Elko saddles up for 25th cowboy poetry gathering

ELKO " During the last quarter-century, Waddie Mitchell has seen cowboy poetry turn from a novelty to a staple.

When the first gathering was held in Elko in 1983, organizers had no idea how successful it would be. Mitchell, one of Elko County's pre-eminent cowboy poets, said he wasn't even sure the first event would come together.

Getting ranchers off the ranch isn't always easy.

But during the slower time in January, it did happen, and, Mitchell said, "it's changed my life completely."

"If someone told me 26 years ago I'd spend the last 20 years on the road entertaining and writing poetry for a living, I'd not only argue but I'd bet my saddle I wouldn't."

Lucky for Mitchell, no one made that prediction. Now, the event will celebrate its 25th anniversary Jan. 24-31.

Produced by the Western Folklife Center, the National Cowboy Poetry Gathering has grown to a week of events. Since the first gathering, the art, like Mitchell's life, has changed.

"The classics still hold up, but I do think that the poetry that's been written, except for a few cases of some of the great cowboy poetry written, we've come 100 percent better, the art has flourished," he said.

"When there's an outlet for the art, there's more demand, and when the audience becomes educated to the genre it all becomes more important, and like almost any other artist community, it enhances the art," he said. "Our art has flourished and become better because of its popularity, not in spite of it."

Lamoille rancher Jack Walther, who also performed at the first gathering and many since then, said he too has seen a change in the poetry performed.

Whether it's a good change or not is not for him to decide, Walther said, but he said the audience seems to like it, and that's the important part.

The significance of the gathering, though, is more than the cowboy music and poetry performed each day. It's the camaraderie, the friendships formed over the years.

Walther, who has tried to retire from performing several times just to take the stage again, said he looks forward to meeting with friends each year.

This year, he said he hopes to see performers from the early days.

"I've seen people who have interest in only poetry and the music aspect of it become enthralled with the whole lifestyle," Mitchell said.

There are people who plan their whole year around gatherings, he said. "They say it fulfills them. ... it's touching."

Performing "kind of bares (your) soul to a lot of folks," he said. "You don't realize as a performer how many people you're touching after an hour show, but you do really understand after 25 years."

After 25 years, the gathering has become part of the community, part of Elko's identity, Mitchell said. There's the rodeo, fair, Basque Festival, and now the poetry gathering and bike rally.

"It's very nice to know that people recognize your hometown as something that's good for human kind," he said, a "celebration of a lifestyle and human spirit and art."

Walther laughs at his own introduction to cowboy poetry; it certainly wasn't something someone would step on stage to perform, at least in polite company.

Bunk house bull was what much of it was, he said. Still, it resonated with him. "They don't mince words," he said of cowboy poets. "They say what they mean."

Poetry isn't a big deal to Walther, it's the subject matter he's passionate about.

"I'm a rancher and a cattleman, and poetry is just secondary to me," said Walther, who was born into a ranching family with never any question what he would be.

"It's my life, occupation and hobby," he said.

Writing poetry was something that came naturally, he said. He would write a verse about something that happened during the day or maybe write a funny line or two to poke fun at a sister's boyfriend.

Mitchell got his start the same way. Long before he ever recited poetry, cowboys recited poetry to him.

Of course, they didn't call it poetry, he said.

"We'd just say, you might enjoy this little story or here's a wild one for ya."'

"In my case, I didn't even consider it poetry. I think it was stories in rhyme," he said.