Who is Bob Davies?

As a highly successful former Cal State Fullerton football coach, Bob Davies is a highly sought after keynote speaker and human potential trainer. Bob Davies possesses a powerful presentation style. If you want to experience immediate results,  learn how you can take immediate action and take it to your world, you are invited to this special EVENT. If you are interested in learning more about attending this life-changing seminar, please leave a comment and let us know of your interest in attending this once-in-lifetime event. Just leave a comment below, call CENTURY 21 BHJ at (307) 672-5838 or email us at yourfriends@century21bhj.com.

The EVENT is to be held at:

Sheridan College (Northern Wyoming Community College)
Address: 3059 Coffeen Avenue
Griffith Building C-TEL (Center for Technology Enhanced Learning)
Sheridan, WY 82801

We look forward to hearing from you soon.

Bruce

Going Beyond the Typical Real Estate Application

Going green in the Sheridan real estate market is most often thought of in terms of building “green” structures and yes – that’s true. Sure we encourage Sheridan home builders to implement these green building concepts and use materials that embrace going green. Ones that easily come to mind include:

• Use recycled building materials whenever possible
• Use low-flow toilets
• Integrate landscapes that are hardy and depend less on fertilizers and water
• Use rain barrels to capture rainwater runoff for toilets, watering plants and gardens
• Integrate into the home architectural designs that maximize energy conservation
• Be sure to use our local recycling program for glass bottles, plastics and newspaper

Green Living is a Lifestyle and it’s Our Future!

Going green is more than the mere purchase of a Honda scooter, it’s all about an attitude. Going green is a lifestyle, and it’s the future of this office. Here at CENTURY 21 BHJ Realty, we encourage our agents to reduce their dependence on paper, and to use less of the natural resources we take for granted.

Trading Horse Power for Putter Power

Normally around here one might settle for a horse, but we thought a motor might come in handy. A big thanks to everyone at Valley Motor Honda for making the purchase fun.

If You See Our Agents Tooling Around Sheridan on the BHJ Green Machine

Be sure to say howdy. Because scooters are pretty rare sights, it’s for sure you’ll see us tooling around town. Just don’t expect our agents to drive buyers around town to preview homes on the BHJ Green Machine. What would we say to “our horse”?

Helping you keep it green,

Bruce

The city of Sheridan has much to offer. Main Street is lined with beautiful shops that are run by lovely people. Whenever you enter one you are greeted with a “Hello, how are you?” Just perpendicular to Main Street, statues are abundant on Grinnell Plaza in front of City Hall. Some are owned by the city and others are just out on loan. Kendrick Park, a big part of our small town, has the most lush green grass and towering trees around. On the other side of the park you find a pool and you can even get ice cream in the summer. Overlooking this beautiful park is the buffalo pen, where there are even a few elk.

The summer is a busy time in Sheridan. Fourth of July gives the several firework vendors around town plenty of business. And being such a small town we are close to wide open fields where we can shoot them off. About six miles south of town in Big Horn is the Equestrian Center where, if you don’t like to, or can’t, shoot off fireworks yourself, you can go to watch them professionally done. Starting in the second week of July is the rodeo. For three nights a full-length rodeo takes place at the fairgrounds, only a few minutes drive from downtown. Behind the towering arena stands in the carnival. In addition to different rides and thrills, the carnival offers cotton candy and other treats.

Even the fall and winter are hosts to many activities. The Sheridan High School football teams are great to go watch on a Friday night. There are high school orchestras and bands as well as many other sporting events. Halloween is a wonder event here. There are nice quiet neighborhoods for the children to go trick or treating. It’s even okay to go if you’re less of a child and more of a teenager, most people don’t mind. Once winter has fallen upon us, the ice rink opens and ski and snowboard areas are a short drive away. The mountains are just a few minutes south of Sheridan and great if you like to go snowshoeing or snowmobiling. Even in winter, you can find something to entertain yourself.

Sheridan is a wonderful place to live. Wyoming is general has a staggeringly high number of people under the age of 25, more then many other states. Sheridan reflects this greatly as you will see at the local movie theatre and skate park. There is always something here to do, and the people are welcoming. We’ve got culture that many places aren’t as exposed to.

We Have a Winner!

Rather than clutter this outstanding piece with an introduction, we chose to let Carissa Goodman’s eloquent words convey her first place $100 cash prize entry for the Sheridan High Creative Writing Contest. We congratulate Carissa on her fine efforts in her winning entry “Why Living in Sheridan is Great”. The team at CENTURY 21 BHJ Realty, Inc wishes to thank every Sheridan High student who participated in this contest. Special thanks go to Sheridan High School Principal Ms. Dirlene Wheeler and English teacher, Ms. Rita Geary for their important role in this creative blog writing event.

Show Your Support For These Fine Students!

We encourage you to show your support for these wonderful entries by submitting a comment. It’s very easy. Simply click on the “Be the first to comment on this post” at the top of this page and submit your comments.

Until my next post,

Bruce Garber
Century 21 BHJ Reality, Inc.

Your Sheridan Real Estate Resource

Selecting the winning entries for the Sheridan High School creative writing contest was really difficult. There were many exceptional articles submitted which speaks highly of our teachers and staff at Sheridan High School. We truly appreciate the efforts of Ms. Dirlene Wheeler and English teacher Ms. Rita Geary for coordinating this contest. It is with great excitement we announce the 3rd Place Winner of the Sheridan High School Creative Writing Contest. Congratulations go to 11th grade student Ms. Chelsey Hager for her entry “Sheridan is a Great Place to Live“.

Sheridan High Student Declares “Sheridan is a Great Place to Live”

by Guest Student Blogger Ms. Chelsey Hager

This area is one of the nicest places to live, in the United States. We have good schools and it is a safe environment to raise a child. It is a place where everyone knows their neighbor and people for the most part can be trusted. We have the Big Horn Mountains right outside our back doors, which provide recreational activities all year long. When in need of goods or services, you find yourself able to find what you need is within walking distance. It is incredibly easy to get where you need to be during the summertime; however, in the winter this is not the case. But isn’t it nice to have a few days off every once in awhile?

In such a quiet place people can relax and enjoy themselves, and there is little worry of getting caught in rush hour traffic when running late. Nor should citizens worry about being mugged if they should end up in the wrong part of town—in our area the wrong side of town just means being on the opposite side of town from Wal-Mart. The area in which we live is quiet, peaceful, and safe.

Many people dream of leaving after high school, but many of those people choose to come back when they’re ready to raise a family. This is a good place for children to grow up and get a good start in life. This is an area of hardworking families; there is a great deal of history and tradition displayed all around us. Anyone who can say they were born here should be proud. There are few cities where children are able to get such great educations, where a family can feel safe leaving the back door open to let in fresh air. Sheridan, Wyoming, has to be one of the nicest places to live in the United States.

Congratulations Chelsey!

As a $25 cash prize winner for her third place entry, we congratulate Chelsey for her fine piece on Sheridan, Wyoming. Be sure to leave your comments and words of encouragement for Chelsey as I’m sure she will appreciate your thoughts!

Stay Tuned

We will be announcing the Second Place Winner in our next post!

Until then,

Bruce Garber
Century 21 BHJ Reality, Inc.

Your Sheridan Real Estate Resource

Pride Lives in Sheridan County

If you know a little about CENTURY 21 BHJ Realty, Inc it becomes apparent we take a great deal of pride in being involved in our community. And what better place to invest in the Sheridan community than in our local schools. With that said, it is with that sense of community spirit and pride that CENTURY 21 BHJ Realty, Inc announces the Sheridan High School Creative Writing Contest. CENTURY 21 BHJ Realty will award three cash prizes to three students who write the best articles on the topic “Why Sheridan is a Great Place to Live.”

Key Support Provided by Sheridan High

We are so excited to launch this new initiative and we eagerly look forward to the entries we receive. We would like to take this opportunity to thank Sheridan High School Principal Ms. Dirlene Wheeler and English teacher, Ms. Rita Geary for their important role in coordinating this creative blog writing contest.

Future Real Estate Bloggers in the Making!

Who knows, maybe one day a current Sheridan High School student will using this portal to write interesting articles about the virtues of buying a home here in Sheridan County.

Stay Tuned!

We recommend you stay tuned for future post on the selection of the winning Sheridan High entries.

Until my next post,

Bruce Garber
Century 21 BHJ Reality, Inc.

Your Sheridan Real Estate Resource

It is very apparent that the real estate market has run past its values in various parts of the country.  It’s hard to feel to sorry for them.  The day traders left the stock market several years ago and started using homes as their next vehicle for funding bad habits and hobbies.

Luckily, the Sheridan area did not experience the big run up from investors entering our market.  Our real estate values have certainly increased, but not at the pace that the markets which are crashing did.   What does this mean for buyers and sellers in the Sheridan area?  Read on!

Buyers – what a great time to be a buyer.  Interest rates are still at historic lows.  As compared to a year ago, buyers will find a much better selection of homes.  Not only is the selection better but you can take a bit more time and select several homes to wheel and deal on.  It’s more important than ever to work with one of our professional CENTURY 21 agents who understands the market.  They will help you avoid the homes that are out of line with the value of similar properties in our market. 

Sellers – despite some of the impressions from the national press our market is active and vibrant.  As compared to a year ago, our market has become a more normal market.  It’s very important for Sheridan area sellers to select an agent that really knows the market.  Understanding buyers wants and needs and highlighting your properties uniqueness is what we do best.    I joke to our agents that sellers can no longer buy a property, mow the yard, and place the property back on the market for an extra $20,000.  The good news though, is that your home will sell if marketed and priced properly.  It’s a great time to have the most recognized name in real estate in your yard.  We have big marketing guns and we like to use them.  As markets soften around the country buyers and sellers are looking for recognizable, reliable and consistent agents/companies to work with. 

Have any questions about our market?  Feel free to leave a comment or question.  We are ready to put the gold standard to work for you!  

Until next time…..

Bruce  

Fire in the Big Horn Mountains

The Little Goose fire is now under control. It was quite a sad day to see the face of our mountain burn from Little Goose Creek to Red Grade Road. As always in Wyoming, it was nice seeing neighbors helping neighbors moving personal belongings and animals way from harms way over the weekend of August 11th, 2007. Our hearts go out to everyone who lost cabins and structures in the fire.  Spahn’s famed Bed & Breakfast  was lucky with only having lost an out building.  So, they are still open for business for those of you that make Spahn’s an annual outing with friends and family.

I have had several inquires this week on how this might affect real estate values for properties near the mountain. Mother Nature has a way of humbling us, but hopefully with time, the portion of the mountain that burned will shed light on a different form of beauty until the face of the mountain rejuvenates itself.

We definitely live in the Wild West and I personally would rather put up with an occasional forest fire over the perils of earthquakes, tornados, or hurricanes.

Lastly, a big thanks to all of the fire fighters, especially the volunteers of the Big Horn Fire District, for a job well done under very tough conditions.

Best,

Bruce Garber
Broker/Owner, CENTURY 21 BHJ Realty, Inc

A Conversation with Roger St. Clair. Polo Player, Big Horn Polo Club President, and Associate Broker with CENTURY 21 BHJ Realty, Inc.

Q: Roger, share with us what is new at the Big Horn Polo Club?

A: Well, polo in Big Horn is really exciting this summer. Games, spectators, community support, horse sales, it’s all going well.

Briefly, the BHPC (amazingly enough) begain in the mid 1890’s … and since then there has been a huge equine impact in this area. Especially with the neighboring Flying H Polo Club that the Skey Johnston Family founded in 2005. The club is right next to where we play and it has successfully developed a High Goal Polo club that is active in July and August … actually it’s one of only four places in the United States where High Goal polo is played. One is in Santa Barbara, CA; one in Greenwich, CT; another in Bridgehampton, NY, and finally the Flying H Polo Club right here. So it has actually brought a lot of renewed and new exciting interest to polo in Big Horn, Wyoming.

But back to your question about what else is going on this summer. Right now we have about 35 playing members and we play basically “Low Goal Polo”, which is the same as green horse polo. (go to www.sportpolo.com for a summary of the rules). Several families who play with us have been raising polo horses for 3-4 generations, and are still actively creating polo prospects (polo horses) for sale. The advent of the Flying H Club has brought the high goal professionals and sponsoring players to Big Horn, greatly increasing the overall interest in polo horses raised in Big Horn. Last year, we sold about 40 head of horses from club players to high goal and pro ranked polo players … and those horses sold from about $7500 to $175,000.

Q: Is there a way of telling what Polo means to our area economically?

A: Well, the sales I just mentioned have their own positive economic impact to the Sheridan area. It adds up when a “totally renewable resource”, such as these young horses, are bought and sold.

And speaking of economic impact, here’s how else it has a positive effect for Sheridan: Through to the end of August, we practice on Wednesdays and Fridays and have games on Sundays, and on any given day we play Big Horn Polo, we see about 200-250 horses at the Big Horn Polo Field. Consider that every horse carries around $100 worth of shoes, is being pulled around in a large trailers, and has grooms and other employees of the players that take care of every horse. It’s no small production.

Q: Is BHPC the “overseer” of all the Big Horn Polo activities – in other words, what is the primary purpose of the BHPC?

A: Actually we are set up at the Big Horn Events Center where we pay green fees for playing . They operate and maintain the polo fields and then we basically rent the use of them. So we’re different from the Flying H club which is private and managed and maintained by the Johnston family and staff. I feel it’s important to say that they are absolutely gracious to the BHPC as far as not trying to overshadow our events. It’s a great, great relationship and we could not have asked for better neighbors than we have at the Flying H Club.

Q: If someone were thinking about moving to Sheridan - or is currently living here and have not yet had a chance to see a game – what should they expect to see?

A: The BHPC has tournament games on Sundays in June, July, and August at Noon and 2 p.m. The games are just great, plus there is lots of room, it’s a great place to bring out the family and sit down and enjoy Polo, have a tailgate, the kids can run around, there’s 70 plus acres of lawn to play on … it’s the perfect place for a family experience.

The Flying H plays on Thursdays and Saturdays at 1:00 p.m. and 3:00 p.m. and again, it’s the High Goal, top tier players in the world that play at the Flying H. You’ll see unmatched horsemanship and ballstriking that just takes your breath away. So, both of the clubs are just east of Big Horn and are easy to get to and find. Games are free and both are open to the public.

Q: Can people drive right on in?

A: Yes, you just drive right in and park at the edge of the field.

Q: Roger, you also play Polo yourself, in addition to being President of the BHPC. What happens for you during the week as you prepare for games? A lot of people might not realize how much work and effort it takes to get ready for the Sunday games.

A: Polo horses are like endurance runners. They are much more fit than race horses, and have more lung capacity and they weigh less. They are ridden every day from about the 1st of May until we start galloping them and actually practicing and playing. After that they are ridden for 45 minutes twice a day as we start to really get them in shape. Once they are in shape, they will have to stay in shape and they are ridden every day except for one day off a week – generally Mondays.

Q: How many horses do you need?

A: There are six chukkers (periods) in a game, and some players will play each horse twice during a game. Three horses is a minimum. Many horses can do this, but it’s not optimal. Generally speaking, you’ll need a string of six Polo ponies to play and enjoy the game, and have a fresh horse every chukkar.

Q: You mention earlier you have some practice sessions during the week?

A: Yes, we have a Polo Manager that sets up our practices, and the players call in and let him know when they’d like to play. We generally have 4 practice games every Wednesday and Friday at 3:00 p.m. and 5:00 p.m. On these nights we get to work the horses and enjoy a good practice together, but it’s definitely not the same as Sunday tournament Polo. It’s a different event when everyone puts their white pants and jerseys on and play for real.

Q: How would someone who is interested in polo get started?

A: We would love to have pople come out and visit with us about beginning to play. We have free clinics in June and July every Saturday evening. They are free to the public and anyone can bring out whatever horse they prefer to ride and we then furnish mallets and helmets. We have some great instructors who can get you started – learn how to hit the ball, learn the rules. Even if you never intended playing, you’d learn the game making it enjoyable to watch as a fan. Many don’t understand the rules, and with a bit of training, at least a person can appreciate the fast horses or someone hitting the ball a long way. So if you are interested, call us at (307) 751-6969 to ask about our clincs, or perhaps private lessons.

Q: Finally, because you are both a polo player and a real estate broker what is the connection there for you?

A: Well, it’s kind of two-fold. First, I’m of course happy to share what I know about horse properties in our area for anyone looking to relocate here. Second – historically there has always been a strong correlation between a strong equine industry and a strong real estate market. Our market is currently strong – and past indications tell us it could remain this way for a while– so now is a good time and place to invest in land and recreational properties.

Inspired by the 2006 Wrangler National Finals Rodeo and their “Tough Enough to Wear Pink” campaign supporting breast cancer research, The Sheridan WYO Rodeo Board decided to also support this high profile national cause. The added twist in Sheridan was that part of the funds raised would benefit a local foundation, the Kelly Schreibeis Memorial Foundation, in its efforts to support Sheridan’s breast cancer victims during and after their treatments.

An unforgettable sea of pink, the Parade was fabulous. Entire waves of people in pink was both inspiring and fun to see. It created a palpable unity of purpose and pride, and official feedback to the Rodeo Board was very positive, according to long-time WYO Rodeo Board member, Vicki Kane.

With well over 100 entries, it was no easy task for judges to pick out the winners. Some were just plain large, like the Sheridan Memorial Hospital float, aptly named “A Sea of Pink”. Others just showed that an incredible amount of work had been put into the event, like the Kubota float which showed off one of their traditional red tractors – painted pink.

All-in-all another wonderful summer highlight – cleverly tying together a long-standing tradition with a wonderful nationally recognized cause.