GETTING CLOSER: Our 2022 annual bull and bred heifer sale will be held this upcoming Saturday, March 12 @ 11 am. It looks like we could have some challenging weather a couple of days prior, but we are definitely planning to have the sale at the time advertised.
ONLINE BIDDERS/BUYERS: Sometime Saturday afternoon, after the sale has wrapped up, all winning bidders should receive an email with detailed instructions including an invoice, payment options, and what information we need from you. We ask for payment as soon as possible and will need specific information that same day for vet papers if you will need them.
7 YEARS AGO…we adopted and were adopted by a family of some of the best people we have ever met…our Hastings Red Tide basketball family! This past Thursday through Saturday was our annual end-of-year homeschool basketball tournament in Hutchinson, KS. Five different Red Tide teams competed. Though no championships were won there were several victories. More importantly, we enjoyed fellowship with numerous parents and players. God’s provision and blessing through this program has been immense. Kristin and I were once of the sentiment that children’s activities would divide the family. In the case of Red Tide, we are closer as a family (Robert and Ashley came down from UNL for the games and regularly attended throughout the season), and our family has multiplied with strong friendships with others. The tournament felt like a 3-day family reunion.
ANIMAL HAULING: Lyle Friesen of Meade, KS could have room for a couple of animals. Phil Otten lives in Pilger, Nebraska and is willing to haul east and north from us. We may have more on sale day, and I’ve probably forgotten some. We will have a longer and more solid list after the sale once we know who bought what online and when and where they are going to take cattle.
FOR WHAT IT’S WORTH: Mom and Dad came to the basketball tournament and are now at headquarters helping prepare for the sale. I took Dad through the bulls and bred heifers this morning, and he thinks they are the best looking group ever (though he didn’t know I was going to use his comment, in full disclosure he’s probably just hoping we can make the land payment to him later this year!).
VIEWING: We currently have all the bulls and bred heifers here at home. They are grazing stockpiled cover crops on about 50 acres north of our windbreak. You are welcome to drive through them now through Thursday. On Friday we will put out some hay and keep them in the big pen north of our house. Early Saturday morning, Ashley, David and Daymian will plan to sort them into pens and do any retagging that is necessary. We have noticed a couple of lame animals. If they are still this way on Saturday, they will either sell as guaranteed animals just like everything else or we will hold them out of the sale.
SOMETHING SMELLS…WONDERFUL!!! Grandma Doreen is here, and when I walked in the door this afternoon, it was clear she was up to normal excellence. She and her two elves (James and Lydia) had a kitchen counter, island and table filled with cinnamon rolls and sugar cookies. In addition, she will make her extra special potato salad, and all this will go along with as many hamburgers and beans as you can eat on Saturday. Oh, I think there are Davey Crockett bars too. First, we sell…then we feast!
PARKING: At last count I believe we have 5 driveways accessing different locations on our place. If you want to leave a trailer overnight on Friday or Saturday, it would be best to find a spot east of the bins/out by the hay bales. You might be able to back into some spaces between the bales or someplace else if you think it’s a good spot. On sale day, you should be able to park in front of the building or off to the side of one of the driveways. All our driveways loop around so you shouldn’t have to back out. My friend Ted Thiele likes to park so he doesn’t have to back up to go forward…so do I!
AUCTION TIES: No, I don’t expect you to wear a tux! At our Cowboy Auction, bidders hold up a card with their bidder number until they no longer are interested in the animal at the current price. In the event of a “tie,” when both bidders put down their card at the same time, the tie goes to the bidder with the lower number. Online bidding is a bit of a challenge to our auction format. When someone can click to bid at home, instead of raising a card in the air, it can essentially cause a tie with the person holding a card at the sale. In that case, the onsite bidder wins the lot unless the online bidder is willing to increase to the next bid amount and the onsite bidder is not. Sometimes the online bidding makes the sale a little choppy, which is awkward, but we have learned that if we are willing to wait a few seconds, it’s not as uncomfortable as it first seemed.
Lanny Greenhalgh | Steward
[email protected] | (402) 984-6375
www.icecattle.com
