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By Dori Klein
As the riders mounted their horses and paced them through warm up exercises
and then lined up for the national anthem, the excitement and anticipation
also mounted for the start of the first ranch rodeo of the season.
The Bear Valley Saddle Club sponsored the rodeo, which was held at
the Loni and Larry Lemmerman farm north of Mazeppa.
The Lemmermans have hosted the ranch rodeo on their farm for over 10 years.
The rodeo area is set up with a corral, bleachers, a judge’s
platform, and tall tower where an announcer and a timer can easily see the
action. At the far end, 30,
400- to 500-pound beef calves are penned and waiting to be herded.
According to Loni, this rodeo is the first of a series of five.
She added that ranch rodeos are held throughout the state during the
summer months and lead up to the final event, the Minnesota Ranch Rodeo
Finals in September. Only the
top three teams from throughout the state are eligible to compete in the
finals. She noted that teams
consist of four riders, and that an individual can be on more than one team.
Teams pay $120 per team to compete and payback is 50 percent.
There are four separate events in the rodeo.
The events are timed and teams must follow the rules or they are
disqualified. The four events
are: team penning, where teams
are awarded points for the number of cattle they herd into a pen; team
sorting, where cattle are herded across a line according to numerical order;
trailer loading, where both a calf and a horse must be loaded onto a
trailer; and doctoring, which involves roping the correct designated calf.
However, it’s not all about competing.
“It’s fun for all ages,” said Loni, who noted that both her and
Larry, as well as their five children often participate in the rodeos.
All are members of the saddle club too, which Loni stated is “family
oriented.” According to her,
the club “has something for everyone.”
There are approximately eight families involved in the Bear Valley
club. One of those members is
Dennis Klindworth, another supporter and participant in the rodeo.
Klindworth, along with Larry, supplies some of the cattle for the
events. He also served as the
announcer and operated the timer at the Lemmermans.
Klindworth stated that his four children also compete at the rodeos and have
been members of teams that have been state champions a couple times.
He noted that his family seldom takes a vacation.
Instead, they participate in as many as 15 ranch rodeos per year.
“This is what we do,” he said.
His wife, Lisa, rides horse too.
However, she doesn’t compete.
The Lemmermans will host a rodeo demonstration as part of the state
cattlemen’s tour on July 7.
Loni is also excited about the possibility of the state competition being
held on their farm.
There is no charge for watching the ranch rodeo at the Lemmermans.
The Bear Valley 4-H Club sells refreshments at the event.
The summer rodeo schedule is Saturday’s starting at noon, June 20th,
July 18th, August 1st and August 22nd.
The Bear Valley Ranch
Rodeos are held at Triple "L" Ranch, Mazeppa, MN. Driving directions from
Mazeppa are: Highway 60 East for about 3 1/2 miles. Turn left on Wabasha
County #3 (north) for 1 mile. Turn left on 638th Street. Travel 3/10 miles,
first farm on left!
As Milk Prices Fall, Dairy Farmers Do Too
By Logan Bernstein
In 2008, milk prices were soaring, reaching around $20.50 per 100 lbs in
January of 2008. They continued to be strong throughout the year, leading
people to believe that the dairy industry was prospering, and in no
jeopardy. Cut to a year later and we see, due mostly to an oversaturated
market and less demand, milk prices plummeting and dairy farmers being
forced to take drastic measures just to try and stay afloat. Many will not
survive much longer if the market doesn’t turn around soon.
“The problem is that people don’t know there’s a problem,” says Dale
Swenson, who runs a dairy operation of about 100 cows in rural West Concord.
“They see the price of a gallon at the store and think that we’re getting
all of that money. The reality of it is that we get about 74 cents for each
gallon of milk.”
Retail prices haven’t changed considerably during the downturn and many
people believe that, since the price of a gallon of milk hasn’t changed,
dairy farmers must be doing pretty well. The discrepancy is due to the fact
that farmers sell their product to a middleman, in this case the
wholesalers, and they regulate the retail price. The famers are expected to
try and make ends meet when they have to make do with the same less pay for
the same expenses.
There isn’t a lot that a dairy farmer can do to reduce expenses, especially
if they are reliant upon purchased feed for their herd. They can cull their
herds, sell off some of their cows, and refrain from purchasing large
equipment, but these things have minimal effect on their expenses. Swenson
says that there isn’t a lot that he can do to save money.
“It’s the same thing every month,” he says, referring to his expenses. “I
buy everything – the feed and all. Large dairies need milk prices at $17 to
break even. I only need about $14 and I doubt we’ll see that. For a smaller
dairy… the banks are saying no.”