Webmasters Notes.  This is a description of the first Santa Fe Trail Rendevous held at the NRA Whittington Center at Raton New Mexico.  It's included here since it was written of and described by a CSMLA member.  More of a story than a description but it certainly follows in fine mountain man tradition.

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The First Raton Rendezvous by Dick Peterson, D.C.

Dick told this story to his wife Joanna as she put it on the computer August 1,1993.

The first Santa Fe Trail Rendezvous was held in June of 1975 at Coal Canyon on the NRA Whittington Center. Coal Canyon is 7 miles south west of Raton, New Mexico and is the primitive sight for muzzle loading events. Twenty seven thousand acres were given to the NRA for this facility to be used as a shooting range.

Hez Salsbury Jr. and I teamed up in the shooting contest that first year. Little Hez was 12 years old at that time.- I call him "Little Hez" because his father and grandfather also have the name of Hez. Big Hez was tired because of the over time he had been putting in at the CF&I. He spent most of his time sleeping and did very little shooting. It was quite funny because everyone thought we were a father and son team. I kept telling them that my kids were better looking, but I taught this kid how to shoot.

Little Hez and I won nearly every contest they had that year. Lee Robertson was the bushway that year. He lived in Salt Lake City, Utah. A "bushway" is the head duck in charge of the entire rendezvous.

This was the first rendezvous held at the NRA Whittington Center and mountain men came from all over the west. General Maxwell, the president of the NRA, came from Washington, D.C. He was the person that presented the awards at the camp fire on Saturday nite. He called me the Mark Spitz of the rendezvous.

My wife, Joanna, was there that year and she won a medal for first place in the women's event. When she accepted her medal, General Maxwell gave her a kiss on the cheek. When he presented me with another award, I asked him for a kiss too. He didn't think that was funny.

The next day I had a delegation of mountain men from Salt Lake City come to me and tell me that they didn't think that it was a bit funny that I tried to kiss the General. Of course, I told them that they had been kissing up to him all week and I thought it was my turn. They didn't think that was funny either. Ever since that time some of those fellers have been trying to get even with me.