Take a basket full of challenging ingredients, a difficult workspace and time on the clock, and you’ve got Food Network’s “Chopped.” Add cowboy boots, campfires and wagons, and you’ve got the Chandler Chuck Wagon Cook-off — something akin to an Old West version of the TV cooking contest.

Take a basket full of challenging ingredients, a difficult workspace and time on the clock, and you’ve got Food Network’s “Chopped.” Add cowboy boots, campfires and wagons, and you’ve got the Chandler Chuck Wagon Cook-off — something akin to an Old West version of the TV cooking contest.

Take a basket full of challenging ingredients, a difficult workspace and time on the clock, and you’ve got Food Network’s “Chopped.” Add cowboy boots, campfires and wagons, and you’ve got the Chandler Chuck Wagon Cook-off — something akin to an Old West version of the TV cooking contest.

The Chandler Chuck Wagon Cook-Off, named one of the best such events by American Cowboy Magazine, is seeking vendors for this year's cook-off Nov. 11-12 at Tumbleweed Ranch.

It's the time of year we all look forward to here in Chandler. The start of February brings the best temperatures, the prospect of more outdoor activities and the excitement of spring training approaching on the horizon. To help get you in the spring mood and keep you active or learning new skills, the City of Chandler Recreation Division's spring Break Time magazine is now available at many City facilities or online at www.chandleraz.gov/breaktime. It features a variety of all-ages classes for March, April and May, including spring intersession youth camps from March 14-25. Class registration starts this Saturday, Feb. 5 at 10 a.m. (Friday, Feb. 11 at 10 a.m. for non-residents). Call 480-782-2727 or 480-782-2900 for more information.

Rawhide at Wild Horse Pass, 5700 W. North Loop Road, Chandler, is offering Sundown cookouts on Saturday nights in November. The chuck-wagon cookout under the stars begins with a mule-drawn hay wagon ride to the desert cookout area, and the evening features live country music, cowboy games and storytelling, line-dance and 2-step instructions and a marshmallow roast.

For cowboys spending long days in the saddle on the open range, home base was a wagon laden with dry beans, flour and coffee.

Bring the whole family to Chandler Museum's first Chandler Chuck Wagon Cook-off and savor the sights, sounds, smells and tastes of the Old West that will be on display at Tumbleweed Ranch next Saturday, November 13.

Job fair offered for

Job fair offered for

Job fair offered for

Is there some cooler air finally approaching at the end of the summer tunnel now that Labor Day Weekend has arrived?

One of Mesa’s most familiar family attractions is getting a makeover, Hollywood style. Workers are installing old-fashioned lighting, curtains and other touches at Rockin’ R Ranch, the compact Western-themed town at Baseline and Recker roads, in anticipation for “The Howdy Show,” a new production by a California-based entertainment company that’s produced shows for Disneyland, Universal Studios, NFL Super Bowls and the Olympic Games.

“If you have ever or never enjoyed the charm of an annual small-town celebration, we have a classic example for all ages right here in Willcox, original home of a famous singing cowboy,” said Rex Allen Days committee president Peggy Judd.

Pinetop-Lakeside is a second hometown for many Arizonans. In the summer, it’s a haven from the Valley’s tripledigit temperatures; in winter, it’s a skier’s playground.

Lily Rodgers holds up what, for her, is essential equipment.

March 18, 2005

November 4, 2004

Jeremy Pomeroy is onto something that, years from now, we may all be thankful for.