What is your job title? Are you a sales manager, vice-president, chief cook and bottle washer? Most businesses assign titles without much thought, relying mostly on old standbys. Some actually think a fancy designation is an acceptable substitute for a raise!

I am fortunate to work in a business that does think a title matters, and sometimes even encourages employees to choose their own. Read the rest of this entry »

Remember how you used to look forward to field trips when you were in school? It was a chance to break away from the routine, experience something new, anticipate an adventure, and get out into the greater world beyond that stodgy classroom.

That feeling of adventure is exactly what you get when you explore the great American West with Shebby Lee Tours. On a Vanishing Trails Expedition you might take a horseback ride across the open prairie; Read the rest of this entry »

We are pleased to announce an agreement with one of our TAP Partners, Sports Travel & Tours, which brings you yet another travel option in a new, easy to use format. The two companies have joined together to offer one-click access to clients interested in sporting events of a lifetime. You’ll find Baseball Road Trips and Tours, Spring Training packages, Hall of Fame Inductions, All Major Sporting Events and Flexible Independent Travel (FIT) Vacations that are customized to meet your schedule and budget. Read the rest of this entry »

I was just thinking ahead to my next trip – the annual meeting of Travel Alliance Partners – and thinking how much fun it is going to be. Now don’t misunderstand me: this meeting will involve at least two ten-hour days of sitting behind closed doors with my 37 partners discussing “corporate” issues. Yawn, you might say. Read the rest of this entry »

It is an irritating burr under my saddle that some people – actually, many people – insist on placing my home state of South Dakota in the Midwest. I live 50 miles from the Wyoming border, for Pete’s sake, and I’ve never heard anyone call Wyoming a midwestern state.   Now, I might be willing to concede that the eastern half of our state has certain Midwestern traits, but out here in God’s Country we aren’t yielding an inch on this issue. Read the rest of this entry »

October is pow wow time here in the Black Hills. One of the largest annual pow wows in the country is staged right here in Rapid City the first week of October. Hold that thought. First some background:

I moved to Indian Country from New York over 40 years ago to get married. It was the early seventies and it was a bit of a culture shock. I was teased unmercifully for wearing mini-skirts (which hadn’t quite made the scene here yet), Read the rest of this entry »

The part of an iceberg concealed below the waterline is like the majority of tours offered by Shebby Lee Tours – largely hidden. This lesson was just driven home to me in a recent conversation with a client about his upcoming travel plans.   Every one of the tour destinations on his list are available through Shebby Lee Tours – and he didn’t even know it! Read the rest of this entry »

I have always marveled at how some people can get into the minutia of battlefield tactics, dissecting how the Indians came over the hill that-a-way and the cavalry came over the hill this-away (or the Yanks came from this direction and the Rebs from that). There is an entire segment of the population who REALLY gets into this stuff, many of them going so far as physically re-enacting those battles, complete with authentic costumes, military drills and smoking firearms. Read the rest of this entry »

I have a lifelong affliction which – in my line of work – is rather embarrassing. I have never seen a moose.*

I’m fortunate enough to live in one of the most blessed spots on earth, scenically: the Black Hills of South Dakota. We have just about every kind of wild critter you could hope for and then some – we are home to one of the largest publicly owned buffalo herds in the country, Read the rest of this entry »

The reviews are in and this year’s Old West Trail (June 18-24) was a resounding success, thanks to the excellent staff (both Coloradans) who took this little group in hand. The tour director, Doris Bean is an industry veteran who has led group tours to most sections of the United States (including Alaska) since 1988 for many major American and international tour companies. Our driver, Richard Maxcy, also deserves kudos for his personable style, excellent driving skills and ability to cope with the rains that – God help us – are still inundating this part of the world, Read the rest of this entry »