A friend and I went to shoot our round at the Oilman’s Shoot at Windwalker Farms on Thursday afternoon.
It was scheduled to be around 103 degrees when we were to shoot. I posted the following prayer on Facebook. (I know, don't trash me!) Dear Lord...will you please send a little rain or some cooling winds before we have to shoot this evening in 102 degree weather at 5 p.m.? Ever yours, Janie.”
We’re paired up with four guys to shoot 74 clays, and I know them all. My friend had not met any of them, but one. They are the sweetest guys, and we had a great time. HOT? It was so hot.
And then, a wind came. I promise you, a West Texas wind, complete with blow sand, can be welcomed when it’s that hot. Any breeze will do. I kept looking to the east, and it looked like, though it had been a while, rain clouds were forming.
I kept praying, silently, Lord, bring those clouds west! I won’t gripe even if my gun rusts!
The clouds went a little southwest of us, but it did sprinkle. Just enough to make my just washed yesterday beautiful black Sequoia look like a camouflaged truck. I smiled. Heck, it was water, I was not gonna gripe! Somewhere close, someone was getting some rain, and I was ecstatic!
The biggest day of the Oilman’s Shoot is Friday. I like to get my round out of the way on Thursday, because I usually shoot with drilling people, and it’s easier for them to escape their offices in the afternoon as opposed to the morning. You know, 5:30 a.m. drilling reports? Yeah. Everything, and I mean EVERYTHING, is relative in the oilpatch to those reports.
I pick up my shooting partner, and a couple of girlfriends, go pick up cool frosty beverages for them and some other people, and head out to the shoot. I’m grinning - driving right into boiling gray clouds and lightning.
As we get closer to Windwalker, we drive right into driving rain. We’re about 20 miles northeast of Midland, but oh, my Lord, even with the pre-rain sand storm, that air is smelling good and moist. We’re all looking at each other, grinning, and driving on muddy roads.
We get to the shoot, open the cooler, and the girls start drinking. (I’m the DD today.)We are enjoying the lightning and rain, sitting in the air conditioned vehicle, and they’re teasing me: “Well, now your truck will look better!”
It stops raining, but Windwalker Farms got a good dose and everybody was so happy!
After the shoot is over, everybody heads out, a little at a time. I bet there are 1000 vehicles there, easy. We finally head out, and decide to go the straight south route to Interstate 20 instead of the road most traveled.
And...yeah, so, maybe I forgot the road south that I take is a farm road. And it had rained, people. I can prove it.
It looks like someone poured chocolate milk all over my sweet little truckie! Check out the mud in these wheel wells. It’s the first time this 2011 Sequoia* has been put into 4WD, but I needed it. And she performed like a champ! Love that on-da-fly-four-wheel-drive!!
We got home about dusk, and then I ran down the road to pick up some takeout...and I actually thought my lights were out. Nope, not at all...just mudded up!
I had to hand-wash it with the power-sprayer 3 times before they’d let me take it through the regular car wash.
I smiled the entire time, I promise!
We arrived at the house, to find rain had skipped us again. But it was in the area, I know, I saw it. It DOES exist. And I'm SO thankful.
God is GOOD.
And oh, yeah, WinnerWinnerChickenDinner! I got to hang out with a BUNCH of cool, fun people, and I won some cashola in the drawing!
Double Awesome Day.
Have a great week, and Happy Trails until we meet again!!
*I had a 2008 Toyota Sequoia named LaToya - but ThatManILove repossessed it to take it to the field - so I got another one, who, by the way, is as yet unnamed.
