 2002 NGRA Las Vegas, NV April 5-7, 2002
• LA Rodeo 2002 GSGRA Los Angeles, CA April 19-21, 2002
• Rodeo in the Rock 2002 DSRA Little Rock, AK April 26-28, 2002
• Great Plains Rodeo 2002 OGRA Oklahoma City, OK May 24-26, 2002
• Southern Spurs Rodeo 2002 SEGRA Atlanta, GA May 31-June 1, 2002

IGRA and the RDP Group that sponsored the New York City Gay and Lesbian Trade Show at the Jacob Javits Center last year has again requested ASGRA's presence with our mechanical bull and roping calf, "Woody".

The event will be held at the Javits Center on Saturday and Sunday, March 16 & 17, 2002 (Saint Patrick's Day weekend). Setup will take place on Friday, March 15. Last year, RDP had over 10,000 people attend the event, including the cast of Showtime's "Queer as Folk", who are expected to participate in this year's event as well.

All ASGRA members who would like to share in the work and the fun, please contact ASGRA Trustee, Les Boggs, at 703-671-0536, or .

The Trade Show is a major media event and is a terrific opportunity for IGRA and ASGRA to strut their stuff in New York City! Last year it was a real Blast!

Les Boggs, IGRA Trustee

March 2002
March 3: 11:00am Trail Ride at Piscataway stables, Clinton, MD
March 3: 8:30pm Sequins & Studs with ASGRA Royalty 2002/Academy; Remington's, Washington, DC
March 8: 9:00pm ASGRA Night and Indoor Rodeo at StageCoach Saloon & Restaurant, Baltimore
March 10: 8:30pm Sequins & Studs; Remington's, Washington, DC
March 12: 7:30pm ASGRA Board Meeting; Capital Hilton
March 13: 8:00pm BHT Meeting; DC Eagle; Washington, DC
March 20: 8:00pm CAB Meeting; DC Eagle; Washington, DC
March 24: 4:00pm General Membership Meeting; Sheridan's, Washington, DC
March 24: 8:30pm Sequins & Studs; Remington's, Washington, DC
March 31: 8:30pm Sequins & Studs; Remington's, Washington, DC

Atlantic States Gay Rodeo Association Indoor Rodeo
March 8, 2002 at the Stagecoach!

Come out and test your skills in our Undress the Cowboy/Cowgirl Contest The Annie Oakley Target Toss And The Hindquarters Hanky Race Plus a performance from our special guests the DC Cowboys!