Cowboy entertainers show audience galloping good time

Activity buzzed around Randy Pollard like flies around a fresh cowpie. He was backstage Saturday afternoon preparing for the first performance of his band, Rush Creek, during the 12th annual Cowboy Jubilee and Poetry event held at the Carson City Community Center.

Western-style entertainer Sourdough Slim, musician-poets Dennis Golden and Texas Tom Weatherby, and humorist Kent Rollins also performed. The two shows offering Western-style music, poetry and storytelling were complemented by a tri-tip dinner.

Someone dropped off a box of the Rush Creek's latest CD. A boy came in with a cast on one arm and a fiddle case in the other, seeking Pollard's autograph. Pollard's son and daughter, Christina, 9, and Matthew, 7, were practicing their fiddles nearby. Fellow bandmember John McLain was helping the children pick up the right rhythm by strumming his guitar along with them.

Both of the children have been learning to play for about a year and can sing, too. The children were excited because their parents were going to let them perform.

"It's a very important cause," Pollard said of the Carson Tahoe Regional Healthcare Auxiliary's plan to raise money for creation of a sexual assault response team at the medical center. "We're honored to be part of it."

Last year's event raised $18,000. Event organizer Delsye Mills was concerned advance ticket sales didn't reach the numbers for which she had hoped, but did say experience has indicated there could be a large number of walk-in ticket buyers.

"Nevada is a last-minute state," she said.

For the men who volunteered to cook the 300 pounds of tri-tip outside of the community center as the snow fell, it might have felt a little like being back in the Old West - the snow was coming down pretty hard.

"We expect to be entertained," said Norris Edson, who was with his wife Margaret enjoying their tri-tip dinners before the second performances. This is the third time in a row these Carson City residents have attended.

"It was wonderful and we totally enjoyed it," said Liz Svenningsen, who with her husband Arne, both of Dayton, had come to the event for the first time and caught the early show. They definitely plan to return next year. "The tickets were a gift."

The barbecue was served in a different part of the community center, and diners were entertained by bluegrass performances by Nevada Range and Back 40.

The Nevada Beef Council picked up much of the cost for the tri-tip. Red's Old 395 Grill donated the beans and the medical center prepared the side dishes. The Sertoma Club sold refreshments outside the Bob Boldrick Theater and intends to donate a portion of the proceeds to the auxiliary.

-- Contact reporter Terri Harber at tharber @nevadaappeal.com or 882-2111, ext. 215.