Mule jumping contest draws overflow crowd at fair

The stadium at the East Perry County Community Fair overflowed to the arena's perimeter where mule jump enthusiasts lined the railings or sat above the culvert where concrete served as a bench.

Former East Perry Fair Board member Delbert Schmidt of Altenburg, Mo., guessed there were several thousand in the stadium seats. He estimated the fair, held Friday and Saturday, brought in 25,000 to 30,000 people.

The mules' stage was at the center of the ring where iron railings created an open pen, and the distance between the white line and barrier supported by dowel pins was 12 feet. The barrier made a loud noise once upset by the mule -- making it clear he did not qualify to jump. Each mule got two tries at each height with time limitations.

The sole judge, Sean Gray of Whitewater, jumped mules for fun for about 12 years. Gray believes he's been judging about five years. He quit jumping mules because people started taking it too seriously, he said. Mules used to have a longer stretch to take a running jump than now.

Twenty-nine mules were divided into three classes according to height, ranging from less than 47 to more than 52 inches. Most competitors were from surrounding areas with one mule, Supersnowball, from Illinois. A variety of mules -- speckled, tan with black manes, dark brown, white with pink halters, white with green halters -- decorated the rails as they waited their turn.

Some mules lived up to their names like Bucky, who bucked the whole way, but sailed over in the end. Babe gave trouble all the way to the white line, dragging her heels and creating a comical scene. Her handler, Jessica Seyer, tried coaxing her but to no avail. One mule, Chucky, was coaxed with sweet talk by his handler while the two engaged in a mild tug of war. Chucky did jump, though.

Calahan, the smallest, said to be only 4 months old, was cheered on by the audience as his handler made small, gentle tugs on the halter.

The announcer, Charlie Mangels, told stories that connected the handlers with their mules or the jumping history of a mule, if he had one.

"The biggest reason so many show up is because of Charlie," mule jump chairman Mike Engert said, "He tells little stories for every mule. They've been doing this for 26 years, and in the beginning it only started with just a few mules. It just grew and grew."

Mangels filled first time attendees in on the nature of mules, "Stubborn? No, they're not stubborn. Mules know their abilities and what they're going to do. The difference between a mule and a horse is that a mule will not injure himself."

Anyone getting ready for next year's competition should know that training mules takes a little motivation -- in the form of treats, according to Gray.

As for making bets -- their ears indicate whether a mule will jump. Kathy Schlimpert of Altenburg said, "If their ears are up they'll jump."

cpagano@semissourian.com

335-6611, extension 133