In Washington, In Idaho, In Oregon and Away We Go....

Our next destination was Washington, the farthest state I've ever been away from home.  Each time we approach a new state or area, Ace always asks me what I envision the landscape to look like.  When we first entered the state, it was pretty barren and looked like a desert.  On the other side of the mountains, we entered into a very green area.  There were times that we were at a very high altitude, that we were driving in the clouds.

A few years ago, Ace's truck broke down while in Lynden, WA.  A local family lended him a truck to borrow for a nearby rodeo.  He has stayed connected with them and I got to meet Ace's friend, Lance Witman, on Wednesday when we made it to Lynden. We set up pens by the trailer and hung out for a little while before the perf.  Lance and I sat down by the fence and watched the rodeo and Ace and Cody joined us after their runs.  Ace made a good run despite the muddy conditions and was able to place last hole.

Click HERE to watch Ace's run in Lynden 

On Thursday morning, Lance met us at the arena and we walked to breakfast at a local cafe.  Lance insisted on buying us some handpicked berries for the road, so he bought us a crate of fresh blueberries and strawberries.  

After breakfast we hit the road towards Moses Lake, WA. While we were in Caldwell, Idaho I met Shea Fisher (Calf Roper, Tyson Durfey's, wife) and had a spectating companion for the rodeo. 

Ace had the calf roped to be pretty quick.  However, the calf's little horn got stuck in between the buttons on his shirt.  So, it took him a little longer to get her tied and ripped every button off his shirt in the process!! Thank goodness dry cleaners sew buttons back on shirts, because we have had many "Tough Enough To Wear Pink" nights this summer!

Click HERE to watch Ace's run in Moses Lake

After the perf we drove about an hour and set up camp at a nearby arena.  We spent most of the next day driving towards Gooding, Idaho for the evening perf. Thank goodness Ace had another pink shirt, because we had another "Tough Enough To Wear Pink Night."

Mexico didn't work his best on this run and Ace lost his footing when he approached the calf's head.  

Click HERE to watch Ace's run at Gooding

After the perf at Gooding, the guys were up in the slack in Burley, Idaho.  Burley was about 45 minutes away and we were rushing to make it there in time.  Ace and Mexico had a good run and placed third in the rodeo. 

Click HERE to watch Ace's run at Burley

After the slack we had dinner at Denny's at about 12am and made it to Jerome, ID at about 2:30am.  On Saturday morning, the guys were up in roping. Shea and I sat together and chatted and filmed our guys. 

Saturday afternoon after the roping Roger Nonella and his horse, Tucker, hopped into our rig for the short go at Caldwell, Idaho.  Cody and Roger joined us for the Reno short round, so we had our fingers crossed for another successful round.  Roger won the short go round and placed third in the average, Cody finished fifth in the average, and Ace finished eighth.  Whether it was thousands or hundreds, each of them had a payday.

Click HERE to watch Ace's run at Caldwell

We headed back to Jerome after the perf.  We hadn't gotten much sleep the past two days, so we slept in a little on Sunday.  Ace, Cody, and I had a quick lunch at a nearby restaurant before another roping on Sunday afternoon.  After the roping, I ran to Walmart and got some steaks and veggies to grill for dinner.  We grilled and played a friendly game of 'Catch Phrase'. 

On Monday, Dane Kissack and his horse joined our rig for the drive back to Washington.  Along the way, we stopped in Nampa, ID to get some new tires for the trailer.  Dane was way too excited about changing tires! 

We grabbed some Panda Express and got back on the road.  Along the way, we entertained ourselves with a few card games and of course the guys had to listen to Monday Night Football.

We stopped along the way at a small basketball court and played around the world and 21.  We stayed the night at another roper's place, where Dane's rig was parked.  We grilled burgers and called it an early night. 

On Tuesday morning, we got an early start to the day.  As usual, Ace is always the first to rise.  He decided to be silly and wake Cody up in a not-so-nice manner by throwing ice on him.  When that didn't work, he put a frozen package of meat on his back. Boys will be boys, at any age!  We grabbed a quick breakfast and hit the road towards Kennewick, WA.  

When we arrived, the first stop was a laundromat to catch up on laundry.  I stayed and took care of the washing and drying while the guys took the trailer to the fairgrounds and got the horses situated.  They cleaned the trailer out and then played some basketball, while I was at the laundromat.  Ace came to pick me up and we got back to the fairgrounds.  It's so nice having a clean trailer! 

Many people have been asking for pictures of our humble abode, so here it is! 

We have a bed and a couch that folds down into a bed for our guests along the rodeo road. There are two stove tops and a microwave that doubles as a convection oven.  Our small bathroom space is equipt with a shower, toilet, and sink. The trailer has tons of storage space, which is super handy.  In the back, we have four stalls for horse travel. 

When we got back to the trailer, we put up all of our laundry and the guys started to play a video game that they've been battling at for a few days now...it's really quite silly and amusing!

The guys have the week off, so we are going to have a few days to pretend like tourists in Washington before they're up on Friday night!  

*******BREAKING NEWS*******

Stratton Cole Leske is officially here!! Born on 8/19, weighing in at 7lbs 11oz and measuring 19in.  Congrats to Kailey, Martin, and ALL family members!! We wish we were home, but are sending our love from Washington.  We can't wait to come home and meet you!!!!