This Week

Clarendon’s Tom Stauder says it was “the trip of a lifetime” when he joined about 85 other veterans from the Panhandle and South Plains on an Honor Flight to the nation’s capital.

Stauder was accompanied by his grandson, Bobby Tyler, in a group of about 125 people for the South Plains Honor Flight, which started Friday, May 31. Stauder and ten others had served in the Korean War. About 74 others had served in Vietnam.

A luncheon on the campus of Texas Tech University was the first gathering of the veterans, their companions, and members of the South Plains Honor Flight, and they all received matching red shirts. The group flew to Washington, DC, arriving at the Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport followed by a visit to the World War II Veterans Memorial, where Stauder said it was neat to see the old military uniforms. The group then went to the Pentagon Memorial commemorating the lives lost in the September 11, 2001, attacks.

“It was very impressive in that there were monuments with names for each of the 125 people killed when the airplane crashed into the building,” Stauder said.

Sunday morning’s tour began with Arlington National Cemetery and the Changing of the Guard at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier, which he said was “very impressive.”

The Women’s Military Memorial and the Seabee Memorial were next, followed by the US Marine Corps War Memorial, which depicts the raising of the flag on Iwo Jima.

“That was impressive seeing the GIs placing the flag pole with our flag of the United States,” he said.

The National Museum of the US Army was the first stop of the afternoon.

“We got a great view of how the Army weapons have changed over all those years,” he said. “As the oldest mobile vet, I placed the wreath at the memorial.”

The next stop was the group’s longest – the Air & Space Museum.

“To me, because there are so many unknowns our scientists need to discover, I found this to be the most interesting,” Stauder said.

Dinner Saturday evening featured a keynote address by Phillip Waite, managing director of the Vietnam veterans organization.

“He recognized and presented pins to our Korean veterans as well as the larger group of Vietnam veterans,” Stauder said. “He also gave a great patriotic speech.”

The National Museum of the Marine Corps was the first stop on Monday, June 3, where Stauder said it was interesting to see what he remembered from his 14 months in Korea. That stop was followed by a trip to the US Navy Memorial.

“The best food I had in the Army was on Navy ship,” Stauder said. “The size of the ships has changed as well as the armaments.”

The Korean War Memorial held a special significance for Stauder due to his service in that conflict.

“I was asked to present the wreath,” he said. “In addition, I found the name of a grade school buddy, who was a forward observer. When the Chinese hoard came down, his position was overrun. Lt. Phillip F. Bauer gave his best for our country.”

A short trip to the Lincoln Memorial and the Reflecting Pool was next.

“What a site, so pretty,” Stauder said. “Old Abe was sitting in his chair.”

The final destination was the Vietnam Memorial where Stauder noted the equipment was different from his days in Korea. The Honor Flight group then returned to the airport for their flight back to Lubbock.

“When we arrived, Adian Tyler, Bobby’s wife, was waiting for us for the ride back home,” he said. “We arrived after midnight and hit the hay.”

Writing his recollections down the following evening, Stauder said he still had not recovered from the trip fully, but he was grateful for the opportunity.

“Thank you, South Plains Honor Flight, for allowing me to have the Trip of a Lifetime!”

By Ted Harbin, TwisTed Rodeo

They almost pulled it off.

Two Clarendon College cowboys put on a whale of a show during last week’s College National Finals Rodeo and left their mark on everyone in Casper, Wyoming. They came up just a few points short of claiming the men’s team title, but they’re pretty excited about being the runners-up.

“I think it shows what Clarendon College is all about,” said Weston Timberman, a sophomore from Columbus, Montana, who won his second straight bareback riding crown. “It’s a no-joke school. If you go to Clarendon, you go there to ride bucking animals, and I think we’ve proven that time and time again.

“It shows how dominant we can be coming out of Clarendon. If we had six guys at the college finals, we would be unstoppable.”

The numbers prove his point. He was joined in Casper by Wacey Schalla, a freshman from Arapaho, Oklahoma, who qualified for the finale in both bareback riding and bull riding. Schalla finished as the titlist in both bull riding and the all-around, earning a spot in Saturday’s championship round in both events.

Early on, nobody was in more control. He won each of the first three rounds of bull riding and shared the first-round victory in bareback riding with Timberman and Bradlee Miller of Sam Houston (Texas) State University.

“The college finals went really good, and it will dang sure be a good head start heading into the summer,” Schalla said. “Weston Timberman and I cleaned house as much as we could.”

That they did. In addition to sharing the opening-round victory, Timberman won the second round and finished second in the third. He tied for fourth in the final round to claim the aggregate championship. Schalla finished 11th in the second and third rounds of bareback riding, then joined Timberman in that tie for fourth in the short round to finish sixth in the aggregate. Though he didn’t cover his bull on the final night, he won the aggregate with 247.5 points on three rides, just one point ahead of Zeke Martinez of Wharton County (Texas) Junior College.

“The all-around was a pretty big deal to me,” Schalla said. “That’s my goal next year in the PRCA … to win the all-around. To win the college finals’ all-around is a big help.

“I love the bull riding, because that’s what I’ve been doing since I was young. I just started riding bareback horses at the end of my sophomore year in high school. Now, it’s a big priority to win the all-around, because I enjoy doing them both.”

It was almost as if Timberman and Schalla worked in unison to build something special over the seven-day championship.

“It was awesome,” Timberman said. “We came in there as a two-man team, and between the two of us ended up winning six rounds, two event national titles, the all-around title and a bunch of awards and saddles. It was a pretty cool thing to be part of, and we showed up when it mattered.”

The duo added three more national championships to an already stellar program, which won team titles in 2021 and 2023. Combined, the Clarendon men have accumulated 10 titles since Bret Franks became coach in 2015. Saddle bronc rider Wyatt Casper was the first in 2016, followed by Riggin Smith in 2019. Cole Franks won both the bareback riding and all-around crowns in 2021.

Each titlist already has a billboard in Clarendon that sings the praises of their accomplishments. Timberman’s will probably have to be redone, but Schalla will have his likeness and pair of championships listed for all to see when they make it to the community in the Texas Panhandle.

“Where I’m from is only two hours from Clarendon,” he said. “When I was 15 years old, I was getting on saddle bronc horses, so I’d go over there every week and practice with Bret. I knew I wanted to go there because of the practice facility and the opportunity that gives guys.

“Bret is a great coach, and he’s going to help you out as much as he can.”

Bret Franks rode broncs for a living and qualified for the National Finals Rodeo three times before he got into coaching. His first stop was at his alma mater at Oklahoma Panhandle State University, where he led the men to two national titles in 1997-98. His approach has worked for more than 25 years.

“Bret has been there and done that, so if I have any questions with entering or anything else, I can trust him enough to help me out,” Schalla said.

With Schalla and Timberman controlling the message, Clarendon College came close to pulling off the improbable win. The Bulldogs finished with 820 points, just 75 points shy of the champion, Tarleton State University of Stephenville, Texas.

“We went into the short round leading it by a little bit,” Timberman said. “We had just me and Wacey in the short round, and Tarleton had five guys in the short round. We didn’t quite get it pulled off like we’d hoped, but I think it was still cool to prove a point with two guys.”

Yes, it was.