The viability of ASGRA depends on the willingness of members to step forward and serve as Officers or in other leadership roles. During Atlantic Stampede weekend this year, the Association will elect a President and Treasurer to two-year terms and a Trustee to a three-year term. Response to our call for nominations for elective office has thus far been disappointing. If you can share your time and talents as an Officer or Trustee, contact Busty Bottoms, our Election Committee Chairman at as quickly as possible.

A quick overview of items since last month include:

• David H has again volunteered to serve as our Stampede 2005 Rodeo Director, and he and his Rodeo Roundtable are hard at work finalizing plans for Stampede. He and Paul Marengo, our Volunteer Coordinator, are seeking people willing to help with this year's Rodeo. Won't you please help us by sharing some time and talent? You can do so by contacting David by email at or Paul at .
• Classic Rodeo of York Springs, Pennsylvania will be our Stock Contractor for Stampede 2005.
• Entertainment applications are coming in and the talent profiles are exciting. There will be much to see and hear rodeo weekend!
• Detailed planning with the Hyatt Regency on Capitol Hill has begun. We're happy to say that room reservations for September are already rolling in. It is important that you reserve your room before ASGRA's guaranteed lowest rate expires! We cannot guarantee either our special rate or room availability if you fail to book after the first week in August. Don't miss out on the best rate in town for rodeo weekend!

Gaither Pennington, ASGRA President

Need a place to practice your calf roping? Looking for some instruction on Barrel Racing, Pole Bending, or Flags? Then July and August are the months for you! Two of our ASGRA members have graciously agreed to open up their farm, Thundering Hooves, located at 13279 Croom Road, Upper Marlboro, MD 20772, for some training opportunities.

Calf Roping-July 17th (2 - 4 p.m.) and August 14th (2 - 4 p.m.) are the dates for practice. The farm is not yet set up to accommodate live calves, but hay bales with calf heads will be available for those who want to practice their roping skills. No instructor will be provided for these events, it is simply a chance to come and hone your skills with a little practice. There is no charge for these events.

Speed Events-August 6th (10 a.m. - 2:00 p.m.) is the time to practice barrels, flags, and pole bending. If there is rain or other inclement weather on the 6th, the rain date for this clinic will be the 7th. There will be a well qualified instructor on site for this event and students are asked to plan on paying the instructor directly on-site. The cost will be $25/student and participants should plan on bringing cash to cover their registration fee. All participants will need to bring a horse and provide negative Coggins documentation. If needed, there is very limited boarding space at the farm. Please contact Louis or Andy directly at 301-579-6005, to inquire about availability/cost for boarding your horse.

Pre-registration for these events is required so that we know how many people to expect at each event. Registration is available on-line at www.asgra.org. Please note that payment for the Speed Events clinic will be handled on-site the day of the event and students should come prepared to pay the $25 fee in cash.

Many thanks go out to Louis and Andy for making their farm available to us for these events.

Scott Smiley, ASGRA Treasurer

If you are attending any of the upcoming summer IGRA rodeos and have an interest in serving ASGRA as a substitute trustee when our own trustee is not present, please consider doing so. The official role of a trustee at a rodeo is to observe the goings-on and assist with the formal evaluation of the event in order to help the rodeos improve from year to year. Trustees also deal with special issues that arise when necessary. Any member, whether competing or not, is eligible to serve as substitute trustee, but you must be appointed in advance by the current trustee. Please contact ASGRA Trustee, Michael Lentz if you would like to be more involved in either capacity.

Michael Lentz, ASGRA Trustee

ASGRA trail rides are the first Sunday of the month at 11:00am!
Regardless of the weather, ASGRA's monthly trail rides are held at Piscataway Ranch in Clinton, MD at 11:00 am on the following days:
July 3rd: Celebrate Independence Day weekend with a leisurely walk through the cool forest.
August 7th: Take a break from the dog days of summer with a ride along the woodland streams of Maryland.
For further information, contact Patrick. (see contacts page for current phone numbers)

North Star Regional Rodeo NSGRA Minneapolis-St Paul, MN July 1-3, 2005
Rocky Mountain Regional Rodeo CGRA Denver, CO July 8-10, 2005
Canadian Rockies International Rodeo ARGRA Calgary, Alberta July 1-3, 2005
Southern Spurs Rodeo GGRA Atlanta, GA July 22-24, 2005

First Annual Billy Collison Volunteer Award

This year, ASGRA and Carol's Western Wear will be awarding the first annual "Billy Collison Volunteer Award". This award will be given to a volunteer for ASGRA and Stampede 2005. Billy was deeply involved in many aspects of our community and the word volunteer was truly his middle name. Please keep in mind all those who work hard at ASGRA all year and make a nomination in June and July for this special belt buckle which will be donated by Carol's Western Wear. The award will be awarded at Atlantic Stampede 2005 on Sunday during Grand Entry.

ASGRA Elections 2005

It's time once again for ASGRA Elections. We have three positions to be filled. We need nominations for President, Treasurer (each for a 2 year term) and Trustee (for a 3 year term). We also need volunteers to help on the Nominations Committee. If you are interested in running for one of the open positions or volunteering please contact the Nominations Committee Chair Rachel Barnett (aka Ms ASGRA 2005 Busty Bottoms) at or 301-806-2410.

Have you ever wanted a more visible way to help local or national charities? Well here's your chance. We are currently searching for contestants for the 2006 ASGRA Royalty Team. Information and applications are available on the web page. The deadline to turn in your packet is July 11, 2005.

Are you an entertainer? You can get all the information at our website about performing both at the Hyatt Regency, our host hotel and at the rodeo grounds for Atlantic Stampede 2005. You can also fill out the registration form.

On Sunday July 17th at Freddie's Beach Bar and Grill Ms. ASGRA 2005 Busty Bottoms will be holding a "Welcome Home Busty" fundraiser. The show will start at 9pm with all proceeds going to Metro TeenAids.

Miss ASGRA 2005 Jymmye Jaymes was a judge for Pride of Pets (sponsored by PetsDC) on June 18.

Due to personal reasons, Angel McWilliams, aka Xavier Bottoms has had to step down as MsTer ASGRA 2005. We would like to take a moment to thank Angel for her time and energy this year.

3 11am Trail Ride at Piscataway stables, Clinton, MD
5 9:30pm Bingo Night at Titan to benefit ASGRA charities
13 8pm BHT Meeting; DC Eagle; Washington, DC
14 7:30pm ASGRA Board Meeting; Hyatt Regency Hotel
12 9:30pm Bingo Night at Titan to benefit ASGRA charities
20 8pm CAB Meeting; DC Eagle; Washington, DC
19 9:30pm Bingo Night at Titan to benefit ASGRA charities
26 9:30pm Bingo Night at Titan to benefit ASGRA charities

2005 ASGRA Meeting Schedule

Board Meetings July 14

from the 2005 ASGRA Royalty Team to the following ASGRA members who will celebrate birthdays in July: Connie Morris, Robert Steele, Forrest Olgers, Tim Lewis, Andy Andruscavage, Tony Rivenbark, Jason Hays, John Meng, Cindy B., David H, Cowgirl Fluff, Dennis Adams, Busty Bottoms, Eric Powell, Alberto Bastida and Jack Neville Happy Birthday to all of you!

And a belated Happy Birthday to those who had June birthdays; our list didn't make it in time for publication last month: Steven Haber, Bill Dunigan, Christopher Farley, Tish Kane, David Beck, Joachim V., Daniel Lusk, Kert Blodgett, George M., Joe Henry, Michael D., Michael McCormick, Jo Anne N., Stephanie Tom
(Note: If your birthday is this month and you aren't listed, we either don't have your birthday on file or you have requested that we not print your name. We wish you a happy birthday as well!)

Thank you to Remington's for inviting ASGRA Royalty to ride with them during DC's Pride Parade on June 11th and to Phoenix for inviting ASGRA Royalty to ride with them during Baltimore Pride Parade on June 18th.

Thanks to Busty, Destiny, Patrick, Bailey, Jackie and Rudy for their help running the Bull Master during Baltimore's Pride Block Party on June 18th.

Thank you to Destiny B. Childs, Dale Morris, Michael Dixon, Bailey Kier, Jackie, Mary Lynn, and JR Key for representing ASGRA and IGRA at Gaydays in Orlando, FL June 2-5.

Howdy boys and girls,

We are a little over 10 weeks out from Atlantic Stampede 2005 and our web page is full of information. If you follow the link for Stampede, it will take you to all there is to know at this time about our main event. We are in need of volunteers in all areas before, during and after the rodeo. Be sure to fill out the volunteer form.

You can purchase tickets for Atlantic Stampede 2005:
Want to sponsor a buckle?:
and (of course) renew your membership:

Check it all out and be sure to tell your friends!

Are you a member or friend of ASGRA and looking to connect with other members? If you are looking for a roommate at an upcoming rodeo or a partner in camp or team events, then this is the place for you. Join our Yahoo! Group: http://sports.groups.yahoo.com/group/ASGRA_Connections/

Mike S., ASGRA VP

The weather was scorching hot reaching into the mid 90's with full humidity and we worked our butts off - 5 hours - 50 rides - $250 raised for charity… WOW!

The booth staff was amazing. Patrick, Lance, Cindy, and Jackie all traveled to help out. I had a group of local friends jump in that were just amazing, donating their time to help out our cause. The organizer of Pride, Fran, couldn't have been more helpful. She had given us four spaces and entry for all staff free of charge for the event. Then she made sure I could get a tent at a discounted price. Our booth was strategically placed for the maximum shade and we quickly became the hang out area for many locals.

I wish to thank everyone that helped make Philly Pride such a huge sucess. I'm looking forward to New York Pride then Harrisburg Pride next month.

Jen Vrana, ASGRA member

ASGRA's Proud Philly Pride Volunteers photo courtesy of Lance Haverly

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