wichita family magazine march 2016

Wichita Family • March 2016 - 1

EXPERIENCING THE OUTDOORS

march 2016

2 - www.wichitafamily.com

Published By:

Lucky 7 Publishing LLC316.295.8465

Publisher:

Todd Vogts

Advertising Inquiries Contact:

Publisher Todd Vogts [email protected]

Wichita Family Magazine is published 12 times a year by Lucky 7 Publishing LLC. Wichita Family Magazine is available free, at schools, stores, restaurants, libraries, retailers and local attractions, as well as other places families frequent. For a complete list of where to find Wichita Family, or for subscription rates, email us at

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Copyright 2016 by Lucky 7 Publishing LLC. All rights reserved. Wichita Family Magazine is not responsible for errors, omissions or contest fulfillment from third parties. Reproduction in part or in whole without written permission is strictly prohibited. Wichita Family is distributed free of charge. The magazine’s advertisers make this possible, so support them! We reserve the right to edit submitted material. All submissions will be considered for publication, but we reserve the right to refuse material. Materials will not be returned. Any

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It’s Kansas. One can never be sure of what kind of weather is waiting on the other side of the front door, but since it is March, it is Spring in my book.

This means a lot to me.First, I hate being cooped up in the

house all the time. Sure, I enjoy surfing the Internet and watching Netflix as much, if not more, than the next guy, but I like to be in control of that deci-sion. I don’t like it when the weather dictates my laziness. I want to make the call to spend an entire day in my recliner.

Second, I think I can actually hear my motorcycle whimpering to get out on the road. Sure, I could take it out as long as there isn’t snow or ice on the road, but neither of us likes the cold weather. Call us wimps if you will, but the sunshine makes for a much better ride.

Third, baseball sea-son is start-ing. Being able to enjoy the outdoors while sitting and watching nine innings of strategy and excite-ment is a perfect way

to spend the day. I can’t wait to be out on The Hill watching the Wichita State Shockers.

Fourth, March Madness is upon us. I look forward to watching the Shocker men make a deep run.

However, the most important reason spring is important to me is golf.

I know I’ve written about it before, but I love going golfing. It is the only time I can truly disconnect and be at one with my thoughts and nature.

Of all the activities I take part in, golf is the most relaxing. Golf allows me to focus on one thing — getting the ball into the hole in as few swings as possible. It doesn’t require any extra thought.

By focusing on that one goal, it frees my mind. It allows me to work out issues and has inspired my creative writing on more than one occasion.

It’s also fun that my wife has gotten into the game. It’s nice to have a hobby we can enjoy together, and, if we forego the golf cart, we can even get in some exercise.

Even if you aren’t a fan of golf, or anything else I’ve discussed thus far, the point is I encourage you to get out-side when it’s nice and experience the outdoors.

You could do something as simple as go for a walk, or, if you don’t want to be active, sit in a lawn chair.

Of course, if you or your children are of the more adventurous type, you could try rodeo.

No, I’m not crazy. There are high school students taking part in this sport all across the state.

Guest reporter Kylah Comley, a senior basketball phenom and editor of her high school’s newsmagazine, wrote the feature for this month, and she highlighted students at her high school who have rodeo in their blood.

It’s great read, and you get to hear from four student-athletes who don’t fit into the typical mold of high school sports.

Some of them even compete just down the road in Kingman, so if you were looking for a way to get out and enjoy some nice weather, you could go watch some of these incredible young people take part in something most of us would never consider doing.

Yes, Spring is in air. It is a time for renewal and looking forward to what is to come. Gone are the doldrums of winter. With the blooming of the flow-ers, a sense of excitement and longing for time spent with those you love doing something special to all of you blooms as well.

When I’m not golfing, I’ll probably be grilling, so if you can’t find me on the links, look for me cooking some of them.

Message from the Publisher

Todd [email protected]


You bust out of the gates, your hand grips the rope as your horse blows out. Your horse rears up, your butt is thrown out of the saddle, you let go of your saddle

while you throw your feet forward and lift on the reign. You’re back in the drivers seat. As the horse hits the ground, you throw your body back to absorb the shock. Ten feet below you see the dirt, determined to stay on, you ignore the thought of being thrown off. One second. Only seven more to go.

Staying on a bucking horse for eight seconds may look easy to some, but, according to Sterling High School senior Tim Williams, it’s harder than it looks.

“I do bronc riding for the adrenaline rush. Not just that, though, it’s the hardest event in rodeo to learn. The learning curve is straight up, and you either do it or you don’t and I like the challenge,” Williams said. “If you don’t do one thing right, if just one thing is wrong, you’re off the horse in half a second.”

There are many techniques that come with learning how to bronc ride, many of which determine how long you stay on your horse. For Williams that is the trick to riding the complete eight seconds.

“The hardest part about learning how to ride for me was learning how to let go of the saddle, which makes no sense at all, but you have to let go of it to sit back down and get in the driver’s seat, which is where you want to be, the only time I’m really in my saddle is when the horse hits the ground,” he said. “I’ve ridden a couple rides out, and it’s the craziest feeling ever, better than anything else in the world. There’s not really a word to explain quite what that feels like. I’m always shaking from the adrenaline rush when I get off.”

Williams suffered from the fear of getting bucked off of a horse in his early days of riding.

“I used to get really scared of being on a horse like that,” he said. “But I got used to hitting the ground. I’ve done front flips and landed on my shoulder blades and all kinds of stuff while being thrown off. I’ve landed on my head so many times, it’s no big deal now.”

Williams was introduced to rodeo by his dad who par-ticipated in events until he met his wife and started a family.

“We grew up cowboyin’ and stuff all the time, ranchin’ all most. Dad had a bunch of pastures we would check, and we would get paid per cow. We did that during the summer time, and that’s how we paid for our horses and for them to eat and stuff,” he said. “I was probably around 6 when I first started youth rodeo, and I’ve been hooked on it ever since.”

While bronc riding is Williams’ favorite event, he has also participated in breakaway, goat tying, ribbon robin, calf roping, light riffle and trap shooting.

“I pay for my own entry fees. That was kinda the deal when my brother and I started rodeo — we would pay the fees and my parents would get us there,” he said. “My par-ents are my biggest supporters and without them there’s no way I would be able to do any of this.”

The average entry fee for bronc riding is $50, and it costs anywhere from $375-$500 to take care of one horse for a month.

“Because rodeo and having horses are so expensive, that puts a little more pressure on winning. Rodeo is the only sport you can make money off of,” Williams said. “Of course professional athletes get paid, but I can win money for do-ing well at my age now. I won $1,500 off of roping one day.”

Despite the pressure and fees of rodeo, Williams feels that the feeling of success makes it all worth it. He has com-peted in Nationals five times since his career began in 2005.

“Nationals is the worlds biggest rodeo by numbersI think there’s more than 1,500 contestants who enter,” he said. “To be able to be a part of that is a pretty big deal.”

While Williams has found success in rodeo for 11 years there are other students at Sterling who are new to his world. One of which is senior Clayton Duft, who competed in bareback riding his first rodeo last August.

“I come from a rodeo background, both of my parents used to do it,” he said. “It wasn’t until I went to a few profes-sional rodeos that I decided that I wanted to start compet-ing. I haven’t placed in any events yet, but I think naturally with more practice I will get better.”

Sterling freshman Eryn Spangenberg, a more experi-enced rider, spends most of her weekends competing in

High school students get roped into unique hobby BY KYLAH COMLEY

Special to Wichita Family


barrel racing, breakaway, goat tying and pole bending. “Pole bending is my favorite thing that I do in rodeo

because of the adrenaline rush and because I win a lot,” Spangenberg said. “You basically run straight forward with your horse and run in and out between six poles, and then you sprint back.”

She takes part in Kingman’s Heartland Youth Rodeo Association season. Twice she has won overall pole bend-ing champion, meaning she was named best rider in that event over the course of 14 rodeos. On Feb. 21 she was also awarded the Reserve All-Around Champion, which means she was the best all-around female rider for all events in her age group.

“I don’t think that many students know that this is something I am good at it. They just know I rodeo,” she said. “Rodeo is a competative sport to me, and many people don’t realize how competative or challenging it is.”

Sterling sophomore Mardee Thompson feels rodeo is a new interest she would like to continue.

“I just started working at it at the end of the summer, and my first rodeo was in November,” she said. “I have shown horses all my life, and I was just losing interest in it and wanted something new. So I started thinking about rodeo and what great opportunities it could bring me.”

Though Thompson is just beginning and seeing success in roping, there are many years of riding ahead of her.

“I really enjoy it because it makes me work for it and it’s challenging at first. I know that most of the time that things go right it’s because the hard work has paid off,” she said. “I want to continue pursuing that passion and getting better and competing at a higher level and see where it takes me in my life.”

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(Photo by Kylah Comley)Freshman Eryn Spangenberg whips her horse around the final barrel before making her sprint for the home stretch.

(Photo by Kylah Comley)Sophomore Mardee Thompson ropes a calf during breakaway where she scored a time of five seconds, taking home 1st place.


My six year old boy is famous in our house for his great ability to anticipate what’s next: the next game, the next show, the next event. He looks to

what’s to come, and even though it’s not healthy to live in a constant state of anticipation, I’ve recently learned some things from him and from the changing seasons.

Spring is the season of great anticipation after all. The ground finally softens, and new, thin branches turn colors so we know the sap has begun to move. Light increases and moves north. Birds return. The promise of sweet, warm air prepares its arrival — if only in our minds.

In his poem “To The Thawing Wind” Robert Frost writes:

“Come with rain, O loud Southwester!Bring the singer, bring the nester;Give the buried flower a dream;Make the settled snowbank steam;Find the brown beneath the white…”

Now, when the chills still threaten, I say those lines with

him and look forward to the thaw.And I watch my little boy play in the warming air, and

I know his heart. He is a bundle of energy, and he prepares himself for what he can’t yet see. He hopes and waits. What I can’t seem to shake lately, however, is all the times I’ve failed him, all the times I should have taken joy in his pres-ence and instead sought my own rest or agenda. I can’t help but imagine how sorry I’ll be if I don’t change something. But what?

Then, just like the subtle tilt of the earth, I know it: I have to anticipate giving to him, I have to imagine how I’ll set aside what I want for what he needs. And it’s true for my whole family, too. I wait for the trees to bud, and I see in my mind’s eye how they unfold and produce their fruit. So I should wait and see the moments to come with my sons, with my wife. I must hope and wait. That way, when the season is right, I’m there to reap a harvest.

Ian Anderson is a teacher, a husband, and a dad. He lives with his family in Central Kansas. Occasionally, he tweets here: @ian_writes.

By Ian Anderson

Waiting for Spring

~ An AnticipAtion EssAy ~


As the wife of the editor, I am asked to write a short article every now and then, and for past articles, it was very easy. I would match my topic to my feel-

ings, memories, thoughts, or personal experiences about whatever major holiday happened to be in the month. For example, in November, my article was Thanksgiving related. In December, it was Christmas related. In January, I brought in the New Year with all of you. And now that the holiday season has passed, I am finding it difficult to decide what to write about. The time between February and early March seems to just pass slowly; one day at a time without any holiday excitement.

Now, don’t get me wrong, I recently found out that March 2 is National Banana Cream Pie Day, and I prob-ably could write a cream pie themed article. However, I will spare you!

This month, I’m straying away from my normal writing themes and would like to dedicate this article to my oldest sister: a rockstar mom (about to bring her third baby into the world), a master chef, a woman of God, a member of her church praise team, and a blogger who always seems to know what to write about.

Now, you might be wondering why I will spend the rest of a magazine article talking about someone none of you know. But as a stay at home mom and a very strong Chris-tian woman, I feel as though her story and life are very relatable.

My sister felt called to use her heart and her skills as a writer to start a blog. At first, I think it started out as a an outlet; something to do and a way to share how God was working in her life through her experiences, quiet time, and through her family. If you look at the “About Me” section of her blog, she gives a very good description of who she is and why she writes.

I can truly say that as an accidental article writer, I am blown away by her talents. She brings a liveliness to her posts by sharing stories and events from her daily life, ways that God is working on her heart, and by adding humor into the text. But what is most impressive to me is that her mes-sage always comes out so clearly. Her theme and purpose for each blog post captivates her readers and many times, I see comments telling her that what she has written is exactly what they needed to hear!

If you are a mom, wife, teacher, lover of good stories, in need of a good laugh, or in need of encouragement, I urge you to check out my sister’s blog!

Being 8 years younger, I have been so inspired by her as I have grown up. She has been my encourager, a listener, a prayer warrior, an example, and a friend. I truly believe that through her posts, you will find exactly what you need! If you are someone who is searching for an outlet, I encourage you to start writing a bit each day. Write down your joys and praises, your fears and concerns, the stories of your children saying or doing funny things. Just write!

Please feel free to join my sister and many other women at http://aquestforabundantlife.blogspot.com/ as they search and seek to live their busy lives abundantly in the love and shelter of Jesus. In what seems like season of monotony, my hope for you is that joy and peace start to bud within you as a beautiful spring makes its entrance.

Kendall Vogts lives and teaches in Central Kansas. She is married to WFM publisher Todd Vogts.

By Kendall Vogts

~ A support EssAy ~

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wichita family magazine march 2016

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