ROCKIN' IN THE ROCKIES

   Stars frolic in a winter wonderland for charity

   Snowcapped Mount Crested Butte juts an impressive 12,162 feet into
the
   postcard-blue Colorado sky. But during this particular week in
   February, the majestic peak is dwarfed by the giant hearts of
country
   stars gathered there for fun and fund-raising.

   "This is our sixth year to raise money for cancer research at
Country
   In The Rockies," declared Chely Wright. "And with our help, doctors
   are making real leaps -and-bounds advances.

   Mindy McCready made some leaps of her own as she skied down the
   powdery slopes in the 13 degree weather -- wearing a bikini! She did
   it on a dare to boost donations.

   "I didn't even hesitate," noted Mindy, who looked gorgeous in her
   lavender swimsuit as falling snowflakes melted on her bare
shoulders.
   "Any time I can raise money for this great cause, I do it."

   Not to be outdone, former Prime Time Country host Gary Chapman
covered
   the course in his boxers.

   The rest of the stars -- John Berry, Pam Tillis, BlackHawk's Henry
   Paul and Dave Robbins, Billy Dean, Gary Morris, Suzy Bogguss,
Delbert
   McClinton, Robert Earl Keen, Jason Sellers and Jenny Simpson -- kept
   their clothes on for the festivities.

   Chely Wright, a former rodeo barrel racer, knew exactly what she
   wanted to do in the snow: ride horses. "I grew up in the part of
   Kansas where there wasn't much to do except play basketball and
music,
   and ride horses," explained Chely at Powder Ranch. "I bought a horse
   named Crash. I didn't feel good about the name, so I changed it to
   Flash. We won a lot of ribbons together."

   John Berry and his wife, Robin, trekked over towering drifts on
   snowshoes, not horseshoes. "This was the first time we've ever done
   this, and it's a blast!" exclaimed John. "We've always fulfilled our
   need for speed skiing. This was a great change of pace. We really
got
   to take in the winter wonderland here."

   As he does with his music, Robert Earl Keen also did his own thing
in
   the snow. Donning a Hawaiian shirt, sunglasses, shorts and sandals,
he
   sipped a beer as he watched the frenzied skiers. "If you can't have
   fun as you roll through life," quipped Robert, "what's it all about?
   This is my idea of fun."

   Other stars, like Henry Paul, were more serious. BlackHawk's lead
   singer showed his skill on the racecourse and led his ski team to
   victory.

   "I've been trying to win this race for six years," he said grinning.
   "I can tell you victory is sweet!"

   Suzy Bogguss' team also tasted success, taking second place.
   BlackHawk's Dave Robbins' team captured third.

   There was plenty action off the slopes too. In the annual celebrity
   bartending competition, the stars traded in their hats and boots for
   aprons and shot glasses. With the zeal of auctioneers, the celebs
   hawked drinks and songs for cash, raising more than $40,000 in just
   two hours.

   "OK, who's going to fork over $100 to hear 'Maybe It Was Memphis'?
   shouted Pam Tillis from a small stage next to the bar.

   "I'll give $200 for two songs," yelled one patron.

   "Done!" laughed Pam.

   But it was Chely who pulled down serious cash when she challenged
the
   crowd to pay $1,000 to hear "Shut Up And Drive." They did. Then they
   shut up -- and let her sing.

   Later, all the stars performed at the fireside "guitar pull," a
casual
   acoustic performance. Before launching into "Billy The Kid," Billy
   Dean had the audience in stitches with a story about dolly Parton.

   "I co-starred with Dolly in a TV movie last year," he recalled. "In
   one scene, I was supposed to kiss her. So just before we did, I told
   her I'd brushed my teeth five times. Dolly smiled and cooed, 'Well,
   Billy, just come on and brush mine!' " The crowd roared with
laughter.

   The stars dazzled the crowd, but songwriters Aaron Barker, Chuck
   Cannon, Skip Ewing, Dave Gibson, Jon Vezner, and Gary Nicholson
stole
   the show. "These guys have penned a zillion hits," said Gary Morris.
   "It's a treat to hear them."

   During the live auction, Pam Tillis was overjoyed to hear "Sold!"
With
   that, she plunked down $9,200 for a trip to a private island in the
   West Indies.

   Meanwhile, the really big bucks went for a dinner for 20 at Gary
   Chapman's house -- with every star attending this year's event
   promising to provide entertainment! The package sold for $45,000.
   Caught up in the moment, Gary offered to host a second night -- for
a
   $90,000 total. after Delbert McClinton's blistering concert at a
local
   club, the stars gathered in front of the hotel fireplace and
reflected
   on the incredible four-day event. Everyone had a ball, but they
never
   forgot the reason they were there -- to benefit the T.J. Martell
   Foundation's Frances Williams Preston Laboratories at
   Vanderbilt-Ingram Cancer Center at Nashville's Vanderbilt University
   Medical Center.

   The cause has special meaning for Henry Paul. "Our long-time
bandmate,
   Van Stephenson, is successfully battling cancer right now because of
   the lab's dramatic research," he explained. Van recently announced
he
   was leaving BlackHawk to recuperate and spend time with his family.

   "Van's leaving left a void in BlackHawk," confessed Henry. "We
didn't
   want to bring someone new into the group." Instead, Henry and Dave
   decided to continue BlackHawk without replacing Van.

   On the final day, early morning sun coated Mount Crested Butte with
   golden rays. The country stars headed home, knowing they'd had a lot
   of fun and raised a lot of green.

   "That," summed up John Berry, "is what makes Country In The Rockies
a
   very special event."