0703 CLM - Country Line Magazine

4 • The Only Texas Lifestyle Magazine C OU N T RY LI N E M AGA Z I N E
IN THIS ISSUE
F E AT U R E S
boot-strap tough series:
kathleen o’keefe braun . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .10
jay boy adams . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .12
fess parker: pushing the boundaries . . . . . . . .13
DEPARTMENTS
Nashville Music News . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .6
Texas Music News . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .8
’Round About Texas . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .14
by Sandra Greaney
Homespun . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .15
Cowboy Corner . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .16
by Marc Bradberry
On Pit Row . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .17
by Chuck Licata
The Texas Outdoor Zone . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .18
by Larry LeBlanc
Fishing Report . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .19
by Don Gordon
w w w. c o u n t r y l i n e m a g a z i n e . c o m
5 1 2 - 2 9 2 - 1113
MAILING ADDRESS
9508 CHISHOLM TRAIL • AUSTIN, TEX. 78748
LETTERS & COMMENTS
[email protected]
OR MAIL TO ADDRESS ABOVE
PUBLISHER & EDITOR |
T. J. Greaney
CONTRIBUTING WRITERS
Shirley Baker, Marc Bradberry, Sheryl Bucsanyi,
Don Gordon, Sandra Greaney,
Larry LeBlanc, Chuck Licata,
Pauline Reese, Patty Ruland
I
F I get so anxious at times with all the
noise in my life that I just want to
scream. Yes, that is coming from the
publisher of the No. 1 Texas music
magazine and the No. 1 outdoor radio
show host in Texas. If it wasn’t for the
noise from both of these endeavors, I
might be an airline pilot or left fielder for
the Houston Astros and then where
would I be?
When I get up in the morning I like
the first few minutes to be peaceful. The
most noise I like is the gurgle of the
coffee brewing or the faucet running.
They say the loudest noise ever was
the eruption of the volcano Karakatoa
and that the sound traveled around the
world several times. I think that might
be equivalent to the sound of, “Honey,
take out the trash, feed the dogs and
then let’s go over calendars” — the
sound of wife-ecus de-Sandra-decus at
my home on several occasions. The
sound has always been heard in the
morning before I have had a chance to
get to the coffee maker.
I know folks who hit the on button
for the television first thing when they
wake up. The kids sit at the television
watching cartoons or other shows in the
morning while they are getting ready for
school. The radio is on as soon as the car
is started in the morning on the drop-off
drive to school and the drive to work.
Not that listening to the morning drive
guys isn’t fine; it’s the constant example
I am referring to — noise.
Some people can handle this
constant bombardment of noise in their
head, their life. I can’t. I am convinced
that quiet time is important to the
human spirit. I think that without quiet
moments in our lives, we miss feeling
life. I truly believe that too many of the
kids today are being raised in a world of
noise and do not experience the peace of
quiet.
Recently I was with a group made
up of young boys who have hunted and
boys who have not. There were some
differences I attribute to the lesson of
hunting. One was that the hunters could
sit still, not wiggling all the time. The
hunters could listen better than the
others, or so it seemed. The boys who
had hunted just appeared to be a bit
more disciplined. Draw your own
conclusions, but the hunters were
required to learn these lessons if they
were going to be successful in the field
— they had to sit quietly, listen, watch
and relax.
Do you have quiet time in your life?
I have a challenge for you. A month ago
I challenged my family to a week
without television. My wife was mad as
heck at first and said she would not
participate. My kids had no choice —
and I competed in the challenge with
them. It was one of the best weeks we
had had in a long time. We read books,
magazines, talked and the kids played
outside a lot. The lesson we learned was
that quiet time is good. The constant
bombardment of noise is optional. We
can actually interact without noise. God
speaks to us when we listen. Things go
smoother, we get more done and we
actually have the opportunity to think
clearer. Are you up for the challenge, to
find a quiet time in your life? It can be
hard, but the rewards are fantastic.
God bless,
T. J. Greaney
Publisher
[email protected]
C OU N T RY LI N E M AGA Z I N E The Only Texas Lifestyle Magazine • 5
who see me onstage know what that
means…”
“Life is what you make it,” says the
hardworking songwriter/singer who
spends his life dreaming out loud. “I
don’t think I could’ve ever imagined a
lot of it, but I sure am glad I get to be
here watching it all go down. After all,
this is the kinda stuff that’s beyond
belief.
Look for Chesney’s Flip-Flop
Summer Tour — brought to you by
Cruzan Rum — to kick-off April 12th
at the Qwest Center in Omaha,
Nebraska and roll through early fall.
Catch him on CBS’ “The Early Show”
March 5, not to mention in Sports
Illustrated Swim Suit issue, making him
the envy of red-blooded American
men everywhere.
RODNEY ATKINS
INSERTS BOOT INTO
LEFTWING BUM BILL
MAHER’S BACKSIDE
ON TONIGHT SHOW
Curb recording artist Rodney
Atkins got the chance to defend
country music on “The Tonight Show”
when talk show host Bill Maher told
Jay Leno “The only use I have for
country music is to make fun of it.”
Atkins response? To have the last word
by closing the nationally-televised
show with his multiple week Number
One single “Watching You.”
“I take it as an honor to be the guy
representing country music last night,”
says Atkins. “I was proud to sing a song
about family values, my life and what
this format is all about. This guy was
purposely bashing Alan Jackson, Garth
Brooks, Brad Paisley, Tim McGraw,
Kenny Chesney, George Strait,
Martina McBride, Dolly Parton and all
the greats artists that influenced my
life’s direction. I believe that country
music is representative of real people
and a real way of life. I don’t take that
lightly. Everyone does have the
freedom of speech, but they should
sometimes think before they actually
exercise that right.”
Despite the band and crews’ strong
desires to make more of a “direct
point” to Maher, they put their energy
into a great performance. After the
show, Leno apologized, thanked
6 • The Only Texas Lifestyle Magazine C OU N T RY LI N E M AGA Z I N E
Rodney for coming and invited him
back saying “You are a class act.”
In addition to “The Tonight
Show,” Rodney made his second
appearance in less than five months on
“The Late, Late Show” with Craig
Ferguson.
KENNY CHESNEY IN
SPORTS ILLUSTRATED
SWIM SUIT ISSUE
It’s a hard life — being a hillbilly
rock star out of control. Between the
flash sell-out football stadiums, the
four Entertainer of the Year awards and
watching your buddy pick up the MVP
Award at this Super Bowl, there’s
never a dull moment.
And just when it seems life can’t
get any better, here comes Sports
Illustrated infamous Swim Suit issue,
and rather than buying it, you’re in it.
Hard to believe a kid from Luttrell,
Tennessee who started picking guitar
in sundry bars in college could get so
lucky — and yet, there he is: Kenny
Chesney, paired with leggy blond
beauty Marisa Miller for a free-for-all.
“I could tell doing this shoot, we
had very similar lives,” Chesney said of
what appears on the page to be instant
chemistry. “We’re both very normal
people, but then the lights come on,
she becomes this other person. People
TERRI CLARK AND
HUSBAND GREG
KACZOR FILE FOR
DIVORCE
BNA Records artist Terri Clark
and husband Greg Kaczor filed for
divorce Friday, February 16th at
Nashville’s
Davidson
County
Courthouse.
“This is very sad,” the singer said.
“Greg is one of my dearest friends and
a wonderful person, and we are sorry
that we’re here. This is an amicable
spilt, and we appreciate everyone’s
concern and respect for our sorting this
out. No big drama ... just a couple
heavy hearts. Anyone who’s ever been
here, I am sure, understands.”
The pair has known each other 10
years; Kaczor worked as Tour Manager
in Clark’s organization. Under the
circumstances, he has opted not to
continue in that capacity.
JEFF FOXWORTHY
NAMED HONORARY
CHAIRMAN OF
NATIONAL HUNTING
AND FISHING DAY
person I am today,” said Foxworthy.
Although his “you-might-be-aredneck” jokes are his signature
material, Foxworthy is a decidedly
sophisticated entertainer. He is the
best-selling comedy recording artist in
history, star of the popular Blue Collar
comedy tours, television series and
movies, a multiple Grammy award
nominee, host of a weekly country
music radio show airing in 220 markets
nationwide, and a best-selling author.
National Hunting and Fishing
Day, celebrated annually on the fourth
Saturday of September, was founded by
the National Shooting Sports
Foundation (NSSF) and formalized by
Congress in 1971. Every U.S. President
from Richard M. Nixon to George W.
Bush has recognized the day via formal
proclamations.
For more information about
National Hunting and Fishing Day,
including a hunting-and-angling
profile of Jeff Foxworthy, go to
www.nhfday.org.
In his new volunteer position,
Foxworthy will spend coming months
communicating
the
annual
celebration’s message that hunting and
fishing are vital conservation tools,
important economic engines and, most
of all, just plain fun.
“I’m flattered to be asked to serve
as the 2007 honorary chairman of
National Hunting and Fishing Day.
Without question, sharing hunting and
fishing trips with my family had a
profound impact on my life, and
undoubtedly shaped and molded the
www.texasoutdoorzone.com
Visit today and you can …
download our radio shows,
find current weather radar,
enter hunt contests,
find kids’ outdoor activities,
and more!
C OU N T RY LI N E M AGA Z I N E The Only Texas Lifestyle Magazine • 7
by Pauline Reese
C
F
Congratulations to our friend
Roger Creech (program director at
KHBR in Hillsboro, Tex.) He and his
wife are already the proud parents of
two little girls and now they have a
little boy on the way! How do you have
time to work, Roger?
I did a show in Archer City last
month with Rodney Hayden and Drew
Kennedy. Rodney’s latest album, Down
the Road, came out May 1. Drew’s
album will be released March 27. I
can’t seem to get either CD out of my
car. They are both great! We had a
good time swapping songs, jokes and
stories for the crowd. Later that night
we played a little Texas Hold ’em. I’m
still not gonna show you guys how I did
my card tricks! It’s magic …
When I was up in Grapevine, Tex.
I saw part of Matt Begley and Bo Cox’s
show. Matt is from Uhland, Tex. which
I know well because of the famous
Club 21. It was the first Honky Tonk I
ever played! He wrote a song for his
latest CD called “Have a little Fun.”
You can find it on his my space.
www.myspace.com/MattBegley
The big Countrypalooza show in
Brenham, Tex. with KTEX FM was a
big success! Jason Allen put on one
heck of a show, as well as Ricky
Calmbach, Rich O’Toole, County
Road 114, Lantana and Southern
Roots! County Road 114’s second CD
is coming out this spring. They also put
together a free outdoor concert every
July in Loebau, Tex. Check out
cr114.com for more info.
Ben Morris’s debut, The Other Side
of Broken is out! You can hear his
passion for the music and his talent for
songwriting. I love those story songs.
Thanks to Ben for having me on such a
wonderful project! benmorrislive.com
Gary P. Nunn has a new record
deal that involves a merger of
Campfire Records and Icehouse Music.
Icehouse Music will be taking over his
catalogue and producing a new record
for him. They have a nationwide
distribution deal which means you may
be seeing his CDs on display at some of
the upscale roadside convenience
stores around the state of Texas! Great
news for G.P.N. fans! I’ll keep you
posted on the release date of the new
record! garypnunn.com
Cory Morrow sent me an email
from the road to catch up on things.
I’m really excited to hear his latest
project. He’s working with Keith
Gattis on his ninth independent CD!
Cory’s been making records for ten
years hence the title Ten Years. He’s
taking a song from each of the eight
albums he’s done in the past and doing
a re-make. A lot of thought and time
went into the songs so that they sound
totally different. Some of the songs
F•E•B•R•U•A•R•Y
22308 HWY 71 WEST
SPICEWOOD, TEX.
512/264-0318
Voted on of the Top 20 Places to
Visit in Austin . —Austin Chronicle
2-FRI
Pauline Reese with
Just Plain Trouble
3-SAT
Paula Nelson and George
Devor, Mario Matteoli opens
9-FRI
Ray Wylie Hubbard and
The Band of Heathens
10-SAT Jane Bond & Kats Meow
15-THU Green Mountain Grass
16-FRI
Calvin Russell and
Tracy Conover
17-SAT Hill Country Bash! Troubadillos
and Jimmy Lee Jones
have even been re-written so it’s really
something cool for all you Cory
Morrow fans! There will also be one
new song Cory wrote and one he co-
wrote with Keith. Ten Years is
scheduled for release sometime this
spring.
Cory’s scheduled to tour Europe
this August and there’s talk of a golf
tournament/concert in Steamboat
Springs, Col. this summer! Go to
corymorrow.com to find out more.
That’s all for this month, see ya’ll
in April, amigos!
PA U L I N E R E E S E I S A P R O U D T E X A S
MUSICIAN. TO FIND OUT MORE, VISIT
W W W. PA U L I N E R E E S E . C O M
BRANDON RHYDER
AND HIS VERY FIRST
LIVE RECORD
On Friday, March 2nd, Brandon
Rhyder will record his very first Live
Record at the Midnight Rodeo in
College Station, Tex. His live show has
gained blockbuster momentum this
year selling out venues across Texas!
His fan base is now nationwide and his
music reputation has now grabbed the
attention of major music executives.
We would love for all his fans in your
area to join us for this special live
recording.
His current record, Conviction, has
amassed national exposure in a few
short months both on radio and in
print. The success of this record has
21 AND OLDER
23-FRI
TUESDAYS
The Troubadillos
Pool Tournament
WEDNESDAYS
Open Pickers Night
w/ Jimmy Lee Jones
2007 Talent Search Winner
Megan Tubbs
KCee Edwards opens
True Texas spring water
bottled right here in
Austin. Don’t buy bottled
24-SAT Barnhill opening with
Magnolia Band
30-FRI
city tap water when you
Walt Wilkins
can enjoy natures pure
31-SAT Burnett Jones
CD Release Party
refreshing spring water.
KEEPIN’ IT LOCAL!
Check out our menu, music calendar and events at
WWW.POODIES.INFO
8 • The Only Texas Lifestyle Magazine C OU N T RY LI N E M AGA Z I N E
Home or Office Delivery
Call Today! 512/280-4037
Official Water of
The Texas Outdoor Zone
Texas Proud!
lead him to the highest of highs in the
Texas music scene. His reputation as a
stellar songsmith has garnered him sold
out shows and a rapidly growing fan
base across the US.
Rhyder has also found support
from Mr. Radney Foster who is quoted
as saying, “I don’t know what Brandon
Rhyder did before he made Conviction,
but now that he has made this record,
a whole lot of other people are going to
know about him. Rarely have I picked
up a record at someone’s suggestion
and been so delightfully surprised. ‘Go
Back In Fool’ slays me, as do ‘Moving
Too Fast’ and ‘Losing The War.’
Brandon is also mentioned in a recent
issue of Country Weekly Magazine.
JASON BOLAND AND
THE STRAGGLERS
BRING THE
BOURBON LEGEND
TO AUSTIN
Join Jason Boland and The
Stragglers as they take a stage as only
they can. Known by some as modern
day outlaws, others as the vanguard of
the Red Dirt movement and still
others as the second coming of Waylon
Jennings, one thing is certain, spend
ten minutes with one of their records
or at one of their blazing shows and
you’ll be a believer. Jason Boland walks
the line, merging authentic vintage
country sensibility with refreshing
newness; in short, old-fashioned songs
akin to Waylon Jennings that aren’t
reruns. Instead of arousing fear, the
whiskey-soaked ghosts that haunt
Boland inspire an inimitable country
sound. His band, The Stragglers, is
tight both musically and within the
ties of friendship, assets earned from
miles upon miles together.
AUSTIN CONVENTION
AND VISITORS
BUREAU RELEASES
NEW CD
The Austin Music Office, a
division of Austin Convention and
Visitors Bureau, unveiled its newest
CD, Austin Music, Volume 6, at a
release party on Feb. 13, at the Austin
Visitor
Center.
The
14-song
compilation album features diverse
genres that define Austin’s musical
landscape
including
country
newcomer Sunny Sweeney.
The limited-edition CD also
contains a detailed Austin music guide
with maps and club listings for the
Warehouse District, Sixth Street, Red
River, South Austin, University of
Texas campus, East End and other
venues within a short distance from
downtown. The guide also offers
information on where to hear live
music while you dine, which spots are
the most “authentically Austin” and
how to find music in unexpected
places. A calendar of major music
events and listing of additional
resources are also included.
The 2007 compilation is the sixth
CD produced by the Austin Music
Office to promote the city’s live music
scene. The Bureau distributes copies at
tradeshows
and
other
events
throughout the year. Starting Feb. 13,
a limited number of the CDs are
available for sale for $9.99 at the
Visitor Center, Waterloo Records or
online at austintexas.org.
C OU N T RY LI N E M AGA Z I N E The Only Texas Lifestyle Magazine • 9
B O OT- S T R A P TO U G H S E R I E S
You hear a lot about a handful of Texas musicians and rightfully so, but there
are just as many, even more, who have worked hard playing the same
barrooms and dancehalls that have never won the gold buckle. In this series
of articles in 2007 we will introduce you to some of these hard-working
musicians and encourage you to go see them play and maybe buy a CD. They
get up every day and pull on their boots with long days and long nights ahead
of them. It’s Texas music, boot-strap tough.
I
kathleen o’keefe braun
I HAVE MET FEW WOMEN MORE
caught up in the music business or
driven to play music than my dear
friend Kathleen O’Keefe Braun. Since
the first time I met her she was focused
on making her life one of music. Her
spirit is alive with melodies of every
tone and verse. This month I wanted
you to meet her.
Who are your band members? For
now it’s mostly me doing the solo
singer-songwriter thing, but I’m
starting to collaborate more and am
excited about what’s to come. My
husband, Cody Braun, plays with
Reckless Kelly, and he helped me
produce and record 3 songs last year. I
got to borrow Willy Braun and David
Abeyta to play on those, as well as
Shane Vannerson of Micky and the
Motorcars, and Adam Odor of Cedar
Creek. It hasn’t been formally released
because I hope to head back into the
studio and release my full-length debut
later this year. Both onstage and in the
studio, I’ve been lucky to have the
support of some amazingly talented
musicians.
How is it to be a woman in a
predominantly male realm (Texas
Music)? I guess it all depends on how
you look at it, plus I grew up an only
girl with brothers so I’m kinda used to
having to duke it out sometimes.
Kidding, but really, there are so many
Texas women making great music all
over the place. Some of them are
amazing multi-instrumentalists who
10 • The Only Texas Lifestyle Magazine C OU N T RY LI N E M AGA Z I N E
have played with
various
touring
bands, like sisters
Bonnie
and
E l e a n o r
Whitmore,
or
Elana James of Hot
Club of Cowtown.
There are ladies like Lisa Pankratz who
plays drums with Hayes Carll, and then
there are songwriters like Patty Griffin,
Trish Murphy, and Susan Gibson. The
list really goes on and on.
You wrote all the songs? I’ve
written most all of my material so far,
but I am really looking forward to
writing more with other people and
learning from the whole process.
When I play live there are a few cover
tunes, of course you’ll hear some of
that, too.
What is the album’s name? The 3
song EP is called Best Behavior. It’s
available
for
download
at
www.myspace.com/kathleenokeefe. I’m
also playing a weekly happy hour show
Thursdays in the lounge of the Red
Eyed Fly in Austin, from 7:30-9 p.m.
C OU N T RY LI N E M AGA Z I N E The Only Texas Lifestyle Magazine • 11
JAY BOY ADAMS
W
S T E P P I N G B A C K O N T O T H E M E R R Y- G O - R O U N D
WEST TEXAS HAS BEEN A HOTBED OF
music since the turn of the 20th
century, when Bob Wills used to travel
with his fiddle playing father to play
house dances across the Texas
Panhandle, laying the foundations for
Western Swing in the process.
In the intervening decades, Roy
Orbison, Waylon Jennings, Buddy
Holly, Joe Ely, Butch Hancock, Terry
Allen, Natalie Maines (of the Dixie
Chicks), the Flatlanders and many
more have come of age in that empty
region of the Lone Star State where
making music was viewed as both a
birthright and an escape.
Now, another name with a
distinguished West Texas musical
pedigree is making a fresh start. Jay Boy
Adams, who was born in Colorado
City, Tex., a wide spot in the road on I20 south of Lubbock, came up to tour
with ZZ Top, The Band, Jackson
Browne, The Marshall Tucker Band,
Joe Cocker and other arena-filling acts
in the 1970s and ’80s. Along the way,
he released two solo albums on the
prestigious Atlantic label.
Now, after stepping away from the
music business for two decades, Adams
is back with a new album, The Shoe
Box, an independent release on the
Rockin’ Heart/Smith Entertainment
Records label.
The album represents the first new
music from the West Texas native in
several years, and features guest
appearances by Lee Roy Parnell, Jack
Ingram, Marty Stuart and Asleep At
the Wheel’s Ray Benson.
“When I was running hard in the
seventies and early eighties, I never
dreamed or planned that I would walk
away from music, and in 2007 I never
dreamed that I would be walking
back,” mused Adams. “I wrote ten of
the 12 songs on The Shoe Box. The
songs are on a CD of course, but this is
a true ‘record’ of the important things
in my life. Hopefully, one of these
songs will strike a nerve with some of
you.”
They already have. Texas music
icon Jerry Jeff Walker, who has known
Adams since the ’70s, said, “I was
blown away. Jay’s music fits right into
the present-day Texas scene like he
was born into it … And, hell, he was!”
Cory Morrow remarked that The
Shoe Box “is gonna be stuck in my CD
player for awhile. (The music) reminds
me a bit of Rodney Crowell at times,
and yet I still hear Jay and his upbeat
attitude and introspective demeanor in
each song.”
And Stephen Stills, with who
Adams toured back in the day, cited
Jay Boy as “a great musician and a
storyteller in the true Texas tradition.”
Critics have been impressed, as well.
Writing in Texas Music magazine,
Richard Skanse noted that The Shoe Box
is “a solid and welcome comeback …
marked by a sure sense of craft and quiet
grace. He’s an impeccable picker, too.”
The album is a chronicle of both
growing older and growing up, of good
memories of good friends, and life’s
lessons learned — some of them
learned the hard way. It’s a record, in
other words, of the ups and downs in a
singer/songwriter’s life and the costs
that roller coaster ride can impose.
Since The Shoe Box’s release on
Feb. 6, Adams has been courting radio
on behalf of the album and its first
single, “Color You Gone” (as of midFebruary, the album was No. 13 on the
national Americana chart and the
single was at No. 10 on the Texas
Music Chart). He was also in
Washington, DC to guest on a
broadcast of XM Radio’s Country 12
Americana channel in late February,
followed by a radio tour of the East
Coast.
Back home, he and his band, the
Roadhouse Scholars are storming the
state, one beer joint at a time. He is
also scheduled to headline three nights
at the Molotov Lounge in Austin in
mid-March during the South By
Southwest music festival. The activity
marks Adams’ first sustained touring in
17 years.
In 1972, Adams was sitting on top
of the world: He had signed a
management contract with legendary
Texas music Svengali Bill Ham, of
Lone Wolf Management. Ham, who
also kick-started the careers of ZZ Top
and Clint Black, put Adams on the
road opening for ZZ and caring for
Billy Gibbons’ guitars. Soon, he
graduated to opening ZZ’s shows.
Then, Adams was signed to
Atlantic Records and the
fledgling recording artist and
songwriter entered the studio in
1978. He recorded two albums for
Atlantic; Jay Boy Adams (1978)
and Fork In the Road (1979), which
included a duet with Jackson
Brown and toured with some of the
biggest names in the business.
But then, in 1982, Adams got off
the merry-go-round and left the music
business behind.
“My brother-in-law used to tell a
story about a man from our hometown
who was married to a real mean
woman for about ten years,” he
recalled. “One day she sent him to the
grocery store for a loaf of bread. That
was 20 years ago and she’s still waiting
for the bread. That’s what happened to
me. I just disappeared.”
But he never left the music itself
behind; just the spotlight.
Call it disillusionment or just a
need to recharge the creative batteries,
but Jay Boy Adams simply slipped
away. In the intervening years, he
carved out a successful career for
himself running a touring coach
business that provided buses to many
of the same acts he used to tour with.
He married and fathered children and,
as the saying goes, got on with his life.
But he never put down the guitar
entirely,
and he had friends who
never stopped rooting
for him.
It was country
singer/songwriter Lee
Roy Parnell and J.W.
Williams (an old friend
from the Lone Wolf
Management days) who
encouraged Jay Boy to
step onto the stage
again. In March of 1997,
Parnell invited Adams
to join him onstage on
the spur of the moment
at a concert in San Antonio. Adams
found himself with a guitar in his
hands, onstage, for the first time in five
years, and his love for live performance
was re-kindled. He decided he could
either cut his fingers off, or go back
home, dust off the cobwebs and get
back to work.
The result is The Shoe Box
(produced by Jay Boy Adams and
Monty Byrom, of Big House and Eddie
Money fame).
It’s been a long road back to center
stage for Adams, but its his fervent
hope that his new music will gratify
both longtime fans and those
discovering Adams and his music for
the first time.
Fess Parker: Pushing the Boundaries
J
B Y
F
José Enrique de la Peña was right.
Davy Crockett did not die at the
Alamo. He went to California, became
a motion picture and television star,
and now owns a beachfront resort
hotel in Santa Barbara.
Fess Parker’s portrayals of Davy
Crockett and Daniel Boone for film
and television are so entrenched in the
public’s mind, seeing pictures of the
real things are often an unpleasant
surprise. They don’t look nearly as
authentic as this six-foot-six-inch man
with kind eyes and a long straight nose
holding wide nostrils that seem to
breathe in gulps of everything that life
has to offer. So maybe Parker wasn’t
king of the wild frontier and didn’t kill
a bear when he was three. This quiet,
unassuming San Angelo native has
made a huge success of his life, and he
thinks being a Texan had everything to
do with it.
Parker was born in Fort Worth, but
his family moved westward when he
was three months old. After graduating
from San Angelo High School, Parker
became a cadet at Texas A&M
University. It was not a co-ed school at
V I C K Y
R O S E
that time, so Parker spent a lot of time
with his thumb in the air hitching
rides to Austin, where the pretty girls
were more plentiful.
“A lot of times,” he said, “I didn’t
wait for the weekend.” Consequently, he
and the dean came to an agreement that
A&M might not be the place for him.
After a three-year stint in the
Navy that provided him with a glimpse
of California, Parker returned to Texas.
He was attending Hardin-Simmons
University when he was attacked by a
drunk who had previously tried to run
his car off the road. Parker’s throat was
slashed, severing 20 veins. There were
no witnesses, and the man was never
brought to trial.
The injustice frustrated Parker. He
said, “My face was paralyzed for over a
year.” He decided to enter the
University of Texas to study law.
Eventually, the decision to be an
attorney faded, and Parker switched
his major to history. Meanwhile, he
worked as a janitor, a manager of a
dance band and as a water ski
instructor on Lake Austin.
Veteran actor Adolphe Menjou
OUTDOOR RADIO
LIVE
IN
AUSTIN
The Texas Outdoor Zone Radio Show
Exclusively on 1300AM The Zone
6 - 8 am
Every Saturday
Morning
appeared
at U.T. as a guest speaker and offered to
introduce Parker to his agent if he came
to Hollywood. After graduation, Parker
followed up on the offer, and Menjou
did as he promised. Parker did a few bit
parts, but it was when Walt Disney saw
him in a small role in the science-fiction
movie Them! that success came into his
hands. Disney signed him to play Davy
Crockett in what became a five-part
miniseries and made the Disney studio
millions.
The
Davy
Crockett
phenomena had children everywhere
singing about the king of the wild
frontier and scrabbling for coonskin
caps.
Disney also gave Parker a small but
good role in another mega-hit, Old
Yeller. Fred Gipson, the author of Old
Yeller, had once worked for the San
Angelo Standard Times and had been a
friend of Parker’s father.
Parker went back into the
coonskin cap for television, this time
playing Daniel Boone. “Daniel Boone”
ran for six very successful years, but
when its run was finished, Parker
decided against another grueling
television
series.
“By that time, I was out of the
mind of staying in that kind of
business,” Parker said. Instead, he went
into real estate development,
eventually building the Fess Parker
DoubleTree Resort Hotel on 32 acres
of Santa Barbara beachfront property.
Nowadays, Parker spends time at
the luxury inn and spa he and his wife
built at their winery in Los Olivos,
where the Texas flag flies in front. He
hasn’t retired. He’s working on another
beachfront hotel that will adjoin his
other one.
Parker is proud of his Texas
heritage and attributes it to his success.
“Texans … don’t buy the boundary of a
challenge. They make their own
challenge, and it doesn’t matter if it
makes a lot of sense to anybody else.
Texans have a persistence, a
perseverance. They look at something,
and they say, well heck, I can do that
better.”
Spoken like a true son of the
Alamo.
C OU N T RY LI N E M AGA Z I N E The Only Texas Lifestyle Magazine • 13
by Sandra Greaney
J
F Just in case your schedule isn’t busy
enough with Spring Break, Austin
Rodeo, SXSW, Texas Independence
Day, and St. Patrick’s Day celebrations,
here are a few more things happening
in and around Central Texas this
month.
around
central texas
MAR
2-4,
12
TEXAS
I N D E P E N D E N C E D A Y Take the family and
celebrate Texas’ independence from
Mexico with a wonderful parade
scheduled for Saturday, March 3. The
parade begins at 11 a.m. and travels
down Congress Avenue. A golf
tournament has also been scheduled on
March 12. Check out the Web site for
details on all of the festivities. 512-2885506, celebratetexas.org
M A R 4 ZILKER PARK KITE FESTIVAL
at Zilker Park. Zilker Park’s annual Kite
Festival offers old-fashion fun for all
ages. Compete in the steadiest,
smallest and most unusual kite
contests, or just come to watch while
enjoying Austin’s spring weather. 512448-KITE, zilkerkitefestival.com
M A R 9 ANNUAL COWBOY BREAKFAST Free
breakfast, cowboy coffee and great music
kicks off the Star of Texas Fair and
Rodeo on Auditorium Shores, beginning
at 6 a.m. 512-919-3000, staroftexas.org
MAR 17 SHAMROCK SHUFFLE 5K
WALK/RUN
&
IRISH
FESTIVAL
Celebrate St. Patrick’s Day with a run
and an authentic festival afterwards,
beginning at 10 a.m. Every person
wearing green or a costume will receive
a special gift. Lots of fun for the kids
and live music by the Tea Merchants
and the Bagpipers. reelsnjigs.com
MAR 17 THE AUSTIN SYMPHONY
P R E S E N T S D O N M C L E A N at Riverbend
Centre. Known for such hits as
“Vincent (Starry, Starry Night)” and
“American Pie,” Don McLean has been
hailed as “the voice of the century” by
such artists as Buddy Holly and Roy
Orbison. As one of the most renowned
singer/songwriters of our time,
McLean’s music influenced generations
of future performers. He again achieved
chart-topping recognition when
“American Pie” was voted number 5 in
a poll of the 365 “Songs of the Century”
compiled by the Recording Industry
Association of America and the
National Endowment for the Arts.
austinsymphony.org, 512-476-6064
MAR 24 CHRIST UNITES YOUNG
A D U L T S M U S I C F E S T I V A L Go out and
celebrate your faith at the City Hall
Plaza (301 W. 2nd street) from 4 – 10
p.m. There will be great live music and
it’s all FREE! christunites.com, email
[email protected].
M A R 2 5 C A P I T O L 1 0 K Texas’
largest race and one of the nation’s top
10K runs draws some 10,000 serious and
not-so-serious runners. 512-472-3524,
statesman.com/sports/content/cap10k
MAR 29-APRIL 1 TEXAS HILL
C O U N T R Y W I N E & F O O D F E S T I V A L at
the Four Seasons, Driskill Hotel and
other locations. The best Texas and
nationally known chefs and wineries
pair their best culinary creations and
fruits of the vine at a variety of venues
ranging from an exotic game ranch to
an outdoor festival in the park.
texaswineandfood.org, 512-249-6300
MAR 31 SWAMP ROMP & CRAWFISH
FESTIVAL at Republic Square Park (4th &
Guadalupe St. across from the Texas
State History Museum). This Louisianathemed event features cuisine from
Louisiana and Texas, including six tons
of jumbo crawfish. Festivities involve
dancers, “juju mamas” and a traditional
funeral procession. Cajun & Zydeco
music by local and national entertainers
complete the celebration. Starts at 10:30
a.m.
until
after
Midnight.
roadwayevents.com, 512-441-9015
out of town
M A R 1 8 ST. PATRICK ’S DAY ON
T H E R I V E R W A L K Go see the River
Walk in San Antonio turn green for
St. Patty’s Day on March 18th at the
38th Annual San Antonio River
Dyeing Parade. The fun starts at 1 p.m.
at the Arnesen River Theater.
14 • The Only Texas Lifestyle Magazine C OU N T RY LI N E M AGA Z I N E
M A R 3 1 - A P R I L 2 BLUEBONNET
B L U E S & A R T S F E S T I V A L on Marble
Falls’ Main Street. Head to Marble Falls
for three days of blues music and art
from more than 50 artists.
bluebonnetblues.com, 800-864-5175
Have a great March!
E-MAIL YOUR EVENTS TO
[email protected]
F O R C O N S I D E R AT I O N . S PA C E L I M I T S
O P P O R T U N I T Y.
by Shirley Baker
MOVIE & BOOK REVIEWS
Each month Country Line has the opportunity to review lots of music. We also
have been blessed to preview many new books and movies over the last few
years and in the next few months there will be a lot of opportunities for you
to relax with one of these great books or films. Here are a few favorites we
picked to review this month. These are hand picked for the whole family.
SWEET SOUR TUNA
6 slices pineapple, cut into chunks
2 Tbsp butter
22/3 cup pineapple juice
2 large green peppers, cubed
2 Tbsp cornstarch
2 tsp soy sauce
2 Tbsp vinegar
2
/3 cup sugar
1 cup chicken bouillon
2 (7oz) cans tuna
1
/2 tsp salt
1
/2 tsp pepper
Chinese noodles
MOVIE
Flicka
S TA R R I N G T I M M C G R AW, M A R I A
BELLO, ALISON LOHAM
Sauté pineapple in butter for 5 minutes. Add 1/3 cup pineapple juice and
green pepper. Cover and simmer for 10 minutes.
Mix cornstarch with remaining pineapple juice. Add to pineapple with soy sauce,
vinegar, sugar and bouillon. Cook, stirring constantly, until thick.
Add tuna and seasonings and heat through.
Serve over crips noodles.
?
?
take all the love and strength the family
can muster to restore hope in this
sweeping, heartwarming epic the whole
family will love.
A passionate story about following
your heart the new release is available
for the suggested retail price of $29.98.
A great value for the whole family to
enjoy, the Flicka DVD also features Tim
McGraw’s music video “My Little
Girl,” three deleted scenes, bloopers, a
gag reel, a “Making of” featurette and
more! Rated 5 Spurs – Excellent for the
whole family. —T.J. GREANEY
G R A N D M A’ S H I N T S
Remove paint from glass by applying hot vinegar with a cloth.
After it is softened, scrape off gently.
Place a blotter on candle wax, then hold a hot iron over the blotter which
will absorb the melted wax.
Simmer vinegar on the stove to get rid of unpleasant odors while cooking.
Oldtimers used cobwebs to stop cuts from bleeding.
They also applied crushed marigold leaves and their juices to warts.
Whitening teeth by applying ground charcoal was also an old old tradition.
Aren’t we glad that science has advanced?
?
?
Witness a teen’s poignant tale of
courage, determination and passion in
the newly-released DVD Flicka from
Fox Home Entertainment. Featuring
an all-star cast including country music
superstar and actor Tim McGraw
(Friday Night Lights), Maria Bello
(Thank You For Smoking) and Alison
Lohman (Big Fish). Flicka is pure screen
excitement and a great movie ride …
that rare family film that has
something for everyone. Based on the
beloved novel My Friend Flicka by
Mary O’Hara, Flicka masterfully injects
moving
cast
performances,
breathtaking scenery and majestic
horses with raw emotion to tell the
story of a fiercely independent young
girl’s quest to tame a wild mustang and
prove herself to her family.
This is an inspiring, coming-of-age
story of a headstrong, 16-year-old Katy
McLaughlin (Lohman) who longs to
work on her family’s mountainside horse
ranch — yet her father (McGraw)
insists she finish boarding school. So
when Katy finds a mustang in the hills,
she sets out to tame the horse and prove
she can one day take over the struggling
ranch. But when tragedy strikes, it will
Sometimes we feel we need a little change from
eating beef, beef, beef. Here is a simple recipe that
gives a change, is tasteful and lighter fare. A Lenten
meal that is sure to please all the family.
C OU N T RY LI N E M AGA Z I N E The Only Texas Lifestyle Magazine • 15
by Marc Bradberry
A
Good dreams come true at the
Dreamcatcher
As a boy growing up in Acuff, Tex.,
Don Meador had a dream. A member of
the State 4-H champion Livestock
Judging Team proved it. Don loved
cattle, good cattle, and had an eye to
pick out good ones. He also showed his
own good cattle at the local and state
livestock shows. (Reserve Champion
Steer at El Paso.)
Don went off to college after high
school to get an Agricultural degree,
right? No, a degree in industrial
engineering. You see Don loves to use
his brain. He knew that he needed a
good career start that would help him
realize his dream and maybe find a good
partner. A good partner indeed came
along. Don met Karen while attending
college. Then came kids, Kim and Brad
(Kim by the way, came up with name
Dreamcatcher, she wished for only good
dreams at the ranch.) Kim and Brad
now have successful careers of their own
and inherited their mother’s musical
talent. They both play the piano,
compose music, write and sing songs.
I’ve heard that Brad is very talented
F
with a guitar and a violin.
Don’s lifelong partner and wife,
Karen, has become quite the ranch
woman. She loves good Angus cattle as
much as Don does and takes active
interest in daily planning.
Don found a good starting point to
work his goal of ranch ownership. It was
with Proctor and Gamble as an
industrial engineer. This led Don
Meador and family to a wonderful career
in several states building and managing
operations for Proctor & Gamble.
When it came time for Don to retire,
Don decided that San Marcos, Tex.
would be a good place to start a ranch
and the rest is history. Don started the
ranch with a philosophy that he learned
from his Dad, no matter what he does he
should do the best job possible. Don also
believes that breeding good cattle is
based on continuous improvement.
“You must always seek to improve the
product and services that you offer,”
Don says. With this philosophy in mind
Don found some of the best Angus
cattle in the world at Gardiner Angus
Ranch in Ashland, Kan. With help from
Mark Gardiner, Don has started a herd
16 • The Only Texas Lifestyle Magazine C OU N T RY LI N E M AGA Z I N E
of registered Angus bulls and females
second to none. With the use of embryo
transfer program Don and Karen
Meador have built a herd quickly that
are members of the Gardiner
Guaranteed
Genetics
(G3)
Identification Program. This was no
small task. It takes and incredible
amount of skill, capital, hard work and
brains to accomplish this feat.
Don and Karen Meador and the
Dreamcatcher Ranch are now currently
working on their 4th Annual Registered
Angus Bull and Female Sale. The
annual sale occurs in late October at the
Dreamcatcher Ranch in San Marcos,
Tex. At their last sale there were 95
range ready bulls and 73 elite females
offered by the ranch. To tell you how
valuable some of Don and Karen’s top
females are, one cow out of a Precision
bull brought $108,000 at the 2006
production sale last year. Don and Karen
are interested in only total quality
Angus cattle. The genetics they offer are
the result of data-based selection. To put
it simply, if the cattle don’t turn out
absolute top quality, they are not used in
their program. They also offer a fertitlity
guarantee for the first 12 months. If a
new owner buys an animal and has any
fertility problems Dreamcatcher Ranch
will replace them. Don and Karen
meador are focused mainly on customer
values. Their goal is to provide top
Angus cattle to registered breeders or
the commercial producer.
Dreamcatcher Ranch
1100 Lime Kiln Rd.
San Marcos, Texas 78666.
dreamcatcherranch.net
512-757- 2714 cell
512-396- 8424 residence
QUESTIONS OR COMMENTS? E-MAIL
MLBRADBERRY@CENTURYTEL .NET
by Chuck Licata
T
Harvick and NASCAR both earned
the checkered flag
The exciting finish to Sunday’s
Daytona 500 was the perfect capper to
what was a wild, crazy — and
newsworthy — week.
Two weeks ago, the hot topic
among racing fans and media — as well
as most “mainstream” media — was the
internal power struggle at Dale
Earnhardt, Inc. (DEI) between Dale
Earnhardt, Jr. and his stepmom, Teresa.
That “hot” topic was then nullified
as Matt Kenseth and Kasey Kahne lost
their crew chiefs for four weeks due to
violations of NASCAR rules after last
Sunday’s qualifying. Oh, yeah —
Kahne’s Dodge teammates, Elliott
Sadler and Scott Riggs, lost their crew
chiefs for two races.
The Michael Waltrip violation
really blew the “lid” off when he was
caught messing with one of two
NASCAR’s “taboo” areas of the car —
fuel (tires is the other taboo). Oh, wait
— Fake Michael wasn’t personally
involved; or as he put it, “this was an
independent act done without consent
or authorization from me or any of my
F
executive management team.” Yeah
right, and I’ve got some land near the
Dell Diamond I’ll sell you real cheap.
But when it comes to Sunday’s
2007 season-opening race, let’s admit
something up front: the “real” winner
of the race was knocked out in an
accident on Lap 152. That’s where
Tony Stewart — who had climbed
back into the lead after restarting in
40th place just 60 laps earlier — got
tangled up with Kurt Busch, who
himself had the second-fastest car in
the race (next to T-Stew’s machine).
Technically, NASCAR should
have thrown the caution flag on the
last lap as Kyle Busch and Matt
Kenseth started a race-ending melee
that took out many a car. However,
because Kevin Harvick and Mark
Martin – who were racing side-by-side
for the checkered flag — were ahead of
the car “carnage” behind them,
NASCAR officials “ate the caution
flag” and let the two battle it out.
As you know by now, Harvick beat
out Martin by two-hundreths of a
second — the smallest winning margin
since NASCAR started keeping time.
A lot of Martin fans — and believe me,
he has a TON of fans — will argue the
officials “stole” a win away from their
favorite driver in this, a part-time
season.
No matter. All the controversy —
and the great race finish — has the
entire nation buzzing about the sport.
What’s better than that?
So as we get back to “real” racing
at tracks like California, Atlanta and
Bristol, here’s my Power Rankings top
10: (1) Tony Stewart; (2) Kevin
Harvick; (3) Matt Kenseth; (4) Jeff
Gordon; (5) Jimmie Johnson; (6) Mark
Martin; (7) Kyle Busch; (8) David
Gilliland; (9) David Stremme; (10)
Elliott Sadler.
C H U C K L I C ATA , A N A W A R D -W I N N I N G
W R I T E R , H O S T S T H E M OT O R S P O R T S
Z O N E R A D I O S H O W O N A U S T I N K V E TA M 1 3 0 0 ( S AT U R D AY S 1 0 – 1 1 A M C T ) .
H E I S A L S O C O - O W N E R O F K- M A C
SPORTS PRODUCTIONS, AN ONLINE
C O M PA N Y T H AT B R O A D C A S T S H I G H
S C H O O L AT H L E T I C S A N D S H O R T-T R A C K
A U T O R A C I N G . E-MAIL:
[email protected]
countrylinemagazine.com
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C OU N T RY LI N E M AGA Z I N E The Only Texas Lifestyle Magazine • 17
by Larry LeBlanc
Shooting sports use to be synonymous
with hunting, but no more
When I was growing up and first
started hunting on my own, shooting
sports meant grabbing my Red Rider
Daisy, BB gun, caliber .177, and heading
for the marsh. The marsh started across
the street from our house and continued
all the way to Winnie, Texas, about 30
miles away, and I hunted water beetles,
big roaches and other such prey. I
remember one time three of us, all about
seven years old, were on a big game
adventure and we came on a
cottonmouth water moccasin. We all
aimed and on the count of three we
started to shoot the dark, strong
smelling, pit viper. As it was a warm day
and this cold blooded reptile was nice
and warm and active he came after us
like a bull at a rodeo pointing out that
our escape route and fast retreat became
the action of choice. We learned that
day that a Red Rider Daisy, BB gun was
no match for an angry cottonmouth.
Later, about age 12, when I wanted
to hit the marsh for a day of shooting
sport I would grab my .22 caliber rifle and
again hit the marsh hunting rabbits. The
W
Leon Measures (left) starts his training by having students shoot a BB
gun with no sights.
.22 long rifle ammunition was also an
adequate match for the occasional
cottonmouth I would encounter. About
12 years old I also started hunting ducks
and geese with a Stevens, double
barreled, 16 gauge shotgun. It beat me up
for a while, until I grew into it, but I
would never complain, because only a
sissy did such a thing. I moved on to a 12
18 • The Only Texas Lifestyle Magazine C OU N T RY LI N E M AGA Z I N E
gauge, Remington semi-automatic at 14
years old, which I received for Christmas;
still hunting ducks and geese, rabbits and
occasionally squirrels.
Here we are in the year 2007 and
although hunting is still a big shooting
sport there are many non consumptive
shooting sports that are taking off like a
prairie fire in the Panhandle.
Shooting sports have increase over
the past few years in leaps and bounds
and not just with us hairy legged, manly
types, but women and children are
getting involved in a big way as well as
families. The growth comes in the form
of IDPA clubs and events for both men
and women, Cowboy Action Shooting,
and shotgun sports such as skeet, trap,
five-stand and sporting clays.
Shotgunning is one of the fastest
growing shooting sports and I attribute
that in part to the technological
advances in shotguns. One can still
purchase the old time shoulder busters,
but if you are a serious shooter you will
want a shotgun that will last and be
comfortable to shoot and those are
readily available.
My 11-year-old grandson, Nicholas,
has been to the trap range with my son
and I and he loves shooting a shotgun.
He and I competed at a Life Outdoor
Ministries adult/child event and we
really had great time. Nick was shooting
a Beretta, 20 gauge, semi-automatic and
never showed a mark on his shoulder.
I was taking one of Leon Measures
shotgun clinics a while back and a lady
who shot competitively let me shoot her
12 gauge, Browning, semi-automatic and
it was so smooth and gentle anyone
could shoot all day long.
So folks do not miss out on a lot of
fun by not participating in some of the
fun shooting sports available to us in the
21st century, but get involved. Boys and
girls in the age range of 11 or 12 years old
are usually physically big enough to
handle one of the new shotguns
comfortably. I saw a 17 year old girl
recently shoot a perfect 25 on one of our
skeet ranges. Local organizations such as
the 4-H Club have safety training,
regular practice, and state wide
competitions for the youth of our county.
So if you are looking for a sport and are
tired of the usual such as golf or bowling
look into shooting sports and I will bet
there is one that will take your fancy.
P H O T O G R A P H Y B Y L A R R Y J. L E B L A N C
F
by Don Gordon
L
F Lately, extreme weather seems to be
the norm every time we uncover our bass
boats for a tournament. The first Fishers
of Men tournament to be held January
20th on Lake Belton was cancelled due
to the ice storm that paralyzed Central
Texas for almost a week. The air
temperature for the Skeeter Bass
Champs’ first event on Feb. 3 on Lake
Belton was a chilly 22 degrees with the
lake temperature down eight degrees
from the week before. Even the big FLW
tournament — February 15 – 18 on Lake
Travis — faced some chilly take-offs.
The second day of the tournament the
air temperature was 18 degrees. Finally,
the Fishers of Men on Lake Travis, Feb.
24 was blessed with fair temperatures,
but cursed with mighty strong winds!
Mario Hernandez won the Skeeter
Bass Champs tournament on Lake
Belton. Fishing alone, he ran up the
Leon arm of the lake to the north side
and fished in a deep pocket of water
adjacent to a large spawning flat. With
the water rising slowly from recent rains,
Mario elected to fish shallow by pitching
an “old-style” honey brown crank bait
right up to the bank. He caught four
keepers weighing 12.60lbs, including a
5.48lbs small mouth bass — a good
enough haul to earn him $20,000!
2nd
Jeff Epling
9.94lbs $5,000
3rd
Charles Gerhart/David Shuster
9.78lbs $3,000
Steve Thiel/Brian Tate
4th
9.16lbs $2,000
5th
Chuck Aleksines/Chris Brasher
8.58lbs $1,200
Twenty-seven places were paid
with the last place paid bringing $600
for only 5.08lbs of fish. There were 202
teams fishing, 197 fish caught, and
ninety six zeroes. Only five limits were
brought to the scales.
Named for Forest L. Wood,
originator of Ranger Boats, the WalMart FLW Tour is the richest pro-level
tournament trail around. Austin was
very lucky that the FLW chose to fish
Lake Travis in Central Texas for their
first tournament of 2007. This megaevent lasted four days with 200
professional fishermen and 200 amateur
fishermen competing for a million
dollars in prizes. For two days the
fishermen battled to make the cut to
enter the final events. After weigh-in on
the second day, ten pros and ten
amateurs are selected to compete on the
third day. An amateur champion was
chosen at the end of the third day at a
nationally televised weigh-in at the
Austin Convention Center. Only the
professionals fished the last day and the
winner was crowned at another even
more spectacular and exciting weigh-in
— also at the convention center and
nationally televised.
Going into the event Leander pro
Clark Wendlandt was picked to win due
to his knowledge of Lake Travis. (It
seems that Clark was also working some
kind of magic on his fellow fishermen
with regards to his ping-pong playing
skills.) Clark said that he was fishing
marinas anchored with complex cable
systems that broke off some key fish. He
was using a combination of crank baits
and jigs.
Aaron Hastings, in his second year
on tour, started the season with a bang by
winning first place for a prize of
$125,000. He had a two-day total of
19.9lbs of fish. He fished the back of
Cypress Creek and targeted docks for his
first place finish. He used a drop shot
with six-pound fluorocarbon line and a
four-inch roboworm.
Second place went to another
fisherman who is relatively new to the
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FLW competition, Brian Thrift. By
fishing docks with a one-half ounce jig
Brian caught 17.15lbs of bass to win his
$50,000 check.
Craig Dowling came in third place
with 15.5lbs of fish that netted him
$40,000. He fished marinas with a 1/16ounce jig head and a shad-styled sinko
trailer.
Clark Wendlandt finished in fourth
place with 13.11lbs for a $30,000 check.
Of course, the crowd went wild for the
success of a local hero. Congratulations,
Clark!
Fifth place went to Ron Shuffield
with a 13.8lbs catch and a check for
$20,000.
Scott Martin caught the Big Bass of
the tournament — an 8.12lbs hog.
Seventy-five places were paid with
the 50th place receiving a check for
$10,000. All in all, quite a big pay out!
The FLW put on a great show at the
Austin Convention Center, complete
with a grand motorcade of sponsor logo
decorated trucks and boats and a police
escort to take the pros to the launch site
on Lake Travis. In addition, a Family Fun
Center was set up with entertainment for
adults and kids, including autographs
from
pros,
fishing
tips
and
demonstrations, boat simulators, fun
houses, and rods and reels for the kids.
The “Texas Outdoor Zone” radio
show was done live from the convention
center Saturday morning at the regular
time — 6 to 8 a.m. on 1300AM The
Zone. Host T. J. Greaney and I
interviewed Castrol pros Mike Surman
and Carl Svebek and A&W pro Chris
McCall. I would like to thank them and
the
FLW
vice-president
of
Communications, Dave Washburn, for
making this possible. (You can listen to
the
show
online
at
theoutddoorzone.com.) The FLW
Tournament in Austin was such a
success that I believe they might be back
next year. I sure hope so because I had an
awesome time watching it all unfold and
meeting so many great people.
The Fishers of Men tournament on
Lake Travis was held on Saturday, Feb.
24. As I have said, the day was not very
cold, but with wind gusts in excess of 50
miles an hour it could hardly be called
pleasant. Fishing was brutal with the
constant winds and waves hammering
both our boats and us. Here are the
results of the tournament, but the
techniques and baits will have to wait
until next month’s article due to the next
Bass Champs Tournament on Lake
Travis.
1st
D. Johnson/C. Crienke
14.59lbsBig Bass5.04lbs
2nd
S. Wilson/R. Cantu
10.42lbs2nd Big Bass 5.00lbs
C. Johnson/L. Benton
3rd
10.37lbs
4th
M. Roberts/J. Penny
9.44lbs
5th
P. Smith/G Smith
7.94lbs
Ten places were paid with tenth
place having 6.40lbs of fish. Three
additional places received gift cards from
Sportsman’s Warehouse that were valued
at $50, $30 and $20.
CHECK OUT MY NEW WEBSITE AT
CAPITOLVIEWGUIDESERVICE.COM.
BUILT BY DARRIN LEBLANC, 512-736-6552.
FOR CURRENT FISHING REPORTS ON AREA LAKES
AND MORE — LISTEN TO THE TEXAS OUTDOOR ZONE
RADIO SHOW, SATURDAYS 6 – 8 A.M.
ON 1300 AM, THE ZONE OR VISIT
TEXASOUTDOORZONE.COM.
’07 Skeeter Bass Champs Tournaments
Mar 3, Lake Travis
Mar 31, Lake LBJ | Apr 28, Lake Belton
June 9, Lake Choke Canyon | Oct 20, location TBA (Championship)
A D D I T I O N A L I N F O R M AT I O N AT B A S S C H A M P S . C O M
’07 Fishers of Men Tournaments
Feb 24, Lake Travis | Mar 17, Lake LBJ
Apr 14, Lake Austin | May 19, Lake Stillhouse
For more info or guide service,
call Jeff Cook 512-413-4178. www.fomcentex.com
C OU N T RY LI N E M AGA Z I N E The Only Texas Lifestyle Magazine • 19