Justin's best two years has begun!!!

Justin entered the Missionary Training Center in Provo on Wed Dec 16. It was a bittersweet moment. We are happy he's going but sad to know that we will miss him for 2 years. It will be hard....but...we can do hard things!!! He was ready to go and embark on this new wonderful chapter of his life. GO get'em ELDER HATCH!!!!

Mission Call

Justin has received his mission call to the Canada Toronto West Mission!!!!! He speaks in Sacrament Meeting Dec 13th and enters the MTC Dec 16th.

MISSION

Justin's mission papers are in and we are waiting for a mission call!

IMPRA FINALS

Justin qualified for the IMPRA Rodeo Finals which were in Blackfoot at the State Fair. On Monday Night he scored a 65. On Tue he had a good ride going but hit the ground as the 8 sec buzzer sounded! All in all he had an awesome 1st year of rodeo! We are so thankful that he was protected as he participated in this potentially dangerous sport. He's now moving on to bigger and better things.....

Rodeo Sept 4-5 weekend update- He took 2nd in Wellsville and came in 3rd in Winnemucca Rodeos.

Justin is winding down this rodeo season with a big weekend planned. Friday, Sept 4, he will ride in an IMPRA Rodeo in Wellsville Utah. Then on Sat evening he'll be back on a horse after a 6 hour drive to Winnemucca Nevada. Then on Monday and Tuesday at the Idaho State Fair in Blackfoot he'll be competing in the Inter Mountain Pro Rodeo Association Finals. Right now he is sitting 9th in the IMPRA which is quite amazing!
As the rodeo scene winds down for a spell the missionary scene picks up speed. Sunday, Aug 30 Justin was made an Elder after a Special Stake Conference. This Sunday his Bishop will be doing the final requirements for his papers to be completed for him to receive his mission call for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints!

July 24th -25th Rodeo Weekend

We had a busy pioneer weekend going from rodeo to rodeo! Justin rode in the Bannock Rodeo at 2pm on July 24th making a terrific 80 points. That put him in 1st place, got a nice belt buckle and check! Yeah!!
Then we went on to Oakley Idaho for an evening Rodeo. Here he had a good ride which placed him 4th. The next day we had a some time to kill so we did a little sight seeing. The Twin Falls Temple and the Shoshone Falls were a couple of the impressive things that we saw. That evening the Shoshone Rodeo proved to be eventful with bucking horses jumping over the chutes and cowboys being dumped over fences.

Our Lil' Cowgirls & Cowboys

Wellsville Rodeo - July 15, 2009

This was the first rodeo held in the new Wellsville Rodeo Arena. Yeah for Wellsville!

The first picture is of an exhibition ride that ended with this "handstand" looking way of biting the dust. It is a sure way of getting a pain in the neck.

This rearing to go bronc started things off in the chute just as the gate was pulled. Justin made an awesome ride earning a score of 73 points.

Marsh Valley Rodeo - July 10, 2009

Here's Justin's Marsh Valley Rodeo ride. Talk about horsepower, this 17 hand horse had it! His score didn't tell the whole story for this qualifying ride!

The Unexpected

All rides don't turn out just as planned as this "out of the chute explosion" and this "not enough rosin ride!" Justin made a great 1st ride at the State High School Rodeo Finals but getting his glove out of the rigging was very difficult as he made another lap and a half around the arena. So, for his next State ride they decided that they better not rosin the glove much. He had an awesome ride going when all of a sudden his hand blew out and he was going, going, gone!

Bareback Riding is the Sport Where Only One Competitor Knows the Rules

Bareback bronc riding is one of the most physically demanding events in rodeo... Cowboys ride the bucking horse one-handed and cannot touch or hang onto anything with their free hand. They use a leather rigging that includes a handle that resembles that of a suitcase, where riders place their hand. To make the event more difficult for the rider, they are required to lean back and spur in a highly stylized manner that never historically used in actual practice. The cowboy's spurs have to be above the point of the horse's shoulders at the first jump out of the chute and touch the horse on every jump for the full time required for a qualifying ride. They have to stay on the horse and ride with proper technique for 8 seconds in order for the ride to be judged and scored. Once the ride is complete the rider may hold onto the rigging with both hands until he is reached by the pick-up riders, who assist the rider in getting off the still-moving horse and safely on the ground. Cowboys are judged on their control and spurring technique, and the horse is judged on their power, speed, and agility. These two scores are added together to make the total with the highest possible score being 100 points. (definition from answers.com)
Here you can see Justin sporting the chaps that he made himself. The boots, chaps, spurs, glove, rigging, neck roll, protective vest, mouth guard and a beat-up cowboy hat all play an important role in the event.

Justin's 2nd IMPRA Rodeo

At Justin's 2nd Inter Mountain Professional Rodeo Association (IMPRA) rodeo he drew a rough stock horse that was a powerful bucking bronco with a wild kick out. These were both good horses that he made 8 second rides on!

The Wild Wild West Ride

This Malad Rodeo ride was an interesting one for Justin as you can see. The bronc went down and rolled to the right and just as Justin was thinking about bailing off, up it came and he stuck with it and made an 8 second ride!

Our Logan Temple

This photo was taken while sitting at a traffic light! It took my breath when I noticed the view and hurried and got the camera out and snapped the picture before the light turned green!

Check out our Favorite Bareback Cowboy in Action!

GO JUSTIN!! This Plymouth ride was part of a G R E A T 4th of July weekend for Justin! He was in the money for his 24 seconds on 3 horses! He 1st competed on the 3rd in the Wooddruff Homecoming Rodeo where he tied for 3rd place. Then he placed 1st at the Lewiston Rodeo during the day on the 4th and then went on to place 1st at the Plymouth Rodeo that evening! He's livin' a dream!

Hi Everyone! Here we are on the Web!

Here is a sneak peak of Justin at State Rodeo! To be continued...