Country Trio SHeDAISY’s place in the music world begins with Kristyn Osborn’s songwriting, with her ability to probe her psyche and, by extension, ours. The fact that she and sisters Kelsi and Kassidy are equally adept at placing those songs in intriguing and memorable settings, at making them come alive in the studio and on stage, is the rest of the multi-platinum equation. SHeDAISY will perform in Dalton Town Hall at Jackson Rancheria Casino on Thursday, June 14, at 8 p.m. Tickets are $69, $59, $49, and $39 and can be purchased online or by phone from Ticketmaster or in person at the Jackson Rancheria Box Office. The Box Office is open daily from 8:30 a.m. to 11 p.m. and accepts credit cards, checks, Dreamcatcher's Club points, and cash. For more on SHeDAISY, visit shedaisy.musiccitynetworks.com. Jackson Rancheria Casino & Hotel is located at 12222 New York Ranch Road, Jackson, CA 95642. For more information, call 1-800-822-WINN or visit jacksoncasino.com.

Saturday the Great Sutter Creek Duck Race was held in Sutter Creek. This was the 20th year of the charitable event put on by the Immaculate Conceptions Men’s Club. The race benefits many local charities that this year will split approximately 25,000 dollars. The beneficiaries this year include 12 local groups, including

• Amador County Child Abuse Prevention Council - ACCAPC

• Amador County Kiwanis Club

• Amador County Special Education – APERS Amador Cooperative Preschool

• Amador Polar Bears • Camanche Lake Community Center

• Gold Nugget 4-H Club

• Knights of Columbus / the Mother Lode Newcomers

• and the Volcano Theatre Company.

Several Amador youth competed at the 2008 International Karate Championship February 29th through March 2nd in Ontario, California. Fifteen kids competed from Red Dragon Karate’s Team Amador, and all brought home awards. At the tournament, participants were judged in sparring, a contact sport where points are given throughout each program, kata, a choreographed series of movements, and a weapons division where kata is combined with a weapon, such as nun chuckus, bo staff, or sai. Placements ranged from 1st to 9th place, which according to Sensei Anthony Hanks, was a big accomplishment, as this was one of the “biggest American karate tournaments in the world.”  Sensei also noted that the kids’ “hard work, tenacity and discipline paid off” as evidenced by the awards they brought home.  Sensei motivates the kids by saying “the goals we set are the goals we get” and includes parental respect in his teachings.

The Ione Picnic Association, or IPA, has big plans for this year’s Ione Homecoming Fundraiser. All proceeds from the event will benefit the 132nd Ione Homecoming planned for May 9-11 in Howard Park in Downtown Ione. The Ione Homecoming is believed to be the largest continuous event in the region. For years now, the IPA’s spring fundraiser has become increasingly creative in it’s approach to highlighting local history.

This year, the Picnic Association will be showing “The Story of Seabiscuit”, a 1949 Technicolor film starring an adult Shirley Temple. The movie tells the story of the humble beginnings of the undersized, underdog colt who became one of the greatest racing thoroughbreds in horseracing history. How does this relate to local history, you ask? Seabiscuit was owned by Charles Howard, the wealthy automobile entrepreneur and horseracing fanatic who once owned land in what is now Howard Park near Ione.Ione, or the Rancho Arroyo Seco office. For more information, contact Regia (Ree-gee) Sargent at 304-4306.

Local mythology claims that Seabiscuit was buried on that very piece of property. The event takes place on Saturday, March 29 and tickets are 20 dollars. Each ticket will be matched dollar-for-dollar by the Rancho Arroyo Seco company, current owners of the property. An author who is an expert on Seabiscuit will also be in attendance. The Picnic Association will be awarding one silent auction prize, a ticket to the Diamond Jubilee Celebration in Willits. Tickets are available at Ione Elementary School, Coldwell Banker in

Amador County vocalists, between the ages of 16 and 28, will have a chance to compete at this year’s county fair to be crowned the Amador Idol, with the winner moving on to the California State Fair competition.  Modeled after the popular TV show American Idol, Amador Idol promises to be very entertaining with the audience helping the judges to choose the ultimate winner.  Idol contestants will be competing for a chance to advance to the State competition at Cal Expo on September 1, and the opportunity to win an undisclosed cash prize, a makeover, and roundtrip airfare to the national talent competition of their choice.

Six skilled and lucky poker players are on their way to the World Series of Poker (W.S.O.P.) after winning a main event qualifying tournament at Jackson Rancheria Casino on May 14, 2007. The winners are: Craig Dixon of Pine Grove, Robert Manley of Jackson, Jeff Houston of Merced, Xavier Ignacio Martinez of Stockton, Brandon Riggenbach-Ware of South Lake Tahoe, and Takashi Takii of Sacramento. Each won $2,000 cash plus a $10,000 seat in the World Series of Pokers Main Event which begins July 6 at the Rio Hotel & Casino in Las Vegas. In addition to the top six winners, the others rounding out the final table each won $1,000 in cash. They are Toko Luu of San Jose (seventh place), Michael Lane Newhall of Lodi (eighth place), and Quyen Trong Luu of San Jose (ninth place). The 24-hour Poker Room at Jackson Rancheria Casino is now hosting qualifying tournaments every Monday at 7:30 p.m. for a $150,000 Guaranteed Tournament to be held at noon on Monday, August 20, 2007. For more information, call the Poker Room at 209-223-8469 or visit jacksoncasino.com.

A Tracy man’s habit of making two last bets each time he leaves Jackson Rancheria Casino paid off big time when he hit a $250,000 jackpot on March 4. “I have this tradition,” says Anthony Kronenberger of Tracy. “When I’m leaving, I stop in the High Limit Room and put 100 dollars in the 100 dollar machine and 100 dollars in the 50 dollar machine. This time I hit it, on that one pull. I couldn’t believe it.” Kronenberger put his usual 100 dollars in the 50 dollar 5by Pay – 10by Pay Quick Hit Progressive machine and won a jackpot of a lifetime. “At first I thought I won 12,000 dollars,” says Kronenberger. “I thought it was 25,000 dollars, and then I added it up on the calculator on my cell phone and I couldn’t believe it was 250,000 dollars!” The 30-year-old auto body shop owner has been coming to Jackson Rancheria for about five years. Kronenberger hasn’t figured out yet what he’s going to do with his windfall. “I don’t know what I’m going to do with it. I’m still in shock. For now I’ve just put it in the bank until my head gets clear and then I’ll figure it out.” The Jackson Rancheria Casino & Hotel is located in Jackson off New York Ranch Road. For more information, call 800-822-WINN or visit jacksoncasino.com.

This years Amador County Fair is finally here. Today the Fair kicks of with Kids Day from 9am where children 12 and under are free from 9am-6pm. Also tonight at 7pm is the free show Hounds and Hoofbeats. One of the key events of the Amador County Fair is the Miss Amador contest which will take place tonight at 8pm. Here are some pictures by Bill Lavallie of the contestants preparing for this coveted title.  This years contestants include (from left to right): Arieal Konze, Courtney Anderson, Brittany Vincini, Cassandra Ding, Kevlyn Walsh, Jacey DeWing. Don't miss this special event. 

The Amador County Fair Premium Books are now available. The book includes all you need to know about the Amador County Fair and its rules and regulations. The books are available at many locations around the county including the Fair Office, the Chamber of Commerce, local libraries, the Ione pharmacy, the Feed Barn, the Mt Aukum Store and Volcano Telephone Company

This weekend hundreds of car enthusiast walked the streets of Jackson this weekend for the 11th annual Gold Country Car Cruise Car Show. The show just gets bigger every year and this year around 200 cars entered the event. The weather was perfect for the well organized event which benefits the downtown Jackson business associations.