Donkey Basketball in Pinedale
by Terry Allen
May 8, 2018
Pinedale High School hosted a fun night of Donkey Basketball on Monday evening, May 7th in the Wrangler gym. The event raised money for the National Honor Society scholarship.
Jeff Pittsinger is a Donkey Wrangler from Oregon. I asked him what town and he said central Oregon. His last stop on the Donkey Basketball tour was in Ammon, Idaho. After he leaves Pinedale, he goes to Hulett, Wyoming. There are 80 games on the circuit before he gets to go back home to get his nails done. That’s what his wife does for a living; and he wouldn’t answer me when I asked, so I’m taking that as a yes. I just know if I had been hauling 9 donkey’s around the country for three months, I’d just want to sit down and have a beer and if she wanted to do my nails, I’d let her.
The average donkey lives to 27 years of age. Some live to be 40 if their genetics are good, they are well cared for and they don’t live in grizzly country. Jeff’s donkeys were all between the age of 6 and 18, so I’m going to estimate they were about 18 to 45 in human years.
As I was looking at the donkeys, I started to think a couple of them looked a lot like burros. Jeff said there isn’t much difference and I waited for him to give a bigger answer but he didn’t. Jeff has been a Donkey Wrangler for 8 years, so I wondered if the donkeys have rubbed off on him and that is why he was reluctant to say much. You know, donkeys having a reputation for being stubborn and all.
But then he started to talk more and told me all kinds of stuff. The donkey shoes are made out of boot heels, and they don’t get saddled up, they just wear bareback pads, and they have the reins gathered under the chin and don’t use a bit of any kind.
Finally all the riders showed up and Jeff gave them the rules of donkey basketball and donkey handling. The only part I remember is "don’t pull on the tails and ears and don’t beat them…just expect them not to cooperate…because that’s just part of the fun," he said.
Doc Sare was a rider in a colorful shirt and he said his daughter Evelyn had dressed him for the event. Urie was doing a cheek to cheek cuddle with a donkey and a burro and she said it was her first time to meet donkeys.
Finally Jeff said: "Okay everybody, grab whatever donkey you want." There was a rush for donkeys as if they had all been picking out their favorites the whole time.
The game: Teacher teams against student teams, and it mostly consisted of slow walking donkeys following each other no matter what the riders wanted. The donkeys did know to go up and down the court, but I think it was only because there were doors at both ends and they were trying to make their get-away. Anyway, as they passed from end to end, riders tried to throw the ball in the basket as the donkeys headed for the doors. Quite often balls went out of bounds and riders had to dismount and chase the ball. Chase isn’t the right word. Try to drag a donkey with all your might…is the correct phrase. Seriously, the riders pulled so hard they were almost horizontal to the floor. The rule is, you can't let go of the donkey.
There was a lot of slipping and falling because of this and that’s when I noticed the riders wore all kinds of shoes and boots on their feet. No city school would ever let anyone on a court floor like we do and I think that’s a nice thing. In fact, I think that question should be on all job applications for administrators and teachers, that way nobody will ever change the rules. I’ve been to courts in big cities and they make you walk around in socks, and at the end of games you have to sort thru 1000 shoes to find your own.
Well, the teachers won the Pinedale World Championship of Donkey Basketball and Jeff said he was impressed with all the good riders and shooters we had; and he really liked how all the kids came out to pet the donkeys at every break and halftime.
I asked Jeff if he knew where the food called Burritos came from and he didn’t answer me.
Thank you Dawn Ballou at Pinedale Online for sponsoring this story. I always wanted to see a donkey basketball game.
Terry Allen: txpartisan@gmail.com
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