Podcasts about Western Kansas

How does a pharmaceutical sales job in Western Kansas lead to industry leadership in optical marketing? In this episode of Invest in Sqft, John Marvin shares his fascinating career journey—from breaking into ophthalmology to founding his own marketing management and consumer research firm. Discover timeless marketing fundamentals, customer engagement strategies, and key lessons for small business growth. Whether you're in the optical industry, an entrepreneur, or looking for actionable marketing insights, this episode is packed with real-world advice and success strategies you won't want to miss!

Hour 3 - As a winter storm rolls across the state, folks in towns like Colby are preparing for the possibility that I-70 would close. Stranding many travelers in some very small towns.

On this episode of the Hays Post Podcasts, news reporter Becky Kiser talks about the upcoming Western Kansas congressional delegation's trip to Washington, D.C. in April with Sarah Wasinger, of The Chamber in Hays, and Ernestor De La Rosa, ITC Great Plains regional manager of local government and community affairs, the presenting sponsor for the event. Listen Here

Growing up in Western Kansas, John Marvin initially pursued a career in marketing and advertising and shares his journey from being fired to adopting a new mindset, then transitioning to pharmaceutical sales at the suggestion of his father, a family physician. This path eventually led him to Texas State Optical, where he became President in 2001. Under his leadership, the organization transitioned from a traditional franchise to a member-owned cooperative, focusing on younger optometrists and leveraging technology such as AI to enhance patient care. John's innovative approach and dedication to mindset have helped Texas State Optical navigate industry challenges, including the impact of private equity and the shortage of optometrists, positioning the company for continued growth and success. KEY TAKEAWAYS: Mindset is Key: John Marvin emphasizes the transformative power of mindset in achieving success. He believes that having a positive outlook and a growth mindset can significantly influence one's career trajectory and personal development. Adapt or Die: The evolution of Texas State Optical is a classic example of adapting to market changes. By transitioning from a franchise to a brand license company and focusing on younger optometrists, TSO has managed to stay relevant in a competitive industry. AI in Healthcare: Artificial intelligence is revolutionizing healthcare, including optometry. AI enhances diagnostic capabilities and customer service, offering opportunities for improved patient care and operational efficiency. Customer Experience Matters: In healthcare, the patient experience extends beyond clinical care. John Marvin highlights the importance of service quality, suggesting that practitioners should focus on the overall experience to build credibility and attract patients. Sales Credibility: Effective sales strategies require understanding customer needs before offering solutions. John Marvin advises salespeople to engage in active listening and inquiry to build credibility and better align their offerings with client needs. "Mindset rules everything. Like everything is secondary to mindset and the inner game you play to achieve success. Business doesn't stay static. So you gotta be able to adapt or die." - John Marvin Connect with John Marvin www.tso.com https://www.linkedin.com/in/jdmarvin/ Connect with Manage Smarter Hosts   ·         Website: ManageSmarter.com  ·         LinkedIn: Audrey Strong                                                                    ·         LinkedIn: C. Lee Smith     Connect with SalesFuel ·         Website: http://salesfuel.com/  ·         Twitter: @SalesFuel  ·         Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/salesfuel/  #mindset #business #leadership #AI #optical #opticians #career #careertips #careerclimb Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In today's podcast Paul has a conversation with Amy France. Amy and her family farm in Western Kansas but she is also the new chairwomen of the National Sorghum Producers and we discuss her role with that organization. We also review Section 45Z and how sorghum can be part of that process.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

In this episode of the AgCulture Podcast, Jace Young, CEO and Founder of Legacy Farmer, shares his story of growing up as a Kansas farm kid and eventually becoming an ag banking entrepreneur. He talks about how his family's financial struggles in 2005 sparked his passion for helping farmers create stable, well-structured operations. Discover how Legacy Farmer supports farmers in managing and simplifying their finances to achieve lasting success and sustainability. Don't miss out on valuable financial advice for agripreneurs! Check out our guest podcast, Legacy Farmer on Apple Podcasts and all the major platforms! This episode was sponsored by: Bankbarn Meet the guest: Jace Young, Founder and CEO of Legacy Farmer, grew up in Western Kansas, where his family lost their farm in 2005. This event shaped his desire to help farmers build structured and profitable operations. Before founding Legacy Farmer, Jace spent six years as an Ag Loan Officer, gaining valuable insight into the financial challenges faced by farmers. He now focuses on helping farmers achieve financial clarity and security. Connect with our guest on Social Media: LinkedIn (00:00) Introduction (02:32) Building Legacy Farmer (11:14) Organizing farm finances (16:46) Accountability peer groups (22:02) Working with bankers (31:17) Scaling farm operations (39:19) Final Questions Discover the world of agriculture with the "Ag Culture Podcast". This podcast will be a gateway for those passionate about agriculture to explore its global perspectives and innovative practices. Join Paul as he shares his experiences in the agricultural industry, his travels and encounters with important figures around the world. Available on YouTube, Spotify and Apple Podcasts. Subscribe at the ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠AgCulture WebSite⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ and keep an eye out for future episodes, bringing insights and stories from the vibrant world of agriculture.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

In this episode of Building Texas Business, I discuss John Marvin's transformative leadership journey as CEO and President of Texas State Optical (TSO). Founded in 1936 by the Rogers brothers, TSO evolved into a franchise operation spearheaded by John starting in the 1990s. Hear John's compelling account of reviving the brand, establishing the franchise association, and guiding the innovative physician-owned business model that has empowered young optometrists for decades. With the evolving eyewear landscape, our conversation analyzes consumer behavior shifts and their implications for strategic competition amid growing online retailers. We also explore the importance of supporting TSO's physician member network through mentorship and partnerships, especially given industry consolidation challenges. SHOW HIGHLIGHTS John D Marvin shares the history of Texas State Optical (TSO), founded by the Rogers brothers in 1936, and its growth into a franchise operation. We discuss how John Marvin revitalized TSO in the 1990s and his journey to becoming the president of the company in 2001. The episode explores the challenges and strategies involved in competing with online retailers in the eyewear industry, emphasizing the importance of convenience and well-stocked dispensaries. John describes the shift in optometry ownership trends, with fewer young optometrists interested in private practice, paralleling broader healthcare industry trends. We examine the strategic importance of building a physician member network to support optometrists and the criteria for network inclusion. The episode delves into leadership principles inspired by John C. Maxwell, highlighting the role of influence, trust, and accountability in effective leadership. John reflects on the transformative impact of setbacks, such as being fired, and how these experiences shape one's leadership journey. We explore the importance of forming strategic vendor partnerships and the role of mutual accountability in maintaining long-lasting business relationships. John emphasizes the need to adapt to industry shifts, including the rise of artificial intelligence, while fostering an innovative mindset among optometrists. The episode concludes with a discussion on the significance of understanding and meeting customer needs through effective consumer research, as a universal business strategy. LINKSShow Notes Previous Episodes About BoyarMiller About Texas State Optical GUESTS John D MarvinAbout John TRANSCRIPT (AI transcript provided as supporting material and may contain errors) Chris: In this episode you will meet John Marvin, ceo and President of Texas State Optical. John shares his views on how the fundamentals of leadership boil down to influencing and how having mutual accountability in your business relationships create win situations. John, I want to thank you for taking the time to join me today. It's really been a pleasure to get to know you before we got started here. John: Well, Chris, I appreciate the opportunity to sit down. I always love talking about business. Chris: Well, that's good, that's what we're going to do. So you're the CEO and president of Texas State Optical, or most people know it as TSO. That's right. Tell us a little more detail about what is the company, what does it do and what is it really known for in the market. John: Okay Well, texas State Optical was founded in 1936 by four brothers the Rogers brothers, in Beaumont, texas, and anybody who's been to Beaumont or familiar with Beaumont knows of the impact those four brothers had on that community and then in turn throughout Texas. Two of the brothers were optometrists and they opened pretty traditional optometry practice. And if you'll think about what else was going on in 1936 in Beaumont, it was the oil boom that was just blowing up, and so the one that originally came to Texas from Chicago all four of them were from Chicago called back home and said boys, you need to move down here. We got a big opportunity and they did, and consequently, over the next several years they built a large retail optical chain they called Texas State Optical, and one time in the early 60s it had reached over 300 locations. And one time in the early 60s it had reached over 300 locations and those were in New Mexico, oklahoma, arkansas, louisiana and Texas, and so that went on until, due to some legal issues with the state optometric group, who decided that they didn't want someone in the state running 300 locations, they passed some legislation that limited optometrists to only three locations and so they could subsequently, after a long legal battle had to sell off most of their property, but they kept the core of the business of the optical lab. They kept that and kind of a condition of buying. The practice was that you obligated yourself to continue to purchase items from them. But then in the late 60s the Rogers, having gone through this process of dissolving their ownership in it, decided to turn their attention towards real estate development and at one point they owned 25% of Caesars Palace in Vegas. They just got involved in other things and then consequently in the early 70s they sold the company to a large pharmaceutical company, gd Searle, who then subsequently sold the company in the early 80s to Pearl Vision. Most people are familiar with Pearl Vision, most people are familiar with ProVision and ran that until the late 80s when they sold it to a group of kind of investors who wanted to own it. They didn't really know how to run it than investors. So in I got involved in 1993 doing consumer research for the corporate office. My background at the time I had a company marketing management group and based here in Houston and it was a small marketing management and consumer research group and was doing work in other areas. But picked them up as a client and began to do a lot of consumer study for them and learned about the business. At that time it was somewhat distressed because of the leadership that had taken over from the Pearl Vision taken over from Pearl, and so there was a lot of unrest among the franchisees because at that time TSO was a franchise operation and so I helped them form a franchise association and then kind of on a part-time arrangement took on an executive director position within that while maintaining my consumer study and research stuff. And so that happened until the late nineties, when everyone was planning for the great millennium you know, the 2000 and Y2, right, right. And so we gathered everybody in my conference room over here and how, booty building, and down here in the galleria and they started you know, flip chart sheets, what do we want to accomplish? And blah, blah, blah, and and that the result of that was really, guys, you're not going to get any of this done unless you own it. And so we began to have some discussions about them buying the company, the, the franchisor, and that took about a year to negotiate, and during that process I was asked to come on as the new president and since and then we closed in June of 2001, and since that time I've been the acting and operational by president and CEO of the company, and one of the reasons that it appealed to me was it was the ultimate fixer-upper, because the company had really was kind of loosely held together but had an iconic brand, and so we started opening new locations with Young Optometrist and we're a brand license company. So we knew that the only way we could pick up a new customer, if you would be, if a young OD wanted to open their own practice and then we could help them do that. People that were established at the time and successful weren't interested in converting to a retail trade name, so we did. We opened up about 80 new locations and helped a lot of young ODs live a dream and had put together a whole turnkey system commercial realty contractors the whole nine yards. Chris: That's a fascinating history, you know, to kind of just see it grow so big in the beginning, get broken down and then almost come back together. Yeah with, I guess in 2001 you said, with these individual practice owners or franchisees becoming owners. John: That's, you know, kind of unique, especially for doctors yeah, it was a different approach to it, one of the reasons we can set it as a now. We never incorporated it as a cooperative, we incorporated it as for-profit. We simply chose to run it as a cooperative, which, by its nature of co-op, isn't intended to make money, right? So we could keep the services and the value of what we offer members very high because we priced it at a break-even point, and so it was very appealing to a lot of young ODs who needed that help without any experience knowing what to do. And, of course, we then had a retail trade name that had market appeal. So a lot of them benefited greatly by, as opposed, to, opening up under their own name and unknown in a community. Chris: Yeah, it gives it instant credibility with the brand name right. That's right. What are some of the things I guess that you know since that time in 2001, that you do and your team around you, to kind of help preserve that brand value, to make it marketable and enticing to these doctors. John: Well, part of it is the importance. An optometry practice as a small business has a very defined marketplace of about three radium miles Okay, so one. That's part of that is because there are so many options and the profession is a licensed profession and so there's a little bit of perception by consumers that it's a commodity. In other words, anybody who's got a license will be able to give you a good exam. Consumers at one time back in the 60s and 70s, thought mostly of wherever they got their exams. That's where they purchased their eyewear. Chris: Out of convenience, right Out of convenience. John: That's right. And in the 80s you had a much more proliferation of retail optical chains like LensCrafters and EyeMasters at the time and Pearl Vision, which were creating an awareness among consumers that you know what, I can get my exam in one location and I can buy my eyewear in another location, and so that added to that sense of commodity. And so what we've done is focus on a three mile marketplace. So instead of running one advertising campaign in Houston, we run 50 around each of our locations, and those are largely driven through community involvement, pay-per-click, you know, today pay-per-click In the beginning though, a lot of it was just getting to know your school nurse, getting to know the coaches in the league ball game, and so from a marketing strategy it was always hyper-local standpoint. And so if you go into some neighborhoods, everyone knows the TSO. If you go into an neighborhood where we have no location, maybe not so much, and that was done probably more just from a practical standpoint of cost than it was anything else, because you know Houston and Dallas. Where we're at in San Antonio, they're very expensive media markets and so if you've only got, you know, 20 locations in the DFW market to go in and try to buy television, advertising or something more traditional is prohibited, and so it makes a lot more sense because that's where people live and work. People ask me sometimes how do you go about picking your locations, your real estate stuff? And I said we tend to let Kroger and HEB do that for us. So, wherever they're at, we want to be close because that's a neighborhood. Chris: That's right. You figured they thought there were enough households to support a grocery store. So I like that, you know, uh, you know. There's a lesson there, though, for a business owner, an entrepreneur, in that you don't necessarily have to do all your own organic research if you don't know, aware what's going on, you can, you know, let someone else do some of that and just make sure that their end users look like yours, and that's right. John: They do a tremendous job, both of those companies, at understanding the market before they ever buy land or pour concrete. I'd hate to insult them by not taking advantage of all that good work they do. Chris: They're genius right, they're genius, that's right. You just mentioned, you said 30 different or 50 different marketing campaigns in Houston alone. I mean, how do you go about figuring out you know the right message for the right place? That must take a lot of work. John: Well, not so much I mean because the message in Sugar Land is the same as the message in the Woodlands. I mean people. While we, as as in our profession, try to complicate this, it's pretty simple from a consumer standpoint. They're looking for a place where they can get their eyes checked and buy a pair of glasses. But probably two-thirds of all of our revenue today come from a third-party payer. So that changes kind of the basic consumer behavior dynamic. But by putting out a message that really is focused on that group of people in terms of maximizing the value of those coverage benefits, that becomes real consistent and then it's a matter of just being louder than anybody else. Chris: Sure, while we're on the subject of that consumer and consumer behavior, what are some of the things that you have done over the last 10, 15 years to either combat the online competition, as you mentioned, because people get their eyes examined and they either go online or do something. How are you managing that and what are some of the strategies you found to be successful? John: Well, first of all, consumers are driven, and I think this may be generally true, but certainly our consumers are driven with the priority on convenience, and one of the reasons the online marketing purchase of eyewear is so appealing is its convenience, and oftentimes it's not a price issue as much as it is a convenience issue and assortment and selection. So one of the things that we focus on is to make sure that our retail dispensary that's what we call the retail store aspect of a practice is well inventoried with product and assortment price points, and then the ultimate differentiation is customer service and knowledgeable people, and so if you have selection pricing and knowledgeable people, it's a home run and you don't have to worry about it, because if you can make it convenient for them, then they're not tempted to go online. And because there's a lot of I don't know if you've ever bought a pair of shoes online, but all you need to do is have one bad experience with that and have to turn around, send them back and so forth and so on that people would really prefer to get it locally, where I got my, where they received their exam, and it's kind of hours to lose. So we try to make sure we don't give them a reason to leave. Chris: Yeah Well, it's an interesting analogy with the shoes, because I can relate to that and see that people like to try on shoes but also glasses right. John: What are these going to look? Chris: like, and if you're at a store with a good selection, it's all right there as opposed to ordering one or two online and knowing you're going to be returning something. Advert Hello friends, this is Chris Hanslick, your Building Texas business host. Did you know that Boyer Miller, the producer of this podcast, is a business law firm that works with entrepreneurs, corporations and business leaders? Our team of attorneys serve as strategic partners to businesses by providing legal guidance to organizations of all sizes. Get to know the firm at BoyerMillercom, and thanks for listening to the show. That's right, yes, well, that's it. So let's shift now kind of to this physician member network. What do you look for, if anything, as far as qualifying people to come into the brand, and then how do you help, kind of manage and support once they're in the network, if you will, to make sure that you're doing all you can to help them be successful? John: It's an interesting change we're seeing right now, especially in the last five to 10 years, and that is, the number of young optometrists who have an interest in owning their own practice is going away. Chris: It's really an interesting thing. John: One. It's very similar to what's going on in healthcare in general. You know, I was just talking to some people last week and I said you know when was the last time I asked them? I said do you have children? Yes, do you have a pediatrician? Yes, is that pediatrician private practice? Chris: No. John: It's owned by some big organization like Texas Children's, and what you're seeing in healthcare delivery at the provider level is a consolidation of these organizations and the disappearing of private practice, and we're seeing that now in optometry. And another big dynamic is 85% of all optometry graduates today are female, and in the 80s that number was just the opposite. It was very unusual in the 80s and early 90s to see women in optometry school. I mean they certainly didn't represent the majority. And so with that comes different priorities of practice. You know you don't have the hard-charging young guy who wants to go into small-town Texas and really build up a big practice or even a metro area. You have people that are much more interested in part-time, that I want to be able to step aside, raise my family, then maybe come back later, and so there's a whole different culture among the providers now coming in. So our organization as a business model relies on young optometrists wanting to own their own practice, and if that category is declining we've got to come up with some other plan here to maintain Sure. So one the opportunities we have are less. The vetting process is largely a discussion with very successful people. Our board of directors consists of nine doctors and three outside directors, but the nine doctors are all very successful. And so a young person does approach me and we talk, I want them to speak to one of our successful guys, and then their job is to kind of assess and come back to me and say, John, I don't know if she's ready, I don't know if he can do this, or I think this is a home run, let's go. And with their input and my discussion I've been doing it now long enough that I kind of get a feel for it Then we'll say let's go. And really it's a matter of they own everything. It's a matter of us guiding them through the process and then supporting them with just the knowledge they don't have about building a practice afterwards, and then lots of follow-up and hand-holding. Chris: And it's done. I think you said just as, basically a license agreement where they're licensing the name and brand and they get some support as a result of that as well. John: I mean contractually, I'm not obligated to support anything. Contractually I'm not obligated to support anything. All I'm obligated to do is to keep the value of the brand consistent with what they're paying for it. But I realized that if they're not successful, my brand value suffers. So we do all that we can to support them and help them be successful. Chris: So let's talk a little bit about your internal team. I mean, you've got a team I think you said 12, that's kind of help support you, that support these members. What have you found to be successful as you've gone through maybe trials and tribulations of hiring the right people, making sure you've got the right people in the right seat to kind of support the business and the brand? John: You know, that's a great question, because I, up until about 2015, I took a whole different approach to personnel than I did 2015 and on, and it was like I learned something, and that is I put together a group of really knowledgeable people in terms of their expertise in certain areas, but the quality that I had not paid attention to prior to that was they also had to be connectors. They had to be the kind of people that could say hey, chris, I know somebody you ought to talk to. And so because when a non-doctor walks into a doctor's office, even with the responsibility of helping, they carry a different level of credibility with that doctor than if a doctor told them something. If we go in and say, hey, listen, you need to be open Saturdays, because there's a lot of business on Saturdays, I don't want to do it. But if a doctor tells them, oh man, you got to be open Saturday, they'll listen to it. But if a doctor tells them, oh man, you've got to be open Saturday, they'll listen to it. And so our guys who are in the field, they do tactical training and support for staff, but when a doctor is facing an issue that they know the answer to, they in turn, seek out other leadership in the doctor community to say would you mind giving so-and-so a call Because I think you could help them get through whatever issue they're dealing with. And so that quality and frankly it's, you know it requires someone who doesn't have much of an ego. Sure, because you know I say this all the time like my old friend Ronald Reagan used to say, there's no limit to what you can accomplish if you don't care who gets the credit. Chris: Yeah. John: And so we take that approach, and ours isn't about trying to get a bunch of credit. Ours is about trying to lift up this organization and get these guys successful, and if we're simply a facilitator in information to how to do that, we don't have to be the initial provider of that information. Even if we know it, it comes much better from a colleague, and so that's one of the things that we put a lot of emphasis on is helping the network, help each other. Chris: So you know you were very quick to say 2015. Have you seen a dramatic improvement in the performance of the overall business since making that change and kind of focusing on the connector quality as being an additional important quality in the people you bring on? John: Very much so, because what Texas State Optical was in the beginning was a doctor-owned organization and doctors working with other doctors to help them grow a network and large business. We're trying to replicate that from the standpoint of, especially as the business, the structure we use I mentioned earlier as a cooperative. It requires doctor leadership to be active and engaged in running their own company, their owners of the company, and so, while I have certainly an important role in that, the more doctors that engage in the leadership of the organization, the better it is overall. And since we took that intentional effort in 2015, a couple of things too. We had a kind of an evolution of membership. I mean, we had a lot of our older doctors retire and sell practices, and then we had a whole influx of young doctors, and so we ended up in 2015 with an organization that was significantly different demographically, both age and gender. That was significantly different demographically, both age and gender. But we thought they need mentorship among the leadership in the organization, and so we worked at creating that for them, and it impacts not just clinical I mean, there's also that aspect of it they're learning clinically from friends but operationally, and so it made a big difference Very good. Chris: I know that you have supply agreements with certain labs and other things. Let's talk about some of the things that you found to be successful in maintaining, I guess, forming those kind of key strategic relationships for the business, and maybe some of the things you do to make sure that you foster and keep them strong of the things you do to make sure that you foster and keep them strong. John: Well, in the vendor-doctor community there is a kind of an assumption made by both sides, and one is the doctor assumes that the vendor's got more money than they know how to spend or what they've got all this money to spend, and the vendor assumes the doctor's not going to follow through on all the promises they make. So that's kind of where we start at the table, and so I think it's important and what we've worked at bringing to our relationships is mutual accountability, and we have found our vendor partners to be extremely invested in our success, but at the same time they've got a business to run as well, and so our success with them and that dynamic of that exchange or relationship cannot be at the vendor's expense. It's gotta be the classic cliche win type of thing, but you only get win if you have mutual accountability. And so in every agreement we have, here's what the vendor commits to and here's what the doctor community commits to. And then we have business reviews where we sit down and say here's where we're dropping the ball or here's where you're dropping the ball, and we hold that accountability does a long goes a long way to not only making the relationship productive but also building trust and longevity into those partnerships, because if you're making money with a partner, you don't want it to stop, right, you know? And that goes both ways If you're a doctor making money with a partner, you don't want it to stop, and if money with a partner, you don't want it to stop, and if you're a partner, you don't want to stop. So I found that type of mutual accountability and the willingness to be held accountable is critical to those relationships Very good. Chris: So you know. Talk a little bit about leadership. You've been running this organization for a long time now. How would you describe your leadership style and how do you think that's evolved over time? John: well, I would. I don't know if I've ever been asked to describe it, but I would say it's Maxwellian. Okay, and that means John C Maxwell, who is an author, has written a number of books on leadership and, in my opinion, probably is the most the best leadership author. I'm biased, of course, but I think he is. Forbes Magazine said that a few years ago, but basically his definition of leadership is influence. Nothing more, nothing less. It's just influence. And an example of that is if you walk into a room of people, you're naturally going to notice someone who's exercising influence on others, and it isn't an authoritarian way, it's in a trust and credibility way. And so if you're influencing, you're leading. If you're not, it doesn no matter what title you have. So an example is my when I explained how we use doctors to help influence other doctors. So that's a level of influence that doesn't come because I require somebody to do something. It it occurs because you're able to influence others to to make a difference. So I would. I'm a big believer in that. I'll plug his book. There are 21 Irrefutable Laws of Leadership. It's a classic, and so that's like a Bible. It's my business Bible in terms of leadership style. Chris: I was going to use that word because others and it's fair to plug books, because sometimes I ask people what's a book you would recommend. We hear a lot of good to great from people Sure, jim Collins. But what I love what you said if you're influencing, you're leading, because I say a lot of times a true leader leads without a title. John: Right, you're actually doing things without the title to demonstrate leadership, which is what you're talking about Exactly, and if you do have the title and can influence, it's a home run. It's a home run, yeah. Chris: So you've learned that through lots of trials and tribulations. I think we all learn through mistakes or setbacks Anything you could share with the listeners about a decision made that didn't go the way you thought but you learned from it and that learning kind of catapulted you made you better because of it. Setback, failure whatever word you want to describe Anything you could you care to share in that realm. John: Sure the. So I came to Houston. I was born and raised in Western Kansas and I was in Wichita born and raised in western Kansas, and I was in Wichita, kansas, in 1989, excuse me, in the late 80s, 84, 89 era and I was working for a large ophthalmology practice up there as a marketing administrator and in that role I attended a lot of national meetings in ophthalmology and during that meeting I met an owner of a large Houston ophthalmology and during that meeting I met an owner of a large Houston ophthalmology group who ended up offering me a job and I came to Texas. Due to some marketing challenges we were facing at that practice, I was introduced to Texas State Optical while I was at that practice and then left after about four years, left that practice and went to a consumer research firm here in Stafford and quickly turned around and went to Texas State Optical to see if they would like to buy some insurance I'm not insurance, buy some research and they did so. I ended up doing this large project for them but also ended up doing a ton of work for HLMP. During the time they were prepared to try to go to battle with Enron and this was like early nineties, right, and so everything was going well. And then I get fired from the research thing. Now I moved my family down from Kansas. I've been in the state about five and a half years and I get fired. I've been in the state about five and a half years and I get fired. And that was a big you know. Anytime you've been fired, that kind of devastates you Right, it shakes you up. Chris: Yeah, it does. John: But had that not happened, I wouldn't be doing what I'm doing Right, and so I have learned, and what pulled me through that is faith, Faith in God and faith in myself is faith, faith in God and faith in myself, and I felt like I can do, kind of what. There was a part of it, chris, that was liberating, because that was like, instead of thinking now what am I going to do, I was thinking now what am I going to do. I mean, it was a whole different frame of attitude and that subsequently ended up leading to the position I have today, through working with franchisees at Texas State Optical and so forth. Chris: That's a great story. Thank you for sharing. You bet A lot of people don't want to talk about, especially if they've been fired for something. But to your point on that, these other opportunities would have never presented themselves right, because you likely stayed in the comfort of the job and seeing where that takes you. You know there's so much that can come. John: Actually, I'd gone to that research firm. The owner of it had brought me there with the promise implied I mean not implied, but it wasn't in writing but the idea was that I would take over that firm at some point and it turned out that didn't work out Well you know a lot of what you, I think, describe. Chris: The undertone to that is the mindset you had in the wake of that setback. You know you didn't let it take you down. You're like like you said what am I going to go? Do I got all these opportunities and go? Explore and figure it out. John: So I had about 30 days before the next house payment came, so that you were acting quick, got to be decisive man. Chris: You can't be stewing on decisions forever, for sure, well, that and so you know that leadership, you know is forged and helped you get to where you are today. You know, when you, when you think about applying that mindset and that leadership kind of style, how does it help you kind of navigate the ups and downs of the economic cycles that we've experienced over the last 20 plus years? John: Well, you know, first of all is to understand which of these cycles are cyclical. That's a little redundant, but I mean, what is it we're going through that's cyclical. That you can. You know, business loves a stable and predictable environment. Right Now, the reality is it's ups and downs. But if it's ups and downs within a certain range of up and down, it's stable right, and you can prepare for it Certain tolerances right, yeah certain tolerances. What we've seen, not only in the economy and that's a whole different issue but what we've seen in the profession itself and the consolidation of private practice by private equity that's come into the marketplace, is we're seeing disruption like we haven't seen before. And I was talking to one of our board members doctor board members about it and we were just, you know, he was pointing out all of the things that are kind of out without from under excuse me, out of our control, and as we were talking about it, I had this thought and I told him. I said it's a great time to be alive and that because we're the ones that get to go through this, and in many ways I believe that our profession is going through a transformation that will take probably a 20 year period of time. But 40 years from now, optometry, I don't think, will look anything like it does today, and it's always bumpy to be in the middle of that turbulent transformation. The 80s were very steady, the 90s were pretty steady. It was in starting about 2010, 2000, that things started rapidly changing and then the acceleration with just technology and everything else is just gone, and then you've got now the whole world of artificial intelligence coming into play and it's. I consider it exciting, invigorating, challenging, but I mean what's? The alternative is to be bored right. Chris: Well, if you don't adopt and if you're not using it, you die use it you die, that's right. So I mean, you know, kind of it's a great segue to what are some of the things you do to kind of foster that maybe innovative mindset of how you're going to embrace the technological changes and use them in the business model to further the brand and the business. John: So I there's very little I can do without the support of the doctor, owner, community right. And sometimes there's a lot of indecision, because when you're not sure what to do, you're scared of doing the wrong thing. Chris: Sure, Well, it seems like you got a lot of opinions that out there too, right? John: You got a lot of them, and so what I have to do is to influence them through other people and through information, to get them to a point of being open enough to consider ideas that they might consider kind of sacrilege in some case. For instance, what is real common in most optometry practices today is what's called an autorefractor. It's a machine that people go through and it gives you a prescription, and the prescription is used by the doctor to zero in on where your visual acuity is right. Well, when that first came out, optometrists thought that was the end of the profession. Here's a machine that'll do what I'm doing. Optometrists thought that was the end of the profession. Here's a machine that'll do what I'm doing. And so there's a fear oftentimes of innovation. Right, that you have to assure people that there's a way to use this to our benefit, and that's what we're going through with artificial intelligence right now. One group is scared to death. It's going to replace them. The other group is glad they're old enough, they're probably not going to have to go through with it. And then you're looking for those people who say, hey, how can we utilize this to really to our benefit? Yeah, and once people feel that's safe enough to kind of try. Then the people realize that the fear is misplaced. Chris: So true, right, but it takes education, information and influence, as you said, to get people to get there so that they can adopt it One of the things that I teach my team to say. John: I mean to believe, and I say it all the time is we believe in everybody's right to make a bad decision. So if someone listens to us and they choose not to do what we're recommending and we know it's a good decision what we're recommending and they choose not to, it's their right. You know, I mean everybody's right to waste their own money. So that kind of patience is necessary with a group like ours. In many ways it's like working with a volunteer organization. Chris: Yeah, well, lots of challenges there, I'm sure. Well, john, this has been a great conversation. I really appreciate you sharing everything I want to ask you, I guess, going back to your days, you know, I guess growing up in Kansas what was your first job? John: A drugstore Rexall drugstore and I grew up in a town of 2000 people and my dad was the family physician of the community and so of course in a town like that in western Kansas the doctor and the pharmacist are close relationship. And so I got my first job at a drugstore, working a soda fountain, delivering prescriptions, restocking things. Like that had a blast and that really I learned a lot in that, not just like everybody learns a lot from their first job, but understanding. I was intrigued by Rexall. I don't know how familiar you are with Rexall, but Rexall was a national organization that gave private ownership of drugstores the purchasing power of a large corporate chain, and so my employer was the pharmacist. He owned the drug store and he stood up in the stand in the dais every day counting pills and chatting with people. So that was my first job. Chris: Very good. Well, you've been in Texas now since what the late? John: 80s. Chris: So do you prefer Tex-Mex or barbecue Barbecue? Okay. John: Barbecue Very good. My waistline prefers barbecue. Chris: And last thing if you could take a 30-day sabbatical, where would you go and what would you do? I don't know, Probably nuts. John: I just I've got to be engaged and I mean I don't have to be. I'm not select. I love business and I love the challenge it has. So I'm not I don't. You said earlier in our discussion about you were describing about the law firm. When I was doing consumer research, I did some healthcare work 12 Oaks Hospital was a client and so but I would tell people, is I specialize in a process, not an industry, because the process is the same and I would say that's what I really love about business, because when you boil it down to what I do and what you do and others that run businesses, it's the same process. It's understanding your customer and then directing how your services or products benefit that customer and communicating and the whole marketing scheme of promotion, price, product and place applies to every industry. And so I'd probably do something if I had 30 days. Like I said, I'd go nuts. Chris: Well, but I think what you just said there in the end is you have great insight and learning for business owners and entrepreneurs out there. You're trying to find their way. It's it is figure out what the consumer that you're catering to really wants and then deliver that as efficient as best you can that's why you know my, when I first got into consumer research, I thought this is like cheating. John: I mean you're actually going out and saying what do you want? They tell you, and then you give it to them. I mean it's like, it's amazing. Chris: Yeah, right, so well, this has been great, John. Thanks again for taking the time. You bet I really appreciate your invitation. Special Guest: John D Marvin.

There are many parts of the US that are at risk for severe drought and heat in the next 30 years due to climate change. But then there's Kansas, where some growers pull irrigation water from a particularly vulnerable part of the gigantic Ogallala aquifer, which according to the latest science, may well be fully depleted by 2050. Western Kansas isn't exactly the heart of the corn belt, but farming in the region does support substantial nearby livestock industries, including large confined dairy and beef cattle operations. If feed becomes sparse, or must come from more expensive, more distant geographies, the regional economic disruptions could be vast.Dan Northrup, part of Galvanize Climate Solutions' Science and Tech team and an Associate Professor at Iowa State University, joins us today to talk about the risks, and opportunities, that this kind of water vulnerability introduces, and where he thinks public and private investors can act now. For more information and resources, visit our website. The information in this post is not investment advice or a recommendation to invest. It is general information only and does not take into account your investment objectives, financial situation or needs. Before making an investment decision you should read the information memorandum and seek financial advice from a professional financial adviser. Whilst we believe Information is correct, no warranty of accuracy, reliability or completeness.

This is the story of what happened on our 19.5 hour road trip with 3 animals, 2 humans and 1 U-Haul to spend 106 Days living in Sedona for the winter. WATCH US ON YOUTUBE FOR THE FULL EXPERIENCEDownload your Sedona Like a Local Guide In this episode, we dive into:- Our Laughable Packing Procrastination: Hear about our chaotic last-minute packing for two humans, two dogs, and one cat, plus all our work essentials!- The True Crime Podcast Adventure: Discover why we chose a true crime podcast to keep us alert during our night drive through Kansas and the eerie encounters that ensued.- Navigating the Wilderness: Learn about our strategic bathroom breaks, handling hyperactive pets, and driving through the dark, deserted highways of Western Kansas.- Unexpected Encounter: Experience the suspense and humor as we stop at sketchy gas stations and interact with mysterious locals.- Arrival in Sedona Feel the energy shift as we settle into our new home, encounter local wisdom, and begin to adjust to the unique Sedona vibes.- Finding Balance and Grounding: Listen to our reflections on slowing down, embracing stillness, and the transformative power of Sedona's energy.Whether you're planning a trip to Sedona or just love a good travel story, this episode is packed with humor, insights, and real-life experiences. Don't miss out on the lessons we learned and the magic we discovered in Sedona!Chapters:0:00 Welcome to Ambitious Hippies0:21 Intro to Our Sedona Trip1:02 The Packing Fiasco2:15 Last-Minute Preparations4:00 Entertainment on the Road: True Crime Podcast7:00 Driving Through Kansas at Night10:30 Eerie Gas Station Encounters14:00 Managing Hyperactive Pets17:19 Midnight Road Trip Reflections20:00 Reaching New Mexico at Sunrise24:00 First Day in Sedona25:00 Slowing Down to Sedona Vibes27:00 Grounding and Adjusting to Sedona30:00 Reflections and Closing Thoughts

OPENING ILLUSTRATION: Can I tell you a story? For thousands of years Christianity existed in fairly small churches for the most part. Primarily due to the fact that to travel much of a distance you had to harness up a horse. There were a few larger churches in cities, but for the most part they were pretty small This was the case until relatively recently in history… As the church began to grow new models of how to do church began to take center stage. One of the primary models that was front and center the last 20-30 years was something called “Attractional Church” This model used words like “Seeker Sensitive” b The basic premise was this: Your church needs to be attractive to people in order to keep them in the seats. Not bad, right, basically, make church cool and people will come. And it worked, until it became not cool to be a Christian. There are things that we believe that are no longer cool in our culture. Here's what model produced: we created a whole generation of Christians that were focused on what they liked rather than on what Jesus liked… And not their fault, it is what the church trained us to be… But that's not what Jesus was after Jesus was after disciples Listen to how Jesus described following Him Luke 9:57-62 57 As they were walking along the road, a man said to him, “I will follow you wherever you go.” 58 Jesus replied, “Foxes have dens and birds have nests, but the Son of Man has no place to lay his head.” ILLUSTRATION: When I was in college, I wondered what it was like to be homeless - I know, I'm weird. So, I went out for a walk and decided I would sleep outside that night in the city. I never realized how freaky it was to sleep completely exposed with no protection, no one around you. When you sleep you are completely vulnerable. I ended up finding a bank and laying down in the light by their atm, but after about an hour I ended up going home… We don't know what happened with this man who said he'd follow Jesus where ever he'd go, but what we do know Jesus told him He was homeless - signaling, if you follow me you have to be willing to give up all your comforts Is this the Christianity you were sold? I have friends who have moved to other countries to follow Jesus, one of them literally lives in what we would consider poverty to share the gospel with people. Others put their lives on the line for Jesus. What level of uncomfortable are you willing to put up with to follow Jesus? ILLUSTRATION: I was challenged a couple months ago when I was leading a bible study with several men in Pakistan over zoom who had traveled from their homes to spend a weekend studying the scripture, only to go home to be persecuted. There was no fancy speaker, or big worship band, the only thing that drew them was Jesus. What level of uncomfortable would it take to keep you from Jesus? 59 He said to another man, “Follow me.” But he replied, “Lord, first let me go and bury my father.” 60 Jesus said to him, “Let the dead bury their own dead, but you go and proclaim the kingdom of God.” Can I ask you a question? How does Jesus' answer to this man strike you? does it strike you as harsh? Most of the time when I hear a preacher address this, they soften Jesus words - and maybe rightly so. -but I think Jesus was intensely harsh - or hard. There's a whole book on the hard sayings of Jesus It's why either Jesus is God or He's a lunatic, because no one should be allowed to speak like this. How would you respond to Jesus? b What gives Him the right to say things like this? b Do you give Him the right to say things like this in your life? ILLUSTRATION: I can remember when my kids were young I heard about some Christians who were brought out of their houses and parents were forced to watch as their children were executed in front of them. I remember struggling with God over this, if I was ever forced to do that, would I give up my faith? Then I realized, my kids are not mine, they are God's and I am just stewarding them… This passage reminds me of a time when lots of people left Jesus, He turned to His disciples and asked them if they were going to leave to? this is what Simon Peter said: John 6:68-69 “Lord, to whom shall we go? You have the words of eternal life. 69 We have come to believe and to know that you are the Holy One of God.” Who else would you go to? b The reason Christians, for thousands of years, have followed Jesus, even when it cost them everything, is because they were willing to give up what they had here and now for what is to come… 61 Still another said, “I will follow you, Lord; but first let me go back and say goodbye to my family.” 62 Jesus replied, “No one who puts a hand to the plow and looks back is fit for service in the kingdom of God.” ILLUSTRATION: I didn't understand this till one of my friends in Western Kansas told me that when he was a kid, he and his other farm kid friends would all talk about whose dad could cut the straightest row. My friends and I talked about whose dad was strongest, but for a farmer, straight rows matter. Jesus is using farming language - he's saying if you put your hand to the plow to work for God, you can't be the kind of person who is always looking to go back to where you came from… See, Jesus' call to discipleship was an all in kind of discipleship. b BEHIND THE CURTAIN: Can I tell you a secret, did you know our church has 5 full time staff and 3 part time staff, we manage the entire organization of 500 people a week coming into this place and ministering to close to a thousand people all together. Do you know what we spend most of our time talking about? -How we can avoid competing with sports - because we know people will choose sports over church -How to try and make it as easy as possible to volunteer because we know if it's too hard we will end up with nothing -We struggle with how to find enough group leaders who are ready to lead others because we have lots of people wanting to be in groups, but very few people who are willing to lead a group -We spend inordinate amounts of time trying to decide if we are going to spend money here or there because our giving barely covers the expenses of running our church. These are the realities we deal with - you don't see it because we are good at making it look like everything is taken care of… I have dreams for our church - I would love to see us do missions trips and serve the poor in our community, but frankly we are so overwhelmed just trying to keep what we currently do afloat, to plug the holes. We have settled for being spiritual consumers rather than discipled contributors. b Jesus' dream was not a room full of people being pampered but a Kingdom of missionaries proclaiming the message of the King. CLOSING ILLUSTRATION: Several times in my life I've been confronted with a message where I could either shrink back or move forward. We've all been there, right, the coach that says “either you start showing up for practice or your off the team…” There are clarifying moments in life for us that help us to see things more clearly. We want to be a church who is all in for Jesus. We want you to become a fully activated disciple for Jesus. I'm standing up here asking if you are in with us… When I first started at Harmony I found out that the church had been in such a dire situation that we had stopped giving to Missions. I told our elders that we were going to give to missions 10% of everything that was given to the church and that I'd rather cut my salary than to cut missionaries. I will never forget getting up in front of the church and saying, “will you stand with us in this” - meaning will you stand in solidarity. But there was this older gentlemen who had a cane who when I said that shakily stood up. and with that, one by one others stood until everyone was standing. I want to ask you today, will you stand with us? let me be clear, I'm asking you to choose to be contributors in what God is doing at Harmony, not just spiritual consumers… We need you!

Grain Market Discussion Western Kansas Field Days Cool Temps and Wet Weather   00:01:05 – Grain Market Discussion: Dan O'Brien, K-State grain economist, kicks off today's show with a grain market outlook. He recaps what was discussed at the Risk and Profit conference and why markets are described as comfortable.  Dan O'Brien on AgManager.info   00:12:05 – Western Kansas Field Days: Head of Western Kansas Research-Extension Centers, Brian Olson, continues the show for today as he previews the upcoming topics at the field days in western Kansas.  WKREC.org field days   00:23:05 – Cool Temps and Wet Weather: Ending the show is Chip Redmond, K-State meteorologist, with a weather update. He explains why we have seen moisture in Kansas and what we can expect in the forecast.     Send comments, questions or requests for copies of past programs to ksrenews@ksu.edu.   Agriculture Today is a daily program featuring Kansas State University agricultural specialists and other experts examining ag issues facing Kansas and the nation. It is hosted by Shelby Varner and distributed to radio stations throughout Kansas and as a daily podcast.   K‑State Research and Extension is a short name for the Kansas State University Agricultural Experiment Station and Cooperative Extension Service, a program designed to generate and distribute useful knowledge for the well‑being of Kansans. Supported by county, state, federal and private funds, the program has county Extension offices, experiment fields, area Extension offices and regional research centers statewide. Its headquarters is on the K‑State campus in Manhattan

The bagpipe dates back thousands of years, with a rich history and tradition especially in Irish and Scottish communities. Today, we'll meet Kansas City bagpiper Griffin Hall, and learn about the gig that will take him and his instrument to Scotland. Plus: Southwest Kansas is now renowned for beef and grain production, but it used to be known as the watermelon capital of the country. The fruit crop spurred a multibillion dollar agriculture industry, but the water that sustained the melon industry ran dry.

I'm recounting one of my many visits to this incredible state, often overlooked by passionate pheasant hunters hell bent on one of the Dakotas. Take three days, in three different places, that may offer an alternative to the usual spots for this year's road trip. We'll explore public and walk-in habitats in the midst of pheasant country, Kansas style. And it's all brought to you by: Sage & Braker Mercantile, LandTrust.com, HiVizSights.com, Pointer shotguns, @midwayusa, #midwayusa, Midway USA, Mid Valley Clays and Shooting School, TrulockChokes, HiViz shooting systems, ESPAmerica, Purina Pro Plan Sport and FindBirdHuntingSpots.com.

ISSUES 2024 - Fe Vorderlandwehr discusses dementia and Alzheimer's Disease during Nation Brain Awareness Month

Western Kansas is projected to see large population declines in the coming years, but immigration may be the key to stemming the losses. The communities that have embraced their diversity have seen their population stabilize and the local culture shift. Plus: To stay open, rural nursing homes across the Midwest are prioritizing nurses.

In this week's episode Greg and Patrick discuss the assessment of global vs. local model fit and they argue that although global measures of fit can be useful, carefully assessing local fit may be of much greater importance in practice. Along the way the also discuss cheap beach house rentals, misplaced sand dunes, Mrs. Lincoln, the child catcher, hushpuppies, cockroach feces, academia as community theater, spikes and smoodges, opening paragraphs, dark and stormy nights, sharp rusty knives, dream teams, DAGs as religion, No Daggity, burly moles, Western Kansas, good bones, and computer defaults. Stay in contact with Quantitude! Twitter: @quantitudepod Web page: quantitudepod.org Merch: redbubble.com

Step into the dusty boots of Major General Grenville Dodge as we venture into the heart of the post-Civil War American frontier, where securing the wild plains was as treacherous as it was vital. Our episode, guided by an esteemed historian, captures the essence of life at Fort Dodge, the strategic military stronghold pivotal in taming the Western Kansas frontier. Hear about the soldiers' grueling efforts to build safe havens amidst hostile territory, and how these fortifications laid the groundwork for a period of American history rife with conflict and transformation.Witness the volatile relationship between the US military and the Plains Indian tribes through vivid tales of raids and the powerful leaders who orchestrated them. We unravel the complexities of Indian diplomacy with a spotlight on Kiowa Chief Satanta's influence, his storied battle gear, and the intense negotiations over captive settlers—a sobering reality faced by those like Mary Matthews, whose personal account brings a gripping perspective to these historical standoffs. Each narrative strand weaves a rich tapestry of the struggles and strategies that defined the wild, untamed West, making this episode a must-listen for anyone fascinated by the era where legends were forged on the frontier.Support the showReturn of the Great HuntersCattle Drives WebsiteLegends of Dodge City WebsiteOrder Books

Gary Bender did play by play for Final Fours, the NFL, NBA, the Olympics, Major League Baseball and more. Bender, a 1962 University of Wichita graduate, got his start at KMUW broadcasting Shocker basketball as the team rose in the national rankings. We talk about his days on the farm in Western Kansas creating the anthem, commercials and action to pass the time on a tractor. We discuss how he maintained silence during one of the most exciting finishes in NCAA Tournament history and how advice from Bill Parcells pushed him on his way to CBS. Bender is a member of the 2024 Fairmount College of Liberal Arts and Sciences Hall of Fame induction class. That ceremony is free to the public at 2 p.m. Feb. 6 in Wiedemann Hall.

Communities in western Kansas are trying a new AI tool to help them target economic growth and hopefully fight long-term trends of population loss.

Communities in western Kansas are trying a new AI tool to help them target economic growth and hopefully fight long-term trends of population loss.

After nearly a decade of road blocks, Missouri's Public Service Commission approved final plans for the Grain Belt Express line, which will drop off 2,500 megawatts of wind energy in Missouri. Construction could start as soon as 2025.

Drought Continues to Impact the Grain Market Keeping Cattle Records Another Season of Severe Weather   00:01:05 – Drought Continues to Impact the Grain Market: K-State grain economist Dan O'Brien begins today's show with his update on the grain market. He says hard red winter wheat basis has weakened sharply in Western Kansas and many states are continuing to experience drought. Dan O'Brien on AgManager.info   00:12:05 – Keeping Cattle Records: Continuing the show is Jason Warner, K-State cow-calf Extension specialist, as he discusses how keeping records on cattle operations can help understand more about cows' reproduction and break-even analysis.   00:23:05 – Another Season of Severe Weather: Chip Redmond, K-State meteorologist, concludes this week's show with a weather update. He says we are entering our second season of potential severe weather. Mesonet Weather.gov   Send comments, questions or requests for copies of past programs to ksrenews@ksu.edu.   Agriculture Today is a daily program featuring Kansas State University agricultural specialists and other experts examining ag issues facing Kansas and the nation. It is hosted by Shelby Varner and distributed to radio stations throughout Kansas and as a daily podcast.   K‑State Research and Extension is a short name for the Kansas State University Agricultural Experiment Station and Cooperative Extension Service, a program designed to generate and distribute useful knowledge for the well‑being of Kansans. Supported by county, state, federal and private funds, the program has county Extension offices, experiment fields, area Extension offices and regional research centers statewide. Its headquarters is on the K‑State campus in Manhattan.

Conny Bogaard, PhD and Executive Director of the Western Kansas Community Foundation (WKFC) drops by to discuss the challenges of rural philanthropy and using Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) in her very diverse region.   Conny shares her amazing story of being a professor, meeting a farmer and relocating to rural Kansas. Mentions Include:Conny Bogaard, PhDWestern Kansas Community FoundationGarden City KansasSustainable Development Goals (SDGs)Books, Podcast and Music recommendationsStrangers in Town - STRANGERS IN TOWN tells the story of how global migration unexpectedly transformed and enriched Garden City, KansasThe Sun Also Rises - Ernest HemmingwayEvents/Learning OpportunitiesList of All upcoming conferencesMusicThanks to Andy Eppler for our intro MusicThanks to David Cutter Music for "Float Away

Callery Pear Buy-Back Program Wheat Update for the Post-Rock District and Greeley County Anticipating Insect Pest Activity this Spring   00:01:10 – Callery Pear Buy-Back Program: We begin today's show with information on the Callery Pear Buy-Back Program being held by the Kansas Forest Service and Deep Roots KC. Kansas Forest Service's forest health coordinator, Ryan Rastok, and district community forester for Northeast Kansas, Kim Bomberger, share information on the negative impacts of Callery Pears and how this program serves as an opportunity to replace invasive trees with better suited native options. Recommended tree lists from the Kansas Forest Service More information and how to register for the Callery Pear Buy-Back Program   00:12:08 – Wheat Update for the Post-Rock District and Greeley County: Today we are also joined by two K-State Research and Extension agents for a wheat update. Sandra Wick joins us from the Post-Rock District and highlights the short wheat in her area that they hope is aided by moisture soon. Todd Schmidt from Greeley County echoes the same sentiment for his area – that they really just need some timely precipitation. Link to register for the KSRE Post-Rock District newsletter   00:23:07 – Anticipating Insect Pest Activity this Spring: We end today's show with K-State horticultural entomologist Raymond Cloyd covering some of the insect pest activity we may see this the spring, including the Eastern tent caterpillar, clover mites, elm leaf beetles – which were a major problem in Wichita last year. Link to KSRE's Horticulture Newsletter   Send comments, questions or requests for copies of past programs to ksrenews@ksu.edu. Agriculture Today is a daily program featuring Kansas State University agricultural specialists and other experts examining ag issues facing Kansas and the nation. It is hosted by Samantha Bennett and distributed to radio stations throughout Kansas and as a daily podcast.   K‑State Research and Extension is a short name for the Kansas State University Agricultural Experiment Station and Cooperative Extension Service, a program designed to generate and distribute useful knowledge for the well‑being of Kansans. Supported by county, state, federal and private funds, the program has county Extension offices, experiment fields, area Extension offices and regional research centers statewide. Its headquarters is on the K‑State campus in Manhattan.  

3-30-23 AJ DailySeasonal Quality Grade Highs Likely Already PostedAdapted from a release by Paul Dykstra, Certified Angus Beef Congress Calls for Repeal of 2023 WOTUS Rule Adapted from a release by the American Farm Bureau Federation NCBA Slams FDA Commissioner's Comments on Cell-Cultured Meat Adapted from a release by the National Cattlemen's Beef Association Webinar to Address Grass Turnout in Western Kansas Adapted from a release by Angie Denton, Kansas State University Compiled by Paige Nelson, field editor, Angus Journal.   For more Angus news, visit angusjournal.net.

With small towns on the decline, some residents in western Kansas are trying to brainstorm ways to keep their rural lifestyles alive. Their answer? Youth rodeos. Plus: One Kansas City orchestra wants to inspire the next generation of jazz artists.

Experiences of a Colorado Farm Boy that Led to Leading Mars Rover Missions Propagating for Genetically Identical New Plants   00:01:08  — Experiences of a Colorado Farm Boy that Led to Leading Mars Rover Missions, Part One: For 38 years the Roscoe Ellis, Jr. Lectureship has brought prominent scholars in soil science to Kansas State University in order to foster advancements in soil science through interactions with both students and faculty. This year Doug Ming traveled to K-State to share his experiences as a planetary scientist at NASA. During this two-part series, Doug shares insight on his life growing up as a Colorado farm boy, studying agronomy throughout college, and ultimately leading Mars rover missions over the course of two decades.   00:12:08  — Experiences of a Colorado Farm Boy that Led to Leading Mars Rover Missions, Part Two: We continue our conversation with Doug Ming, NASA planetary scientist, where he shares insight on how Mars' soils compare to those we know well here on Earth, his advice for students, and the potential for life on Mars.   00:23:09  — Propagating for Genetically Identical New Plants: We end today's show with Jason Griffin, directore of the John C. Pair Horticulture Center. He was the featured horticulturalist for February's K-State Garden Hour where he provided an overview of vegetative propagation - the process of making new plants that are genetically identical to your existing plants. Today, we pass along some of his tips for successful vegetative propagation.   K-State's Garden Hour programming   Send comments, questions, or requests for copies of past programs to ksrenews@ksu.edu. Agriculture Today is a daily program featuring Kansas State University agricultural specialists and other experts examining ag issues facing Kansas and the nation. It is hosted by Samantha Bennett and distributed to radio stations throughout Kansas and as a daily podcast.   K‑State Research and Extension is a short name for the Kansas State University Agricultural Experiment Station and Cooperative Extension Service, a program designed to generate and distribute useful knowledge for the well‑being of Kansans. Supported by county, state, federal and private funds, the program has county Extension offices, experiment fields, area Extension offices and regional research centers statewide. Its headquarters is on the K‑State campus in Manhattan.

1. Wheat Futures Slightly Lower in Overnight Trading; 2. Ethanol Output Surges to Highest in a Month; 3. That's down from 23.8 million barrels the previous week and the lowest level since Dec. 2, the EIA said in its report.; 3. Winter Storms Headed For Eastern Colorado and Western Kansas

1. Wheat Futures Slightly Lower in Overnight Trading; 2. Ethanol Output Surges to Highest in a Month; 3. That's down from 23.8 million barrels the previous week and the lowest level since Dec. 2, the EIA said in its report.; 3. Winter Storms Headed For Eastern Colorado and Western Kansas

How Listing Decision for the Lesser Prairie-Chicken Impacts Kansas Potential Increase for Dairy Labor Costs   00:01:09  — How Listing Decision for the Lesser Prairie-Chicken Impacts Kansas:  We begin this week's programming with an impactful segment providing information on the implications of the recent listing decision for the Lesser Prairie Chicken. Joining Agriculture Today for this conversation is K-State wildlife Extension specialist, Drew Ricketts. Drew provides background on the significance of the Lesser Prairie Chicken and their habitat needs. As our conversation on the Lesser Prairie Chicken with Drew continues, he provides detailed information on what the threatened status of this species really entails for Western Kansas producers. He explains what “take” means and where it applies in Kansas, as well as what a grazing plan is and who can write one. U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) Lesser Prairie-Chicken Website USFWS Guidance: Framework for the review of LPC Voluntary Conservation Programs USFWS Lesser Prairie-Chicken Species Status Assessment Information on the 4(d) rule grazing exemption and how to apply to be an approved plan developer USFWS Project planning tool to determine if you are potentially impacted by the listing More specific interactive maps to determine if your location may be considered Lesser Prairie Chicken habitat: Southern Great Plains Crucial Habitat Assessment Tool Kansas Natural Resources Planner   Kansas Ecological Services Field Office   00:25:51 — Potential Increase for Dairy Labor Costs: As more states consider legislation regarding wages for hourly employees, K-State dairy specialist Mike Brouk  rounds out today's programming by encourages producers to be prepared for potential increases in labor costs by increasing efficiency to reduce the time it takes to complete daily tasks.   Send comments, questions, or requests for copies of past programs to ksrenews@ksu.edu. Agriculture Today is a daily program featuring Kansas State University agricultural specialists and other experts examining ag issues facing Kansas and the nation. It is hosted by Samantha Bennett and distributed to radio stations throughout Kansas and as a daily podcast.   K‑State Research and Extension is a short name for the Kansas State University Agricultural Experiment Station and Cooperative Extension Service, a program designed to generate and distribute useful knowledge for the well‑being of Kansans. Supported by county, state, federal and private funds, the program has county Extension offices, experiment fields, area Extension offices and regional research centers statewide. Its headquarters is on the K‑State campus in Manhattan.

After decades of irrigation, the aquifer that makes life possible in dry western Kansas is reaching a critical point. Several counties have already lost more than half of their underground water. But a new plan could save more of what's left.

MIP #320 - Western Kansas and the Ogallala Aquifer Click To Listen:https://www.spreaker.com/user/9810017/mip-320-western-kansas-and-the-ogallala-Click to Watch:https://youtu.be/hH24B36PwaIPresented By @AxonTire, @TractorZoom, @AgDirect, @FarmCredit, @ValleyTransInc, @SullivanAuctioneers @Anvil_AppWorksMusic By: @TalbottBrothers Co-host: @AaronfintelHost: @casey9673#AgEquipmentBusinessTalk#LetsGoMoveSomeIronContact me @: MovingIronLLC.comMovingIronPodcast@MovingIronPodcast.com#AgEquipmentBusinessTalk #LetsGoMoveSomeIron #agmarkets #combine #combinetires #corn #idlechatterpodcast #AgTires #Harvest22 #Tillage #plant22 #till22 #tractor #BushelandCents #tractorzoom #worldeconomy #IronComps #PrecisionDonor #BornThatWay #Soybeans #TaxMoves #TheHerdBook #AuctionMarket #EquipmentAuction #FarmEquipmentAuction

After graduating from law school in 2015, Jeff spent two years as a law clerk for United States District Court Judge Eric F. Melgren, where he gained valuable experience and exposure to a variety of complex legal issues. Jeff went on to enter private practice, litigating cases in a variety of areas and appearing in courtrooms across the state of Kansas. Jeff joined the firm in 2020, returning to his Western Kansas roots. Jeff's practice focuses on civil litigation and municipal law. He has represented numerous cities, counties, sheriff's offices, school boards, and other government entities. He is also experienced in matters of commercial and complex litigation. As a litigator, Jeff works to solve problems, limit exposure, and obtain favorable outcomes for clients who find themselves in need of a thoughtful advocate. Jeff also serves as the City Prosecutor for the City of Great Bend. Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jeffrey-kuhlman-743624118/ Watkins Calcara, Chtd: https://wcrf.com/ Learn more about EmotionTrac and our AI-driven Emotional Intelligence Platform: https://emotiontrac.com/calendly/ https://legal.emotiontrac.com/

In this brief interaction with Tanya Spacek, we begin to explore how Western Kansas is under-resourced and neglected by most everyone in the more populated Northeastern part of the state. --- Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/jerry-jones5/message

This week we sit down with Doug Roeder to discuss the 2022 UNBOUND 200. The draw of this event came at Doug from many directions and he has now set an audacious goal to join the 1000 mile club. Episode Sponsor: Athletic Greens Support the Podcast Join The Ridership  Automated Transcription, please excuse the typos: Doug Roeder [00:00:00] Craig Dalton: Hello, and welcome to the gravel ride podcast, where we go deep on the sport of gravel cycling through in-depth interviews with product designers, event organizers and athletes. Who are pioneering the sport I'm your host, Craig Dalton, a lifelong cyclist who discovered gravel cycling back in 2016 and made all the mistakes you don't need to make. I approach each episode as a beginner down, unlock all the knowledge you need to become a great gravel cyclist.   [00:00:28] Craig Dalton: This week on the show, we've got Doug rotor. Doug. And I actually know each other, gosh, for a couple decades. Now we met through mutual friends and recently reconnected over the sport of gravel cycling a few years back. Doug reached out knowing that I did this podcast and mentioned that. He was heading out to Unbound. I knew he was also heading back here in 2022. So I thought it'd be interesting to get them on the podcast and just talk through his journey with Unbound. Talk about this year's event. Talk about how he's managing to fit it all in as a professional with a family here in the bay area. I really enjoyed this conversation and I hope you do too. Before we jump in i need to thank this week sponsor our friend at athletic greens. A G one by athletic greens is a product I use literally every day. It's got 75 high quality vitamins minerals, whole food source, superfoods, probiotics, and antigens. To help you start your day. Right. This special blend of ingredients supports your gut health, your nervous system, your immune system. Your energy recovery, focus and aging. All the things. I think what I've keyed in on, on athletic greens. And I remember I've been a gosh, I've been a subscriber for many, many years now. Predating the podcast. I love that it's an all in one supplement. It's quite easy in the morning for me to take a scoop and a cup of water with ice And know that it's got the multivitamins, I need it's lifestyle friendly. So whether you eat keto, paleo vegan dairy-free or gluten-free. It's all good in ag one. It contains less than one gram of sugar no gmos no nasty chemicals artificial anything while still tasting good. Let's be honest as gravel, cyclists. We often go deep into the pain cave and just need a little bit of extra attention. To our nutrition and diet just to make sure we're recovering well athletic greens and has over 7,005 star reviews and is recommended by professional athletes and trusted by leading health experts such as tim Ferris and michael Right now it's time to reclaim your health and arm your immune system with convenient daily nutrition, especially heading into the gravel race season. It's just one scoop in a cup of water every day. That's it? No need for a million different pills or supplements. To look out for your health. To make it easy. Athletic greens is going to give you a free, one of your supply of immune supporting vitamin D and five free travel packs with your first purchase. All you have to do is is it athletic greens.com/the gravel ride? Again, that's athleticgreens.com/the gravel ride to take ownership over your health and pick up the ultimate daily nutritional insurance. Would that business behind us? Let's jump right in to my conversation with doug rotor Doug welcome to the show. [00:03:24] Doug Roeder: Hey, Greg. Thanks a lot. Great to be here [00:03:26] Craig Dalton: I appreciate you taking the time to join me after Unbound 200. I'm glad you got to the finish line. I can't wait to dig into your adventure out there. [00:03:34] Doug Roeder: and adventure. It was and yeah, happy to talk. Great to see you. Great to be with you. Can't wait to get out with you sometime live on a bike. This will have to suffice for now, though. [00:03:43] Craig Dalton: Indeed. So for the listener, Doug and I met each other, gosh, I don't wanna date us too much, but it's probably 20, 25 years ago. [00:03:50] Doug Roeder: Long time ago. Yeah. Team and training up in the city, [00:03:53] Craig Dalton: And through mutual [00:03:54] Doug Roeder: And mutual friends. [00:03:56] Craig Dalton: Yeah, exactly. So to set the stage, Doug, are you, or are you not a professional athlete? [00:04:01] Doug Roeder: No, absolutely not. No, not even anywhere close. [00:04:04] Craig Dalton: So, so Doug's an endurance athlete, like most of us and, and not an unaccomplished one you've you've achieved multiple Ironmans. If I'm, if I'm remembering correctly and always been fit. [00:04:16] Doug Roeder: Yeah. So well, yeah. I, I guess right around the time we met, I was very unfit. I had kinda worked 80 hour weeks all through my twenties and didn't. It finally got to a place in my career in my late twenties, where I had a little bit more predictability on my schedule. And so started joined team in training and did one and only one Ironman with team in training. But in training for that had did a half Ironman and some other events and really kind of felt like, triathlon was a, a great way to kind of get out in the bay area and, and try different things. And so I would never say I was a triathlete. I'd do one or two a year wildflower in particular, the long course there. But cycling kind of became part of my life at that point. I met my wife on a blind date, bike ride. I started spending time up in Santa Rosa for work every other month. And a gentleman up there took me on a lot of road rides, your pine flat east side, west side, Sweetwater Springs. Always told me that if I ever had a chance to ride king Ridge, I should. So when Levi started his ride, I started doing that. And so it was kinda I'd pick one or two big things a year to do and train for those. And that was kinda my, my. [00:05:11] Craig Dalton: That makes sense. And then at what point along the way, did you discover gravel cycling? [00:05:16] Doug Roeder: So, yeah, I kind of just for a decade plus kind of kept doing the same couple of things over and over cycling with something I would do with work colleagues. I commuted from the city down to the peninsula once a week. Once I had little kids just to get along one long ride in a week. And then it was 2018, I think. Was the last year that wildflower happened and I was kind of poking around for something new to do. And a buddy on the east coast who I'd ridden quite a bit with and remembered that I was from Kansas said, Hey, you wanna check out this thing? In Kansas, there's this big race, this big bike ride. It's a gravel ride it's called it was called it's on dirty Kansas. I said that's Ryan that's. That's ridiculous. Why would I, I go to Kansas to ride a bike. Like I go there to go to a chief's game or go see family and friends. That's that's insane. And plus the roads in Kansas, like why would you do that? Why would I ride dirt roads in Kansas and just promptly about it? Dismiss it outright. No joke. A week later, I'm talking to my father who lives, he's retired in central Kansas. He's got 30 cattle. He's kind of a hobby rancher. And he had been staying with a. At a little town outside, Amoria called Opie. This was in may. And when he was there, he drove around the Flint Hills. He's telling me how beautiful the Flint Hills were in the spring. The Emerald green, after the ranchers burn off all the grass, it comes back this beautiful green and to someone from Kansas. I mean the Flint Hills, I I'm from Western Kansas central Kansas went to high school and Eastern Kansas. So I'm kind of from all over Kansas, the Flint Hills are just something you drive past on your. Somewhere else. There's really no, there, there there's, it's too Rocky to farm. There's no major population centers. It's pretty, you see it from the highway, but there's really no reason to go there. So my father lived his entire life in Kansas had never spent any time in the Flint Hills. And so he, he was there with this old friend toured around the Flint Hills and he's telling me about it and he's like, oh, and there's this big bike race. Have you heard of it? And I'm like, yeah, a buddy just told me about it. I can't believe thousands of people travel. To Emporia, Kansas, which again, to native Kansas, Emporia's kind of the middle of nowhere. It's like for a bike race. And my father tells me that his friend, they they're looking to, they wanted to rent their house out to some racers, but they didn't wanna rent a stranger. So he said, if, if you ever wanna come to Kansas and do this bike race, you know, you got a place to stay, you can rent this house outside just outside of town. So I'm like, yeah, no, that's why I'm not. That's ridiculous. Why would I do that? And then a few weeks later, this was like the third, the straw that broke the camels back. Right. We have a friend staying with us, a friend of my wife's it's an ER doc in Philly. And he had come out to do escape from Alcatraz, big multi-sport athlete CYC lacrosse racer, and he was staying with us at our house. And were we my wife and I had signed, but do escape that. And we're talking to, to Dr. Lambert and he said, Hey, you're Doug, you're from Kansas. Have you heard of this big bike race in Kansas? My coach. And I really want to do it. And I'm like, you're the third person who's mentioned this thing to me in the last, like 10 days now. I'm, I'm kind of intrigued. And he had a plot to, to kind of hack the lottery at the time. Yeah, they were promoting and I'll just keep talking, you cut me off, whatever, but I figure you can edit a lot of this. So he his, his idea was his coach was a woman and there was a, they were trying to get more women to ride. The race, then 200 for 200 was the promotion 200 women ride 200 miles. Remember that. And Dr. Lambert's coach Amelia woman really wanted to come and do the race as well. And at the time you could, I think you still can, you could register as a group. So it was an all or nothing kind of thing, or up to four people could register for the lottery together. And he said, well, make Amelia our, our, you know, team captain quote unquote, and she'll get in. Then the rest of us will draft off of that. And I was like, you know, I have this high school buddy. That I've run a couple of ultras with in Kansas. He's just the kind of guy, cause they also gave preference to locals. I was like, we'll sign him too. I'll give him call. And so the four of us signed up and we got in that way on the lottery. And I don't know if our, our hacks helped or not, but one way, you know, we got in. So now it's January of 2019. And I'm, I've been accepted to Unbound, wildflower had been canceled. So, you know, now I've got a new thing to train for. And I had to go get a gravel bike and try and figure out what the heck gravel biking was all about. And I had taken an old road bike and put the fattest tires I could on it and kind of started exploring some, some non paved roads down here. And it seemed like a not insane thing to do. So I went up to my local bike. And they're a specialized dealer. So I ended up with a diverge and set it up tubus and started training. [00:09:41] Craig Dalton: Great. You know, that's amazing. It, it sounds like you were going to be haunted by Unbound until you did it with all [00:09:48] Doug Roeder: That's kind of, [00:09:49] Craig Dalton: you [00:09:49] Doug Roeder: it was kind of, yeah, that was everybody was coming at me about it. And I then a, a great guy wanted to actually travel to the middle of Kansas. And I think this is a good point to state it's. It's hard to overstate. How preposterous, the notion of Unbound gravel sounds to like a native cans who, who wasn't a cyclist as a kid, but learned to cycle in the bay area. I mean, the notion that thousands of people from all over the country, or even all over the world would travel to Emporia, Kansas to ride hundreds of miles of the crappies roads. You can imagine in the middle of tornado season. It's just it's ridiculous, but yeah, you're right. I was kind of being haunted by it and there, I was at a point where I needed, I kind of wanted to try something new and so I signed up. [00:10:35] Craig Dalton: And you sign up directly for the [00:10:36] Doug Roeder: Yeah. And there was some debate around that. My, my buddy in Kansas who had, who had never, you know, he'd done some writing. He'd never, I don't think he'd ever run ridden a century before. He's like, you sure we should do the 200, maybe we should do the hundred. And I mentioned that to our, our friends from Philly and they're like, no, if we're gonna travel all the way to Kansas, we're, we're gonna, we're gonna get our money's worth. And I was like, yeah, no, it's kind of 200 or nothing fell. And I kind of felt the same way actually. So yeah, we went straight for the 200. [00:11:01] Craig Dalton: Yeah. I feel like back in 2019 and, and earlier, like the 200, the, the 100 felt different when you were signing up for it. Not that I've done it, but these days I feel like it's got equal promotion. Certainly the two hundreds, the marquee part of the event, but also that they realized like a hundred is pretty good as well. [00:11:18] Doug Roeder: Oh, and a lot of fast riders. So yeah, no, it's the a hundred has definitely become a thing and yeah, even the shorter distances are, are filling up with people now, too. So. [00:11:28] Craig Dalton: And so 2019, that was pre pandemic. Right? So the race actually went off at that point. [00:11:33] Doug Roeder: The race went off. It was hot and humid and we, it was the north course. It was the first year they had switched back to the north course, which I guess they'd done it a few times. And we had a nice, strong south wind out of the gates. So we flew 60 miles with a tail. made the turn and on that north course, most of the climbing is kind of in the middle section. So right around the time of day when it gets hot you start putting in some, a lot of kinda steep climbs on rough roads. And our two C cross buddies took off at that point. And I was sticking with my high school buddy. And I think the, the, you know, growing up. Growing up cycling wise here in the bay area, climbing's comes pretty easy. You get, you can't really ride 10 miles without climbing a thousand feet around here. So, I was having a decent time. The heat's a little tough to deal with. But my friend kind of got pummeled and we emerged from those Hills into the headwind. We got to council Grove and he was suffering from heat exhaustion at that point. And so I ended up riding, riding it in myself, late in the race and finished after midnight. And that was that. [00:12:34] Craig Dalton: to get to the finish line in your first one. I think that's pretty amazing. Did you. I know I want to talk about this year's version, but I feel like talking about your first experience is also equally valuable because going, going in there naive about what you were to experience, how did you prepare for it? Obviously, you you'd done Ironman triathlons. You'd done these long distance events that might have taken you north of 10, 12 hours. How did you get, what was the mindset going into 200 miles? Had you ever ridden that far before? Okay. [00:13:05] Doug Roeder: No, no. I think the longest ride I had done was, you know, what was Levi had his long course, which had a couple of different names the Panser whatever. And so that was kinda a hundred, 1,320, I think, with a lot of climbing. And I had done the version where you get off road onto some gravels. So I took my, my road bike on some gravel roads up in Sonoma county, which was a great way. Break a carbon wheel, which I did. But anyway, that's a different story. So the mindset was just to get, and I'd trained for some long runs as well. So I'd done some 40 and 50 mile runs. And you know, when I was training for those, I never, you never go out and run 40 or 50 miles, but yet stack up big days, you know? So you go run 21 day and maybe 25 the next. So I took the same kind of approach cycling wise. I would do. You know, you know, kind of do my normal early morning rides with my buddies and then maybe get out for 180 or 90 mile and then try the next day to go then ride 60 or 70 gravel miles over in the east bay on the east side of the Dunbarton bridge, where it gets good and windy out there on those salt pond levies felt like that was a pretty good Kansas simulator. And so I would try and stack up a couple of big days and then, you know, every few weeks kind of build back up to. And the mindset was just survival. We just wanted to finish. We didn't really have a time goal. It was just get her done. And that's kinda, that's sort of how it went, [00:14:27] Craig Dalton: That's what I always thought about with training here in the bay area, because we have so much climbing, I'm UN very, very unlikely to hit that mileage. Like even if it made sense to ride 200 miles, unless I was riding on the road, I'm not gonna hit that mileage, but I can certainly do a absolutely punishing day of climbing. [00:14:45] Doug Roeder: Yeah, no. And that's, that is the challenge, cuz I mean, if you go, when I go ride 80 or 90 miles, you're gonna climb eight or 9,000 feet around here. Now you've got the benefit. You can look at some of the Strava's of some of the, the gals up in your neck of the woods who kind of tend to win that Unbound and see what kind of stuff they do. They'll go do hundred 40 mile crazy stuff. So yeah, I, for me trying to find, you know, in Kansas, the wind is always a factor. Finding a place where you can ride for, I don't know, four or five, six hours where it's a steady effort is kind of hard in the bay area. And so I've found this, you know, again, east side of the Dunbarton bridge, the coyote Hills, regional park, there's a nature preserve. So you can kind of get a 30 or 40 mile flat-ish gravel loop in over there. And I'll do a few of those. And like I said, it's generally windy in the afternoon, so it's, that's kind of become, I can't get anyone to do it with me. So I'm listening to your podcasts or music and the earbuds, but. So I do do a little bit of solo training for it, but yeah, that's kind a key training [00:15:39] Craig Dalton: Yeah, it's interesting. It's so often I talk and think about the type of gravel that's underneath our wheels. When we go to these different parts of the country, but climate and wind play equally at big factors. And. It feeling hard and different. Like I know when I ride in wind, which I don't tend to ride in a lot of like, that's demoralizing to me. So imagining like pointing myself a 40 mile headwind section in Kansas might be a little difficult. [00:16:07] Doug Roeder: Yeah, but it's great. You can go, you can practice it here in the bay area. There are places, but yeah. Getting your it's, you know, psychological training for that kind of torture is is a big part of it. And you know, the other aspect of getting ready for that first one was just preparing to be able to fix my bike. I've got a great local bike shop here at Melo. They've taken great care of me over the years, but like what, what, what am I gonna do if I, you know, flat my tubus tire or. Bust my chain and a water crossing, which I ended up doing. So I had to stop. I had to pop out a, a link and fix my chain. You know, there's all kinds of stuff you gotta do. If you, if your goal is to finish you gotta be ready. And fortunately, I've watched a few YouTube videos and had the right tools to take care of that, that first year. But it was, it was non trivial getting across the finish line. And especially, yeah, once my buddy was suffering from, you know, heat exhaustion, We were at the last checkpoint minutes before they were gonna shut it down. And he packed up his bike and put it in the minivan. And I rode off into that by myself with lights and just kind of chased fireflies and other racers. And at that point in that race, the sun's going down, it cools off. It actually kind of became my favorite part of that race. It's just a different trippy thing on the north course. You'd end up going across this lake whole lake. You ride across a dam, there's people, boats partying, and you've fireflies, and it's just so surreal 70 into your day to be in that place that it does kind of, yeah, it's, it's quite an experience for sure. [00:17:28] Craig Dalton: Yeah, I can only imagine. So of the four of you, it sounds like what just did three of [00:17:33] Doug Roeder: Three finished. Yeah. The two cycle crossers. I think they, they finished around 10:00 PM. I, I rolled in after my late start and waiting for my buddy at kinda one 30 in the morning. But even then rolling down commercial street Emporia, I had a dozen kids chasing me down the shoot on both sides. I mean, it was just a bizarre trippy thing. And my buddy was at the finish line smiling at that point, he had recovered. So it was quite it was a really fun thing to finish and a hard, a hard, hard thing to do for sure. [00:18:01] Craig Dalton: huge accomplishment. Now, are you one of those people that can finish an event like that? And someone puts the sign up form in front of you and you're like, sign me up. I'm gonna do it the next year. [00:18:11] Doug Roeder: Absolutely not. So the, yeah, you know, the wildflower lawn course is a great example. I did. I think I did that thing 16 times and every time I swore I would never do it again, I was like this, this was awful. I feel terrible. I'm not ever gonna do this again. But then a week later you're like, I think I could probably do it a little bit better next time. Right. And so, and there was the fact that my buddy didn't finish and he had never DNF anything in his life. He's actually the one who talked me into doing my first ultra. And so he was furious, absolutely furious that he did not finish that race. And so he's like, no, we're signing up. We're gonna go do it. I'm gonna finish. And I'm like, okay, I guess. And then the pandemic hits and it got canceled in, in 2020. But we signed back and he trained like a maniac all through the pandemic. I ended up spending a bunch of time in Kansas during the pandemic. [00:18:56] Craig Dalton: Yeah. [00:18:56] Doug Roeder: So he, and I would go out for rides in the Flint Hills and I would rent bikes at sunflower bike shop in Lawrence, Kansas, and just, they had their divergence set up with tubes and I just was blowing the things up right. And left. And so, decided I, I bought a Kansas bike found a salsa cutthroat, which is a monster truck of a bike with 29 inch mountain bike wheels and got that, put it in my buddy's garage. And so that's. So he, he, he used that to train on used that as sort of, and, and got himself a better bike as well. But we were kind committed once and I think had he finished, we may never have done it again, but the fact that he didn't finish, we kinda signed get him the finish line in and had two years to train for it. [00:19:38] Craig Dalton: and so were you successful getting 'em across the finish line? [00:19:40] Doug Roeder: We did, we, we got it done. Went out at a nice, slow pace. We did not have the rest of the crew with us. One of 'em had a baby, so it was just the two of us that year. And his 80 year old dad who lives in Bakersfield came to be our support crew. So coverage, Flint, where to the same north course, we kind set up the day before, but we went out and again, south wind, hot, humid just punishing. But we took our time. Got the nutrition ride, you know, any of these long events, they're, they're eating competitions as much as anything. But he had had two years to train and, and we got it done. We finished around 1230. So again, I guess they call it that the breakfast club. So we both, we crossed the finish line together just a wonderful day out on the bike. And it was really gratifying to, to get him over the line. And that was when he was, he told me that we were going for the thousand mile cha [00:20:30] Craig Dalton: And what is that? [00:20:32] Doug Roeder: So, you know, if you ride the 200 race five times, they give you a CICE and it's part it's on the, you know, in the award ceremony on Sunday morning. And yeah, it's, it's something. So he, he and I are never gonna, you know, win our age group. That's just not who we are. But we could, we're pretty good at not stop 'em. So that's the goal now, apparently. And so, yeah, [00:20:56] Craig Dalton: Now you're slightly. You're slightly off sequence with your buddy. You may get there ahead of him. Are you gonna go for six? If that's the case? [00:21:04] Doug Roeder: I don't know. We'll see. And, and then, and you know, crazy things happen. I may be injured. I may not make one. So you just dunno how these things are gonna go, but become a goal here now in ours to try and finish that thing. And yeah, [00:21:16] Craig Dalton: Okay. [00:21:16] Doug Roeder: we're even more off sync. Once we get to 20 to this year's event, I'll tell you about that, but it's become a thing, you know, I go back there. I see family It's you know, as complicated as life gets later on with work and kids and everything to have a day or two a year, where all you gotta do is one simple thing. And it may a hard thing, but it's just one it's it's it's really enjoy. Wake up in old and try and bang out two miles and miles bike is it's refreshing psychologically. And it kinda helps me focus my training. [00:21:46] Craig Dalton: I [00:21:47] Doug Roeder: Yeah, we're gonna stick with it until we can't here for the next few years. [00:21:50] Craig Dalton: I love, I love how this all comes back to your connection to, to Kansas, and it's gotta make it even more special just to be there and be on that journey. [00:21:59] Doug Roeder: It is. And it's yeah, I mean, on that Northern course, there are some of those roads that I swear. I, I hunted pheasants on with my grandfather when I was a kid. And it's just surreal that again, thousands of cyclists from all over the planet are riding down these roads, getting flaps, just dealing with terrible conditions. Know, you might have it's the beauty is stark. And it's, I'm not gonna say it's as stunning as the grand canyon, it's not, but there is a similar discrepancy between the pictures you see and what you experience there. Just the vastness of it just can't on film. And when you're out there with this, you know, huge crowd of people it's, it's pretty stunning and and it's hard and. Yeah, my relatives, my aunts and uncles, I, I got buzzed by an aunt and her pilot boyfriend in school, bus, Piper, Cub in 20. So it's become a thing everyone forward to coming and doing it's lot for that reason. And then it's kinda crazy too. You've got all these great bay area athletes who come out there and, you know, Alison Terick from Penn, she's a household name in Emporia. You know, the winner the first year we did, it was Amity Rockwell. It just was amazing to me, the. Bay area cyclists. Who've made their names in Nowheresville, Kansas. It's just kind of cracks me up. So [00:23:11] Craig Dalton: It really is. You were talking about pacing in your 20, 21 effort. Do you find it hard? Not to get sort of wrapped up in the pace of everybody else? Were you and your, your buddy [00:23:21] Doug Roeder: yeah, that's [00:23:21] Craig Dalton: of just specifically disciplined and chastising each other? Don't chase that wheel. We gotta go slower. [00:23:27] Doug Roeder: that's you know, even though. Our focus, especially after having the one DNF in 19 was to maintain a steady pace, not go out too fast. You get that tailwind, you get in a group. Drafting's wonderful. But then you get to that first rough road. And at that point, You know, we saw Quinn Simmons running along the side of the road. You know, pros have blown up, you hit the rough flinty, gravel at speed and bad things start happening, but it's also great to be in a pack. We met two high school buddies who were half our age from Wisconsin, from some little town. They were doing their first race together. First bike race ever for the first bike event that I had signed up for the 200. So we started riding with them and we're trading poles. Next thing, you know, you know, there's not a cloud in the sky, but you feel a spray on, you know, a moist spray on your back and I'm like, what's going on back there? Oh man, you got sealant spraying all over the place. It's like pin wheeling outta your wheel. And so, yeah, it's easy to get caught up in the fun, especially early on. And man, we sprayed sealant all over two counties, but never went flat. But yeah, then we reeled it in the, the Hills eventually, or the heat will reel you in at some point or the headwind or ball three. But yeah, it is, it's difficult, especially early on when you're riding with a pack. [00:24:39] Craig Dalton: Yeah. Since I haven't been out there myself, I'm finally getting a picture after having spoken to so many people about this event in particular, my conversation recently with Mark Allen and he was describing, you know, you're following some wheels and you'd see someone get antsy because they wanted to pass someone and they would think, oh, I can just kind of ride over this Rocky section really fast. And sure enough, those Flint rocks, it's a recipe for a flat tire right [00:25:03] Doug Roeder: Yeah, it's just right there. And then every water crossing. I mean, I, this year, every water crossing, there were at least half a dozen people in the next quarter mile fixing flats. And I learned that first year in 2019, I, I dinged my chain in the water crossing and ended up having to fix it that you gotta be real careful, especially in that murky water. You can't see the bottom. You have no idea how deep it is. All, all kinds of sharks and yeah, you learn some things, but. [00:25:26] Craig Dalton: what's your, what's the technique then? Are you just kind of easing off and not kind of trying to keep full speed through the water sections? [00:25:32] Doug Roeder: Definitely. Yeah, you gotta slow down. Or if you see people, you see someone hit a line and they emerge safely. You take that line. If you're on your, at that point, depending where you're on the race, the Northern course didn't have that many water crossing this Southern course, especially with all the rain in the weeks, leading up to lot of water crossings. And I think a lot of flats came out those water crossing. So it's, [00:25:51] Craig Dalton: Yeah. [00:25:52] Doug Roeder: you just gotta be careful and they can be slick. And then there's just a whole wide variety of treachery out there. [00:25:57] Craig Dalton: In 2022 had a new variety of treachery that the last few years hadn't really been known for, as I understand it. [00:26:04] Doug Roeder: Indeed. And we were all excited. The Southern course, a little bit less vertical kind of had a reputation for kinda more rolling Hills rather than the sharp. I had been in Kansas for 10 days, like leaning up to the race and so knew that it had rained a lot knew that we were in for some wet conditions. But the temperatures were pretty cool and kinda day before it, you kinda not rain at all, then some popped overnight. And and yeah, but the, the cooler temperatures were just wonderful. I mean, you rolled out in the morning and it was a lot of people were chilly right. Outta the gates. But yeah, not much wind either. That was kind of a nice thing. And it was just kind of a nice, fun, easy role. And again, we were trying to, trying to get everybody over the line. So we we got to all the first neutral water stop. We were climbing the hill up to that at around mile 40. And I'm on the left side of a double track behind this woman. And I hear a guy shouting over my shoulder on your. On your left? No, we're coming up the middle and I look over my shoulder and a dozen dudes just blazing up this hill right down the grass between the two tracks. And it was the lead group from the hundred mile race. We the course with them up to that 40 mile point, they, and we kept going south. But as they blasted by the guy across from me said, Hey, that was Peter Shagan. And I'm like, what? This. time, green Jersey winner just blew by me in the middle of Kansas. How weird is that? And the day just got bizarre, more bizarre from that point on. [00:27:28] Craig Dalton: So, let me ask you a question. So that going into this one in 2022, it's your third year. what are a couple things you learned in the first two that you took, whether it's changes in your gear, changes in what you had when you were coming to your pit station? [00:27:42] Doug Roeder: Yeah, lots of real food pit stations be very disciplined about checking the chain. Luing the chain get more water than you think you need. Cause 40 miles might go by in a couple hours, or it might go by if you hit a stiff wind in some obstacles or a flat or something, it could take a lot longer. And as chilly as it was early in the day, I mean, the sun did pop out later in the day they got real hot. So if you kind of planned your hydration based on. What you were doing early in the day that, that didn't work later in the day. So to always take more hydration than you need real food versus just, you know, all goose, we'd roll up some sandwiches or whatever different things. And then we carry a lot of extra, you know, CO2 S and tube and, and things to fix punctures, which fortunately we didn't have to use this year, but. I think just being prepared for everything so that you don't end up in a situation where you have a mechanical, that requires you to all the way to you didn't have the right tool or you know, ran out whatever it would be very frustrating. And so [00:28:42] Craig Dalton: be a shame, particularly if tr trying to train up to 200 miles, you, you put in so much time and then to go do that and have something that you could have solved toward you would be terrible. So were, were you wearing a hydration pack? [00:28:56] Doug Roeder: Yes. Yeah, definitely. I got, I take a two and a half hydration pack and then two bottles. The other big learning is you gotta keep the bottles covered or have 'em someplace safe because the water it's all cattle, ranch land. And especially when you're spraying a lot of water everywhere once they get muddy, you don't really wanna drink out of them. So people will rubber put baggies over 'em things like that. Or some of 'em now have caps on 'em. So yeah, you learn a few things like that. [00:29:22] Craig Dalton: Yeah, so interesting. Okay. So interestingly, you know, when I've been hearing accounts of the 2022 event, depending on your pace, people seem to have had very different experiences. So when, when you listen to the pros, they seem to have gotten through some of these. Hugely muddy sections either got through it before it rained. So they just rode, rode the road. When you guys might have been hiking at early slopping through mud, or they had, you know, it just hit 'em at a different point in the race. When were you encountering mud and what was it like? [00:29:56] Doug Roeder: Yeah, mile 1 25. . We, we rolled into that. And I was on, you know, the salsa cutthroat with the 29 inch wheels and 2.2 inch tires. And I'm like, ah, this thing's, this thing's a mountain bike. I can ride through this. No problem. And I made it, I don't know, maybe 50 yards and just was slipping and sliding. Then it was time to hike and the smart folks, maybe some. Folks with cyclo cross backgrounds picked up their bikes. So they didn't keep accumulating mud fools like me pushed it along until the mud kind of clogged my wheel. Then I was stuck. Fortunately I had noticed in the shops in Emporia the previous day, everybody was handing out those paint sticks, the paint, stirring sticks. I was like, huh, maybe they know something that, that I, that I should know. And I, so I grabbed a couple of those and they were incredibly useful for cleaning the mud off. And that's, you know, I kinda. Tried a couple different tactics but pushed through it as fast as I could and got to the end. And there was kinda a stream where you could rinse your bike off. I hit it faster than my buddy did. And when he, he hit it a little after I did and it slowed him down a lot more. So I ended up waiting probably 20 minutes for him to get through it and it kind of crushed him carrying his bike through that. He came out the other side and was just an absolute wreck. So, and at that point, the sun came out. So we had just kinda, I'd had a nice break. He had suffered through carrying his bike through this stuff, [00:31:12] Craig Dalton: Yeah. If you think about it, you know, he is got a, you know, call it a 20 pound bike. He probably had 10 pounds of mud on it and gear, you know, it's just backbreaking work, pushing a bike. They just weren't designed to be pushed. [00:31:24] Doug Roeder: push or trying to carry it with a, you know, a bag strapped underneath it and a bunch of gear inside it. I mean, it was just a freaking mess and. Yeah, everybody was in that stream, washing their bikes off. It was a pretty miserable scene. And there were these two little kids that were, they were promising everybody. That that was the last. Which it ended up not being, and I'm still those I'm those two little kids sour folks and trying every, but was brutal was [00:31:50] Craig Dalton: Yeah. [00:31:52] Doug Roeder: both through that. [00:31:53] Craig Dalton: And I just think about that at mile 1 25, having to kind of reset and just having gone through that moment and say, I've got 75 frigging, more miles of gravel to go, not even thinking about there being mud because of the lying kids. You thought you were gonna be cruising back into Emporia. So you guys get back on your bike, you start hitting it is your buddy starting to recover a little. [00:32:13] Doug Roeder: No, cuz there was a, there was some decent climbing right after that. And around mile one 30, there was kind of a long climb. Like I said, the sun was back out at the time we were doing it and his stomach just failed him at that point. He got sick on the side of the road, tried to remount, tried to keep going and couldn't do it. He was done. So, he was upset. I was upset, sad for him. Really sad for him at that point I kinda looked at my watch. I was like, If I take off now, I know I'd kind of been resting a little bit waiting for him. I was like, I could, I could get in before midnight. I could, you know, and the party closes down and pour you at midnight. So I'd never experienced the post party. So I was all motivated to make some, some lemonade outta the lemons and and took off at that point. Yeah, I, [00:32:53] Craig Dalton: what a tough moment for you. Just, I mean, to know that he had, he had had that issue a couple years back. And to go on and go forward when he's sitting there on the side of the road, which obviously I'm sure any friend would want you to continue, but I'm sure you rolled out with a little bit of a heavy heart. [00:33:09] Doug Roeder: Well, I just knew that I'd have to come back one more time. So yeah, I, you know, these things happened and he was upset. I was upset. I felt a little bit of a heavy heart, but mostly like, okay, this is just things happen out here. And he called the Jeep and they came to get him. I failed to mention, you know, his dad who's 81, 82 and had been our support crew. The previous year. He had so much fun being our support crew that he had signed up for the five mile race and had bought a bike and was, and so I was, he was looking forward to just getting back to seeing how his dad, when he'd received some texts from his dad, A picture of him in the pouring rain and saying how much funny it had. And so he was excited to get back and see his dad and meet me at the finish. So we were actually in pretty good spirits. Surprisingly, it's just, again, it's one of those things that happens and if you can't eat and stomach's, can't go on. So he's a pretty upbeat dude. And so I took off at that point and rode hard for 70 miles. I finished around 11, 15 in the dark and party was still going on. So I got, got a couple free beers and some tacos and it was it was really fun. And we we had, I didn't mention this. We had given a few folks rides from Kansas city down to Emporia, and that was kind of a crazy experience too. Two folks two cyclists from New York, apparently there's a New York city gravel scene. And one of the racers was a 25 year old with a, a bike packing background. She was coming to do the 200, the other racer was a 37 year old father with a road racing background. He was there to do the hundred. Neither of 'em had been to Kansas before. Their flight had been delayed and they got in at like four in the morning. And so their friends had gone down to Emporia. They needed a ride. They got on the Facebook page and my friend had noticed them and we had room in the car. So just riding down to Emporia again with these two folks. Had never been to Kansas before they're New York city, gravel writers and they're, they're coming here to, to challenge themselves. It was, it was pretty shocking for two like high school buddies from Kansas to see that. And so one of them came across the finish line while we were sitting there around midnight. And again, it's the range of folks you encounter there. Folks like the last gentleman you had on Peter Sagan gravel writers from New York. It's just, it's, it's very strange to me. And and kind of fun. [00:35:18] Craig Dalton: Have you noticed it blow up even further from the 2019 experience to now in terms of the scale of everything? Yeah, [00:35:23] Doug Roeder: The scale the range of backgrounds it's it really has kept, kept going and it's, it's. Again, you know, we have some of the most amazing cycling on the planet here in the bay area. But I still get a big hoot outta going and riding crappy roads in Kansas with thousands of all over the world. It's, it's a weird thing, but its. [00:35:42] Craig Dalton: I think that, I mean, the team, we started it always. Had this idea of what the community experience was gonna be like for the event and always, and this is what I, I love about every event organizer that I talk to. It's a, it's a love letter to your local trails, right? You're you've got the opportunity to put on an event and you're gonna just wanna showcase everything that your home town has to offer. And that's when we get the best events, like when they come from the. [00:36:09] Doug Roeder: And it's inspired. I mean, there's a, there's a gravel ride in the Kansas or Missouri area, like every weekend now. So it's, there's a lot of folks, you know, and then there are people kind of replicating the model in other states and and I mean, the grasshoppers have been going on out here forever, but it, it it's really kind of created a template, I think for a lot of folks to create races in places where folks hadn't thought to do it before and a lot of fun. [00:36:35] Craig Dalton: Yeah, I think that's, I've talked to with a bunch of event organizers about sort of the economic impact of bringing these types of events to rural communities and the dynamics that come into play. You actually get supportive city councils and land [00:36:47] Doug Roeder: Yes [00:36:49] Craig Dalton: Whereas I, you know, [00:36:50] Doug Roeder: I mean, I, yeah. [00:36:51] Craig Dalton: Yeah, yeah. You get the high school kids coming out. Whereas out here in the bay area, you get nothing but resistance cuz no one wants anybody to come ride here. [00:37:00] Doug Roeder: Yeah. And as big as Levi's rad got at one point, I mean, there were thousands and thousands of people. I think you, you might meet a few locals. Who'd be out cheering on their front lawn, but a lot of folks just resented all the cyclists, you know, hogging the roads that day. And whereas out in the middle of Emporia, I mean, everybody is incredibly happy to see you. It's it's really kind of fun. [00:37:19] Craig Dalton: Yeah. I imagine out in the smaller communities or even going by someone's house, out on the Prairie, like they're out there just enjoying the spectacle that comes by once a. [00:37:28] Doug Roeder: I think, you know, in the, the, what's the name of the town where the second checkpoint was Madison, I think the entire town showed up downtown. You know, and that was, they were just having a big whole party and it's yeah. So the communities where they have the support stops really show up in force You got volunteer kids, you know, Manning the crew for hire. And it's just a, yeah, there's a lot of enthusiasm for the racers and the race. [00:37:52] Craig Dalton: Yeah. Yeah. Amazing. Well, thanks Doug, for sharing so much about this story, I love that you've been doing this. I love that gravel's kind of reconnected us socially and we'll definitely get out and do some riding together at some point in the near future. [00:38:04] Doug Roeder: Congratulations on the podcast. It was it really warm my heart to find this. As I kind of discovered the whole gravel scene, I was oblivious to it. Like I said, until, you know, a few random people clued me into this race in Kansas and it's it's been really fun to reconnect and see, see what you've done with this podcast. And I hope to get you out to Emporia. We gotta bed for you and Kansas. Anytime you're ready to come out. [00:38:24] Craig Dalton: I love it. The draw continues to get heavier and heavier for me. So I think I'll get out there one of these days [00:38:30] Doug Roeder: Sounds good, Craig. I'll be. [00:38:32] Craig Dalton: upstairs. Right on. That's going to do it for this week's edition of the gravel ride podcast. Huge. Thanks to my friend, Doug, for joining us and huge kudos to Doug for. Getting across that finish line of which sounded like a tough deal this year. If you're interested in connecting with me, I encourage you to join the ridership. Simply visit www.theridership.com. That's a free global cycling community, lots of smart and passionate athletes in there to connect with from all over the world. If you're able to support the show. Please visit, buy me a coffee.com/the gravel ride. Or if you have a moment, ratings and reviews are hugely appreciated. Another thank you to our sponsor athletic greens. They've been a long time sponsor of the show and a product that I really enjoy and use every day. So be sure to check it out@athleticgreens.com slash the gravel ride. That's going to do it until next time here's to finding some dirt under your wheels

In this episode we get to flex Ann's specialty in the both the cattle markets AND western Kansas geography to debunk the fake news surrounding the “Great Cattle Die-off in Western Kansas.” While it IS true that the food system and supply chains are under kinetic attack, this news of cattle death is merely coincidental timing, a nothing-burger that won't affect the price of hamburger nearly as much as diesel prices and DEF availability.   This podcast is a companion to the blog post: As a cattle person, I need to weigh-in on the “mass cattle die-off” video that's going around.   Feedback: please send your questions, comments, suggestions, and happy news item to podcast@barnhardt.biz — or you can leave voicemail feedback at (302) 648-6373‬. (Alternate email addresses are supernerdmedia@protonmail.com and annbarnhardt@protonmail.com if you are looking for something more secure.)

Holy smokes it's been a busy week! But don't worry folks, we still had time to sit down and record another awesome episode this week! Hopper got a couple more projects, because why not! Zach's been busy prepping for a week of vacation in the Black Hills of South Dakota. Oh Yeah, and we sit down with a couple of badass brothers, Dylan and Josh Dowell! Dylan is the tire carrier for the #19 Bass Pro Shops Toyota Camry in the NASCAR Cup Series and Josh works on the sponsorship side of the sport for KansasLand Tire! We talk racing, family, and maybe a few funny stories in between! These brothers have had an awesome journey thru racing, and it all started in the tiny town of Fowler, KS!

Outer space was on the minds of Kansans in 1972. Kansas astronaut Ron Evans journeyed to the moon on the Apollo 17 mission. Western Kansas was being considered for the new Space Shuttle launch site, and some locals did not like that idea. And the state was a hotbed of UFO sightings, including notable encounters in Dighton and Delphos. (Note: Segment 2 starts at 0:19:20 and segment 3 starts at 0:36:02)

Reiss Livestock Raised The Reserve Grand Champion Market Hog @ 2022 Houston Livestock Show -Reiss Livestock Aggresively Breeding Show Steers & Show Hogs In 2022 Website: https://www.facebook.com/Reiss-Livestock-111747315513457/Val Reiss :: (785) 821-1010Dakota Reiss :: (620) 220-4199

Chris visits with Clay Scott, who farms in Stanton and Grant County, is a member of the Ground Water Management District #3 and is on the Kansas Aqueduct Coalition.  We discuss the work the coalition has done on the feasibility of moving water to Western Kansas, Colorado and beyond.

Welcome back to Soil Solutions with Jessica Gnad.  This is the second of three episodes highlighting the Kansas Dept. of Agriculture's Division of Conservation. MIchael Thompson is a KDA Divison of Conservation representative for the Western Kansas region. In this episode, Michael shares his thoughts on why and how we can better manage our soil, mitigating erosion and declining water, the unique challenges farmers face in western Kansas, and more. Michael farms in partnership as Thompson Farm and Ranch LLC with his brother Brian and father Richard. The operation is located in Northeast Norton County near Almena, KS.  They grow corn, soybeans, and wheat.  They also manage a cow/calf beef herd that rotationally grazes on native range and diverse cover crops grown on farmland when there is not a cash grain crop growing.  The operation is 100 percent no-till with a focus on increasing biology, soil cover, water holding capacity, and carbon levels of the soils they manage.   The last several years Thompson Farm & Ranch has been below their normal precipitation but still has been able to produce good yields in grain crops while providing enough forage for the cattle herd. The change in land management on Thompson Farm & Ranch has made a difference in surviving the years of less than normal rainfall. He is a board member for Kansas Soil Health Alliance as well as No-Till on the Plains. 

In this week's episode Patrick and Greg explore Sewall Wright's path tracing rules as an alternative to covariance and matrix algebra, including how the rules work and the tremendous insights they can provide toward understanding a model. Along the way they also discuss the Unabomber, Crate & Barrel, grocery lane profiling, tedious as poop, throwing dead cats, senior animal husbandman, using your fingers, creepy guy in an alley, sweat pants vs. suits of armor, getaway car drivers, hold my Guinea pig, chalkboard contests, Western Kansas, and getting tased. 

Western Kansas sitdown with Scott Anderson of Patriots of Praises. Brian was humble, honored, and touched after spending time at the prairie farmhouse. Scott is committed to impacting our veterans and changing lives. This is a powerful episode and we all hope you enjoy the show! Scott Anderson Patriots of Praise scott@patriotsofpraise.org www.patriotsofpraise.org  125 Leatherwood Circle  Batesville, AR 72501   “Blessed be the LORD, my rock, Who trains my hands for war, And my fingers for battle;” Psalms 144:1 NASB Uplnd Outfitters Be Relentless - Upland Hunting Technical Gear Discount Code - Amaazen to get 20% off SportDog E-Collars, GPS Collars, Training Collar, All kinds of dogs training supplies! a Patriots of Praise Donate and support this organization. Support the show (https://www.patreon.com/amaazenoutdoors) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Western Kansas sitdown with Scott Anderson of Patriots of Praises. Brian was humble, honored, and touched after spending time at the prairie farmhouse. Scott is committed to impacting our veterans and changing lives. This is a powerful episode and we all hope you enjoy the show! Scott Anderson Patriots of Praise scott@patriotsofpraise.org www.patriotsofpraise.org  125 Leatherwood Circle  Batesville, AR 72501   “Blessed be the LORD, my rock, Who trains my hands for war, And my fingers for battle;” Psalms 144:1 NASB Uplnd Outfitters Be Relentless - Upland Hunting Technical Gear Discount Code - Amaazen to get 20% off SportDog E-Collars, GPS Collars, Training Collar, All kinds of dogs training supplies! a Patriots of Praise Donate and support this organization. Support the show (https://www.patreon.com/amaazenoutdoors) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Kyle Austin is a country artist originally from Western Kansas. He's lived in Nashville about 6 months. His debut self-produced album "Out-Law" is available everywhere music is streamed or sold digitally. Find Kyle Austin: www.kyleaustinmusic.com Social Media and Twitch Stream: @kyleaustinmusic  --------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Find Hunter Thomas Mounce: www.huntermounce.com Social Media: @huntertmounce

1. Wheat Futures Jump in Overnight Trading; 2. Weekly Corn, Soybean Export Inspections Fall; 3. Winter-Storm Warnings Issued For Parts of Western Kansas

On this episode, we'll take a look at the 1967 film IN COLD BLOOD adapted from the groundbreaking novel by Truman Capote and the horrific true events that both the book and film are based on.A tragic and senseless murder of an unsuspecting family, and of the subsequent capture, trial, and execution of their cold-blooded killers. Home Invasion on the high plains of Western Kansas and a story that shocked a Nation.Please like, subscribe, and share!For more information about this episode, show notes, and links, visit www.reelcrimespod.com.Subscribe on iTunes, Google Podcasts, Spotify, Amazon Music, or wherever awesome podcasts are found.Connect with us:Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/reelcrimesTwitter: https://twitter.com/reelcrimesInstagram: https://www.instagram.com/reelcrimesYouTube: https://bit.ly/3IhRTZWTikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@reelcrimesWebsite: http://www.reelcrimespod.com

Ken McCarty of McCarty Family Farms joins the show to talk about dairying in Western Kansas and how strong partnerships help them reach their goals.