Ducks are ready to race this weekend in Deming

Raising thoroughbred ducks for the Great American Duck Race can be a daunting task. Nearly six months of nurturing from the time the ducklings arrive, they are kept in an enclosed area under warming lamps for two to three weeks, fed twice daily, until they are ready to be put through the paces of becoming the fastest web-footed fowls in the Southwest. That task has been the responsibility of new Duck Wrangler Larry Von Tress and his family. “I knew Billie Smith, and she had overseen wrangling the ducks for over two decades,” said Von Tres, the Vo-Ag teacher at Deming High School. Family patriarch Steve Smith handled the actual wrangling and has slowly stepped away. His is an active board member on the GADR Committee. A friend told him that Billie was looking to bow out of the wrangling business, and after consulting with his wife, Charity, the Von Tress family agreed to take over the reins. Duck wrangler is a family affair, Von Tress said. He is expecting grandchildren and nieces and nephews to help keep the ducks fresh during the 39th annual Great American Duck Race, Saturday and Sunday, Aug. 25-26 at McKinley Duck Downs (transformed Luna County Courthouse Park) in Deming. The actual duck race festivities began Thursday evening with the Mizkan America Duck Royalty Pageant...MORE