ARE YOU READY FOR SOME WARM FALL?

All in all, last week was a busy one. I got Metra Park Ag Committee meetings, Angus tour golf scrambles, Grandson football games, Cousin weddings, and a host of other projects behind me and looking forward to the first week of fall in Big Sky Country.

I hope the weather man doesn't changes horses overnight and leave us in stirrup high snow banks like some Octobers I've known. This eighty and ninety degree weather makes for getting a lot of fall work done but in most areas a little fall moisture would be welcome. I was lucky enough to be teamed up with Bill Davis of Rollin' Rock Angus and a couple of young long ball hitters for the Montana Angus Tour golf tournament (Yvonne Hinman may have had something to do with the draw) and Bill was telling us about the five inches of rain his ranch received during the month of August. Some people just live right...and for an old guy he hits a darn good golf shot too! He and I agreed, the beer cart drivers were often times about as distant as an ex wife's affection. Slow beer carts? I am thinking by design, as Yvonne was riding shotgun on the beer cart and Jennifer's team was only a hole away. We were under surveillance and restriction the whole time and didn't realize we could have so much fun at a semi-dry event. However, Docotr's orders were to stay hydrated on sunny days so no wonder we're both showing a few wrinkles.

As mentioned earlier, unseasonal warm temperatures this time of year make me a little nervous. I hope God's weather plan for the livestock sector is acceptable but just for good measure let me leave you with a quote from my good friend Kristi Pettis Osterlund, that tends to soothe my weather forcast thoughts. "It's OK to have butterflies as long as they fly in formation".

THE WEEK IN REVIEW

Two Bobcat football weekends back to back plus a whirl wind trip to Denver Bronco Monday night football. Bronco stadium (row five) is awesome and what a wonderful new addition to Bobcat Stadium. One fact holds true for Bobcat fans, it's either sunburn or frost bite with no in between and sunburn it was both Saturdays! Then, how about Friday night dinner with friends at the world famous Edgar, MT Bar & Grill. Life is good!

Oh, and the government's wolf recovery plan continues to prove what all of us involved in the livestock industry have know all along. Another Park County Montana ranch is identified as victum of a brucellosis outbreak. Hungry wolves drive brucellosis infected elk herds from their traditional seasonal grazing and calving grounds to private property where cow herds become infected with the disease. Don't blame it on the Buffalo, granted they are carriers of the disease but before wolves we gained and maintained brucellosis free status in spite of the bison issue.

Heaven help us for hay trucks! Met a lot of 'em on the way back to Billings from Denver on Tuesday. Got a call Wednesday from a local looking for trucks to get 1,000 bales to Texas from Montana. Another client had several hundred ton listed on 'Country Classifieds' and sold into New Mexico. Cattle prices are good but so are inputs! Mother Nature still has the upper hand in our business.

FALL ARRIVES IN FASHION

Labor Day is behind us and we're looking forward to a successful kick off of the fall season.  Breed Association Tours,  the NILE Stock Show & Rodeo, Female Sales, and the usual run of fall Bull Sales including  top quality bred heifer offerings,  plus a full schedule of yearling and feeder calf deliveries, will capture the attention of producers and allied industry folks far and wide.   Prices have remained strong throughout the summer months and look to continue their trend.  As cattle producers, our product is in damand.  In spite of our challenges, we are the world's most efficient producers of quality beef.  Let's keep it that way!