XIT starts Saturday with junior rodeo

BY BILL KELLY
Dalhart Texan

The 90th Annual XIT Rodeo & Reunion starts this Saturday, August 1 with the junior rodeo. Rodeo stars under the age of 18 will have a chance to show off their skills during the annual event. 

The junior rodeo includes two different age groups. The young- est kids compete in a stick-pony rodeo on the grass just north of the actual arena. The events include pole bending, barrel racing, and removing a ribbon from a goat’s tail. This age group will also start off the rodeo with mutton bustin’ in the arena, riding a sheep as long as possible.

XIT Melodrama coming to La Rita next week

A longtime tradition of XIT weekend is that a melodrama is per- formed at the La Rita Theatre. This year that melodrama is “The Girl in the Tutu, or the Villain Kept Her on Her Toes.” It will be performed at 7 p.m. on Thursday August 6 and Friday August 7, with a matinee on Saturday August 8 at 2 p.m. to give those at- tending time to make it to the World’s Larg- est Free BBQ.

Cotton prices rally as Texas growing conditions turn mixed

By Karn Dhingra
Texas AgriLife

After two years of low prices, cotton prices rallied — though Texas growers’ fortunes still depend heavily on where they farm, said a Texas A&M AgriLife Exten- sion Service expert. 

John Robinson, Ph.D., an AgriLife Extension economist- cotton and professor in the Texas A&M De- partment of Agricul- tural Economics, said conditions form “a definitely mixed bag” depending on location. 

He said conditions for cotton across the state match a Drought Monitor map that shows distinct lines between dry, mod- erate-drought and drought-free areas.