Hay man, it's the Barkhursts

A large contingent of Barkhursts showed up at the Town and Country office Wednesday to accept the Platte Valley Arts Council award for the council's recent hay bale sculpture competition.

Platte Valley Arts ccoucil representative Mary Martin said the competition was tight right up to the Halloween voting deadline with the Barkhurst's "Hay Man" and Kelly Land and Cattle Company's John Deere tractor sculpture in a dead heat.

The Hay Bale Sculpture Competition Traveling Trophy, created by Saratoga artist Sierra Smith, ended up in Barkhurst hands though as several members of the Barkhurst family encouraged friends to vote for their favorite sculpture on Facebook-making a last minute push to win by 20 votes.

Final vote tallies were: 90 for the Barkhurst Family's "Hay man it's fall;" 70 for Kelly Cattle Company's "It's just a Deere;" 45 for Town and Country's "Home is where your hay is;" and 35 for The Red Wagon's "Hay you bean?" (for photos of these sculptures, see page 20 of the Oct. 25 edition of the Saratoga Sun)

Of the traveling award, Caysen Barkhurst issued this challenge: "We will win it back."