Rain holds off for day of outdoor fun

    Rain most of the day was forecast for Saturday, but the moisture held off until the evening allowing all events at the Enders Outdoor Extravaganza to go on as planned.
    The only hiccup came at the day’s final event at Enders Lake Recreation Area—country singer Jake Jacobson’s 7:15 p.m. concert which had to be moved inside a tent.
    Supt. Beau Licking made the decision to move it inside from an  open air stage because of the weather. There was also some lightning in the area.
    Jacobson’s concert started about an hour late.
    The rest of the day full of activities went on as planned. Licking and event coordinator Dayna Scherbarth said it was a great day.
    “We were impressed with how everything went Saturday,” Licking said.
    Scherbarth said Luke Curl of Wauneta was crowned Grand Champion in the smoking contest, with a tie for Reserve Champion between RJ’s BBQ, a Colorado team, and Squeelers BBQ from Kansas. They prepared pork butt, pork loin, ribs and a BBQ sauce.
    There were winners in each of the individual divisions, as well as the overall grand and reserve champions. They will be listed in a story next week.
    The mid-afternoon trick shooting show featuring Steve Gould drew nearly 100 people who were entertained for about an hour.
    Gould involved his 11-year-old son Rylan in several of his demonstrations, as Rylan tossed the clay targets for his dad as he shot from various positions, sometimes using a pair of shotguns. Young Rylan showed his shooting expertise, too.
    The elder Gould told the crowd the hardest position from which to shoot is behind the back.
    Noting health is important to him, Gould, aided by his son, shot at targets during push-ups, sit-ups and other exercises.
    He shot at fruit, a basketball and filled soft drink cans, even hitting something as small as a mustard seed.
    He ended the show with some speed shooting and at nine clay targets thrown up at once—he hit eight on the first try.
    Gould said he was not a good shooter when he started, but it was a dream and something he believed he could do. He went to college to become a financial adviser.
    “I had a vision and believed in my heart it could be a reality,” he said.
    He used vision, target and focus to reach his dream.
    One of the new events at this year’s event was a cornhole tournament organized by the C2 Baggers, which drew 20 teams.
    BD and the Boys entertained on stage from 4 to 6 p.m. as people lined up for free BBQ meat from the smoking contest.
    The five-member band from the Grand Island area sang several popular numbers from Jimmy Buffet, the Beatles, Eric Clapton, the Eagles, Paul Revere and the Raiders and more.
    Jacobson traveled here from Reno, Nevada and is considered an up-and-coming country star.
    While some people left due to the rain, he played to a group of around 50-75 from under the tent. Many enjoyed his music outside the tent as the rain moved out of the area.
    Scherbarth said they are already planning for a 4th annual Extravaganza in 2024 on June 8. Next year, 50 years of hunter education will be celebrated, as well, she added.