City will be hopping!
Alexis Barker
NLJ News Editor
Whether you like horses, baseball or competitive excitement of the fire-fighting variety, Newcastle is the place to be beginning Thursday, June 17, when the 88th Wyoming State Fireman’s Association Convention and Competition begins and continues throughout the weekend. Also beginning Friday are the Full House Horse Sale at the Weston County Fairgrounds and the 8th Annual Mefford Memorial Tournament at the Newcastle Baseball Complex.
Playing with fire
Beginning on Thursday, teams of volunteer firefighters from seven different communities will put their skills to the test in various competitions.
According to volunteer firefighter and team nozzle person (except for one contest) Robert Munger, the event will bring over 100 fire association people to the area for a weekend of meetings and competitions.
Teams from Afton, Lander, Riverton, Wheatland, Lingle, Torrington and, of course, Newcastle will compete in five different events designed to test the skills needed on a fire scene. Contests include the replace, the Y (Wye), the double male/double female contest, the cellar or chop contest and the ladder contest.
Spectators are more than welcome to watch the action, beginning at 11 a.m. on Thursday and Saturday and noon on Friday at the fire hall, Munger said.
Baseball, music and prizes, oh my!
A weekend full of baseball action will kick off at noon on Friday when the Newcastle minors team will face off against the Lead/Deadwood minors team in the first game of the 8th Annual Mefford Memorial Tournament.
“We start playing Friday at high noon with the minor kids starting our tournament off, just like every year,” organizer Joey Mefford said. “We have four majors teams this year — Newcastle, Upton, Buffalo and Hot Springs from South Dakota.”
The major’s games begin at 3 p.m. on Friday with Newcastle playing Upton. After the game will be the team introductions at 5 p.m. before Hot Springs and Buffalo take the field at 5:30.
Saturday will feature another day full of baseball excitement with Upton playing Hot Springs at 9 a.m., followed by Newcastle and Buffalo taking the field at 11:30. All four teams will take the field twice on Saturday, with the other games beginning at 2 p.m. and 4:30 p.m.
Saturday, at 9:30 a.m. and noon, the players will leave it all on the field when they take on one last game to play for first through fourth place.
The competition isn’t all strictly baseball business, though, according to Mefford. Players will have the opportunity to show off their batting and eating skills on Saturday with a home run derby at 6:30 p.m. followed by a pizza-eating contest.
And, because it is Father’s Day weekend, the dads and anyone filling that role can participate in the big red ball challenge at 1:30 p.m. on Saturday.
“The big red ball challenge, since it is Father’s Day weekend, we have all the dads, stepdads, grandpas and other males that fill that role come out to the field. Bryan (Mefford) has purchased a red ball that is pretty impossible to hit very far,” Mefford said. “We play music, line them up, have the kids in the field and when they hit it, they stand by the ball wherever it lands. Whoever whacks it the farthest wins, this year the winner will get a DeWalt tool set.”
Horses, horses and more horses
Over 60 horses will be up for grabs at the Full House Horse Sale on Saturday, June 19, at the Weston County Fairgrounds. Several of the horses, including 15 from the Deveraux family and others from the Marty and Stolhammer families come from right here in Weston County.
The festivities begin on Friday when all of the 63 horses to be sold on Saturday will be available to view throughout the day. Beginning at 4:30 p.m., a video preview and free barbecue will round out the evening at the Weston County Fairgrounds.
The sale excitement will begin in the outdoor arena at 9 a.m. on Saturday, with the live sale preview before the sale beginning at 2 p.m. with auctioneer Lynn Weishaar.
Information about the horses and sellers, as well as online previews, can be found at fullhousehorsesale.com.