Weather no damper on having a good time

CLOVIS — Celebrated as the rain may be in eastern New Mexico, it put a slight damper on the outdoor programming Saturday in Clovis. But only a slight one.

Hundreds still convened for a combined Juneteenth effort in Potter Park, and 22 cars still ran down a section of Sycamore Street for the 17th annual Clovis Soap Box Derby. Both events had to wrap up somewhat sooner than first forecast, but it's hard to be too put off by precipitation in the summer.

Portales also hosted a day of outdoor activities, from a morning parade to blue grass music and more. In the case of all three events, the sunny Saturday morning saw good sized crowds before rains hit the region from a decaying hurricane out of the Pacific ocean.

Food, Freedom, Fellowship

In their first joint effort, Clovis' NAACP branch merged its 6th annual faith-forward Juneteenth programming with the 26th annual free barbecue bonanza for the same occasion by William "Peel" Hall and company.

Roughly 300 turned out for the combined events, which began with the first part of the NAACP's schedule of introduction, proclamation and music. At noon the attendees set into the copious barbecue spread, supported in part by contributions from Hall's friends from out of town.

Robert Farley drove in from Las Cruces with a grill in tow, while James Brown applied some techniques from his parents, who ran a barbecue restaurant in Clovis in the late sixties. Juneteenth originated as a celebration of Texas slaves learning of their freedom, and on Saturday it also stood as an occasion to remember, to recognize and to visit with family and friends.

Mary Toliver Davis came in this weekend from Denver to be with some of her Clovis friends, among them Margaret Beachum, Della Martin, Bertha Grant and Sheila Holley.

"I really enjoyed visiting with people," Beachum said.

Davis recalled attending junior high in Clovis during the transition from segregated schools in the mid-1950s.

"Compared with other places, we moved into integration pretty smoothly," she said.

Rep. George Dodge Jr. (D-Santa Rosa) also attended the programming Saturday. He said he's been coming for a few years now and that the joint venture came out "great."

"I think that's what made it all the better. Everyone was there together for one really nice event," he told The News on Saturday "I think (Emancipation) was a very important time in our history and I think today was a really great commemoration of it."

The rain, which arrived around 1:30 p.m., brought the programming to a premature conclusion. NAACP branch president said that unfortunately meant the remaining schedule of songs and presentations couldn't be fulfilled, but sometimes "you just have to go with the flow."

"I went quite well, we just got kind of rained out at the end," he told The News. "You don't have control over that so you just have to accept it. Those that were there still really enjoyed themselves, that's the important part. (For the rest) they'll just have to wait until next year."

Hall had a similar attitude toward the rain. He said it was the first time in over 25 years that rain had struck the summer event, but "you can't stop God's work."

Soap Box Heroes

It's not much surprise that Saturday also saw the first significant rain for the 17th annual Clovis Soap Box Derby, which organizers said saw its largest turnout yet. The mounting clouds from a north-northeast-bound weather pattern only added to the escalating drama of the proceedings, which narrowed down 22 child participants across the double-elimination heats and culminated in a final race punctuated by a massive sudden downpour just before 2 p.m.

Katie Prine, age 9, took home the first place trophy from her first such contest in Clovis, and advances to the 81st All-American Soap Box Derby World Championships July 21 in Akron, Ohio.

This will be Prine's first big trip out of town past Colorado, which she will make with her mother and siblings.

Prine said she was nervous and excited for the big competition. She watched her cousin race in the local derby last year, but only spent Friday preparing for this year's contest.

"She's a natural, I guess," said her mother Melody Prine.

Katie said she felt confident for Akron, where she would apply her strategy of staying low.

"My secret," she told The News, "is I keep my head really down low where only my eyes were showing so I can see."

Elias Bocanegra, 12, also advised a similar strategy, "keep low," which brought him to second place in what was also his first derby.

His mother said it's been a great learning experience for the whole family.

"There's so much that goes into, it's all very precise," said JoNella Bocanegra.

Derby Director Larry Erwin said he was disappointed the event had to end early, terminating one heat shy of an ideal finish due to lightning concerns from the county's emergency management director on scene.

"When that last episode (of rain) hit they decided, better to shut it down," he told The News. "(Prine) had beaten (Bocanegra) twice before and in the last heat we got to run she beat him by about four seconds. It wasn't looking like it was going to be close anyway. We hated to have to shut it down anyway, but the kids' safety is more important than anything."

Riley Little, 13, finished third in the contest.

Scattered showers were expected Saturday night, said an Albuquerque National Weather Service Hydrometeorological technician, but much of the rain activity came through eastern New Mexico only long enough to make the early weekend programming a little more interesting.