Report From Pawhuska Oklahoma - Bit & Spur Swap

In a nut shell, we all had a great time at our May 1st 2010 Bit & Spur Swap which also included all types of ranch cowboy gear, including a six shooter or two and some good handmade knives. Tools of the cowboy trade!

Dale Harrison at Osage County Fairgrounds had the doors open to our building at 8:30 A. M. and had some early bird traders / dealers waiting on him when he got there. I want to take this opportunity to thank Dale and the folks with Osage County for providing such a nice clean building for our gathering. As all of you know that attended, all of the tables and chairs were also provided by the County. That was a big help! I am sure that you all will agree.

By the way... they have built a BIG new indoor arena there at the fairgrounds. I went and checked it out. There is none better! It’s big, the ground is good, the seating is good, the acoustics are good, the rest rooms are good, everything about it is good! If you are looking for a place to put on a horse show, ranch rodeo, or some other big indoor event I suggest that you check into this facility. Call Dale at 918-440-3991 or Leona at 918-287-1570.

It was a little cloudy most of the day and rain was in the area but we got lucky and it stayed away from Pawhuska until late afternoon. I was having so much fun visiting all day long that I must admit, I didn’t get a true head count like I should have but I am pretty sure that we had 11-12 dealers and makers in the building. Not to mention all of the those that walked in during the day with a handful / arm load of stuff to sell or trade. I even traded off some bits and spurs myself. Went home with some new stuff too!.

As most of you that are reading this already know, there is no regular table or dealer set up fee at our Bit & Spur Swaps. Donations are excepted during the day to help pay the bills, like building rent, etc. The building rent was $100 (what a bargain!) updating the banner was $40 (way to much!), having some posters made was $10. A total of $150. There was more but, I can’t remember what it was right now. As far as I can figure, every dealer in the building donated some cash during the day. A total of $180. Enough to pay the bills and buy me a cheeseburger. I was tickled to death! Thank you very much for helping do this thing. NOTE: ... the Swap was on May 1st... I came up to Pawhuska on April 1st and put up our BIG banner at the main highway intersection in front of the Come-N-Go store. I want to give special thanks to Jeff Wade for keeping an eye on that thing for me. If it had not been for Jeff, a storm could have blown that thing to Nebraska and I would not have known anything about it. Thanks again Jeff!!! Well, I guess I will wrap this up and get it along with a few pictures posted on the web site. If it was not for Matt Wheaton (Fort Gibson spur maker) We would not have any pictures at all. My camera went on the blink almost at the git go. Thanks Matt! Oops... I almost forgot. My son Jim ( at no cost to us!) done his computer graphics magic (color correcting, cropping, etc. etc.) on all of the photos to get them ready for posting on the web site. Thanks Jim!

Another thanks is in order: My nephew Joel Cody and his wife Michelle not only built our web site but maintains it and keeps it updated (like posting this report and photos) They do all of this work at no cost to me or you. Why? They are good people... I don’t know how else to explain it. Maybe we better offer to buy them a steak dinner some time!

I am not sure yet when or where our next Bit & Spur Swap will be but Just as soon as I find out I will let ya’ll know by email and a posting on the web site.

UPDATE! Our next Bit & Spur Swap will be held at the Craig County Fairgrounds in Vinita, Oklahoma.

Here are a few photos taken at our Swap at Pawhuska, Oklahoma on May 1, 2010