It begins this weekend with the Half Moon Bay FFA Ag Boosters fundraiser on Saturday, May 10, for which participants will head out to Bay Meadows race track.
The day will begin at 11 a.m. when attendees can go into the clubhouse. From 12:30 to 2:30 p.m. a lavish lunch buffet will be offered, including prime rib, chicken, fish, vegetables, coffee and tea. While munching lunch, attendees can enjoy the races, starting with the first race about 12:45 p.m.
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This is not the first FFA fundraiser to take place at the race rack but, with Bay Meadows’ closure imminent, it will be one of the last.
The closure of the historic track is “not good,” said a mournful Robin Camozzi, event organizer, who noted that for the past four years there has been a benefit dance at the race track. “They’ve been great with us.”
The proceeds will go to FFA scholarships, school textbooks and sending youth to FFA conventions. “All the money goes back to the kids.”
Other local youth involved in farming and the future of farming will take an unusual step three weeks later when the local branches of the FFA and 4-H team up for an annual “Redneck Rodeo” from 2 to 8 p.m. Saturday, May 31.
Events are open to the general public and the emphasis is on spotlighting the two groups, with the hope of recruiting more young people to join. It’s getting harder to find youth interested in joining these two organizations, said Camozzi, but she hopes the day will generate interest in the groups.
The event will take place from 2 to 8 p.m. on Saturday, at Long Branch Saloon and Farms at 321 Verde Road in Half Moon Bay.
It will include a range of games with a rodeo feel, like hubcap tossing or “bucking hay.”
And it will include some informational events of value to aspiring farmers. Representatives from feed companies Nutrena and Farmers’ Best will present nutritional seminars around their feed programs, stock raising and tending and how to prepare for showing at the county fair.
Former 4-H member Bobby Avila will give a presentation on “steer fitting,” or how to get a steer ready for showing at the county fair. The talk will include information on how to groom them and get them ready for judging.
And purely for fun, there will be a contest for a prize for the “best-dressed redneck” and a “sausage tie,” or a contest in which different groups vie to tie a bow on a pig.
“It’s a fun day for the family,” said Camozzi.
Tickets to the Redneck Rodeo are $20 for an individual or $70 for a family of four. Tickets are available at Half Moon Bay Feed and Fuel or at the door.
For information, call 726-3762.
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