Photos by Mary Alice Murphy, except where marked as Courtesy of Diana Ingalls Leyba
Mud-slinging rodeo by potters 072217
Mud-slinging rodeo by potters 072217
From left are potters Patricia Countryman, Louie Albertson, Tolley Rippen, Chris Sowers, and Krissy Ramirez.
Mud-slinging rodeo by potters 072217
Countryman centers the 10 pounds of clay.
Mud-slinging rodeo by potters 072217
Louie Albertson begins to make his clay pot taller.
Mud-slinging rodeo by potters 072217
Tolley Rippen works the clay.
Mud-slinging rodeo by potters 072217
Chris Sowers starts to shape the clay.
Mud-slinging rodeo by potters 072217
Krissy Ramirez shapes the clay.
Mud-slinging rodeo by potters 072217
The five potters work on the first event – the tallest pot.
Mud-slinging rodeo by potters 072217
Rippen's looks the tallest and at the end, he won the first of the five competitions.
Mud-slinging rodeo by potters 072217
The potters work on the largest bowl competition (Photo Courtesy of Diana Ingalls Leyba.
Mud-slinging rodeo by potters 072217
The potters begin the blind-folded competition (Photo Courtesy of Diana Ingalls Leyba.
Mud-slinging rodeo by potters 072217
The five potters celebrate completing the competition (Photo Courtesy of Diana Ingalls Leyba.
After the dedication of the Big Ditch mural of the Youth Mural Program, five artists who work in clay faced off in a Mud-Slingin' Rodeo competition.
Five potters' wheels were set up for five artists taking part in six competitions.
Each potter was vying for bragging rights to the tallest cylinder, using 10 pounds of clay; the largest platter, using 15 pounds of clay; the most pots thrown off in three minutes; the fastest teapot; blind-folded; and craziest.
Claude Smith, retired ceramics professor at Western New Mexico University, and Curtis Dinwiddie, adjunct professor, served as judges of the rodeo.
The results from the Clay Rodeo are as follows: Event #1, the tallest Cylinder-Tolley Rippen, 24 1/2"; Event #2, the widest platter-Tolley Rippen, 22 1/2"; most bowls thrown off the hum in three minutes (min. 3" diameter)-Patty Countryman, 10; Fastest teapot- Louie Albertson; blind-folded pot form-Tolley Rippen; and the Craziest pot -Chris Souers.
The Overall top competitors were #1-Tolley Rippen, #2 Chris Souers; and #3 Louie Albertson.