By Tim Lacy
COVID-19 has put a damper on news coming from the world of sports. This, however has provided me with an opportunity to share a story that might help to shine a light on your day.
My wife and I are second generation beneficiaries of property in North Carolina. My wife’s grandfather accumulated enough property to divide among his 10 children. You might say he was the maven of the community. He owned a sawmill, a country store, gas station and hundreds of acres of timber. My wife’s mom was one of the 10 and my wife has turned her inheritance into a very comfortable getaway. Surrounded by second generation cousins, they have developed a community that rivals that of the Kennedy’s (not quite, but close enough).
We would hop in the car and take the four hour trip to Littleton, N.C. like it was just around the corner. This was the routine for us until Father Time showed up and told me to slow my roll. I have reduced my trips from once a month to once every 6 months. However when we do make the trip we get together with friends and share some very good times. On one such occasion we emerged from a local restaurant to be greeted by three Black cowboys on horseback (I wonder how John Wayne would have felt about that?). I couldn’t help but feel a little pride seeing the “Brothers” show of their horsemanship and had no trouble voicing my feelings.
A few weeks later Ms. “L” appeared in the doorway of my office and dropped a periodical on the desk. The feature was on Black Cowgirls and I have no problem admitting it caught me by surprise. The half page article told the story of Maryland horseman Ray Lockamy who came up with the idea of forming a team of Black Cowgirls to participate in the Bill Pickett Rodeo. Bill Pickett was the most famous Black Cowboy from back in the day. He was half African American and half Native American and he set the Rodeo circuit on fire. He invented the sport of Bulldogging. He would chase down a bull, leap ,from his horse and bring the bull to submission by biting its lip. The sport is still a part of modern day rodeo.
Lockamy put together a team consisting of “KB” Bowles, “Pennie” Brown, “Pinky” Dorsey, “Britt Brat” Logan and “Camo” DeLacy. This team of “Sistahs” finished third overall in their first rodeo.
By dropping this periodical in my face, Ms. “L” struck a blow for women overall and “Sistahs” in general. How you like me now!?!?!?
