June 24, 2006 - Cheyenne
For once, Katie and I actually split up, as she was in Wheatland with my Mom and I was at Superday in Cheyenne. Hard to believe we actually spent a whole day apart, but don't worry - when they finished in Wheatland, Katie came by Superday to make sure I didn't miss her too much!
As I arrived at Lion's Park, I couldn't help but be excited about the day, watching all the fun things being set up - zip lines, inflatable slides and face painting stations to name a few. We had a spot perfectly located between the food and the children's booths, so a lot of people came by. We chatted with folks who stopped by to ask questions or get campaign materials like bumper stickers, balloons, or t-shirts. We talked about a lot of different things, ranging from local policy issues to my Dad's upcoming role as the MC of the Old Fashioned Melodrama during Frontier Days!
We also brought our dog Jewel out to enjoy the day in the park. She was popular with the kids, especially after some of our volunteers dressed her up with balloons and buttons. A few members of the melodrama cast also adopted her for a while. By the end of the day, she was about as tired as I've ever seen her. Here is a picture of her passed out behind our booth with me and one of our volunteers, Derek Bailey.
The timing worked out pretty well for Superday this year - last year the afternoon thunderstorm caught everyone in a bit of a downpour, but this year it sprinkled on us just enough to cool us down but not enough to rain us out. All in all it was a good day.
June 17, 2006 - Encampment - Saratoga - Riverside - Rawlins
Finally it was the weekend, but we still had more to do in Carbon County. While we were in Saratoga, we heard all about the Woodchoppers' Jamboree, but neither of us had been there before. We were a little disappointed that both the Woodchoppers' Jamboree and the Pronghorn Pride Days Parade were on the same day, but we decided it was worth it to try to see both.
We got up early in the morning to go to Encampment to see the Jamboree. As we were driving down the highway from Rawlins and just about to pass Riverside, we saw in the distance a slow moving entourage. Horses, kids, cars, and floats were coming down the highway in full parade fashion! We pulled over and sat on the hood of our car and watched the parade go by and continue into Riverside. We both agreed that only in Wyoming could a driver pull over on the highway to watch a parade pass by. It was definitely an unexpected and exciting experience.
After the parade, we got to the Woodchoppers' Jamboree and sat on the bleachers with other folks. The ax throwers were practicing and we both were amazed by the skills required to hit an ax in a bulls-eye. We spent all morning watching the logging events and the gentlemen sitting next to us were kind enough to explain the rules and strategies behind the various events. In the first event, the team had to cut down a tree using a chainsaw and make it fall perfectly between two lines on the ground. If they hit the stake in the middle they received extra points. They were timed and had to cut the log two more times before they were finished. We admired the women who participated in the later events, one of which was using a huge 
two-person saw to cut through a thick piece of wood as fast as possible. Our friends in the bleachers told us the saw came all the way from the Netherlands! The energy and excitement at Woodchoppers' was so much fun and we both walked away with a greater appreciation for logging.
We knew we had to try to fit in both the Jamboree and Pronghorn Pride Days in Rawlins, so we had to leave Woodchoppers' a little early to get back to Rawlins. Once we got back to Rawlins we searched out our Freudenthal Booth on main street and were excited to see a group of volunteers looking hot but happy, all dressed
in Gov Dave t-shirts – they looked great! They filled us in on the beautifully painted Pronghorns that were paraded down the street that morning while we were in Encampment. We were really hungry, so we tried the paninis at Huckleberries for lunch (which were delicious). It was a great day and we even had our picture taken with the actual pronghorn mascot! We sat at our booth for the rest of the afternoon and chatted with people as they passed by.
June 16, 2006 - Rawlins
We stayed in Rawlins all day and went from workplace to workplace talking to people. Our first stop was at the Carbon County Higher Education Center to meet the director, Joan Evans. It was interesting to hear her views on education and workforce. We shared the view that quality education is vital for our economic development - without well-educated and trained students, we won't have a viable workforce for tomorrow. We also met Tobi Wickham who was just as great as Joan. They took time out of their day to give us a tour of their other two buildings. We went to the vocational training building first and learned about the variety of programs offered from 
oil field training to a nursing program. Next, we went over to Kid Campus and saw the immense progress made on turning a former chiropractor's office into a quality childcare facility. It was cool to see the different themed rooms: reading, nap, science, math, pretend play, and a variety of others that were still in progress.
After we spent time with Joan and Tobi, we went over to the county courthouse. We walked around and poked our heads into offices to introduce our selves to people. We chatted about what was going on in Carbon County and the different issues that were affecting the state. We heard several times in the courthouse how much people noticed and were glad that Dad has spent so much time in Carbon County. It was nice to hear people appreciate his time spent around the state.
It was nearing about 12:30 and it was time to figure out our lunch plans. We weren't sure what to do, but luckily Joan and Tobi were kind enough to invite us to eat with them at Su Casa in Sinclair. Hillary had eaten at Su Casa several times when she campaigned in 2002, but Katie hadn't eaten at the acclaimed Mexican Restaurant yet, so we were excited. Even though Mexican isn't Katie's favorite kind of food, Su Casa was by far her favorite food of the trip! Yum!!
After lunch, we stopped by a couple of other businesses to introduce ourselves. We heard a few concerns related to the penitentiary and the new prison being in Torrington rather than Rawlins, but just as often we heard people say they actually thought it was just as well that it wouldn't be in Rawlins. And without exception, people felt that overall Dad is doing a great job. We didn't have time to stop by all of the places Dad had recommended that we visit, but we couldn't finish our day without seeing the Pronghorn display. It was Pronghorn Pride Days in Rawlins and there were many beautiful hand-painted pronghorn on display. We voted for our favorites before heading home to do some computer work and go to bed.
June 15, 2006 - Saratoga - Rawlins
Today we drove to Saratoga, where we met Art Zeiger and his son for lunch at the Wolf Hotel. It was the first time either of us had been there. Art told us that it is a local favorite and it definitely lived up to its reputation - the french fries are especially good! After lunch we visited with a business owner who thought that a good workforce is the key to economic development. Then we stopped by Shively Hardware to find a good Father's Day present for Dad, but we decided we didn't know enough about tools to pick out the right one yet.
It was time to get on the road again and head further into Carbon County. Our next destination was Rawlins. First, we stopped at a friend's office to do some catch-up work and before we knew it, our stomachs were growling and it was our signal to stop working. We went to dinner at a Thai restaurant that wasn't open during the last campaign. We were impressed to find a Thai restaurant in Rawlins and really enjoyed the cool decor and delicious food!
Our day wasn't finished yet because we wanted to check out Music in the Park, which was an event highly recommended by everyone we saw during the day - it was the talk of the town. We were in luck because it was the first one of the summer. We were a little hesitant, since it was a little breezy and cold, and we didn't think we would know anyone, but we were glad that we went because the music was great and there were lots of people there of all ages. There was chatting, music, and a flurry of activity between games, booths, and the food stands. We even saw a few people we knew, so that made us feel more at home, and even more glad that we went. After a good night of chatting it was time to hit the sack, because we needed energy for an early start in the morning.
