AMERICAN-STATESMAN (Austin, Texas) 11 April 08 Taylor catches snakes in a bag - Competition brought out expert, novice rattlesnake handlers. (Michael R. Jeffers)

Taylor: Even after being bitten by one of the deadly reptiles, 26-year-old James Jonas didn't seek medical attention until he had sacked every rattlesnake on the floor.

"He's fine; he'll be sacking again tomorrow," Shawn Jonas said of his brother. "Usually we have one or two bites every year."

James Jonas was indeed all right and went on to take third place in the novice category of the contest.

The constant sound of rattles permeated the air during the 36th annual National Rattlesnake Sacking Championship, which was held in Taylor last weekend.

Rattlesnake sacking is exactly what it sounds like: putting live rattlesnakes in a burlap sack as quickly as possible.

The contest was organized and run by the Taylor Jaycees, a social service organization that raises money for the community. Not including concessions, the contest raised about $12,000 for the Jaycees, said Shawn Jonas, the contest chairman.

Rattlesnake sacking started when farmers throughout the Southwest had problems with the reptiles and sought out creative ways to deal with them instead of simply killing them, Jonas said.

All the snakes at the Taylor sacking were rounded up from the barns of local farms and ranches, said sacker David Gay of Taylor.

The winner of the contest was Jackie Bibby, 57, of Stephenville, who's been sacking snakes since 1969. Bibby — whose day job is as a drug and alcohol counselor —said he has more than 100 snake-sacking trophies and has appeared on television and in films with snakes.

As a sideshow, Kenneth Darnell, a patent lawyer from Tallassee, Ala., was busy milking the venom from 450 rattlesnakes.

Darnell said he travels to four or five rattlesnake roundups a year to collect venom, which he does by forcing the snake to bite the top of a funnel and inject venom into a container.

Rattlesnake venom is useful in blood pressure medication, said Darnell, who sells the venom to pharmaceutical companies.

During the contest, handlers held the reptiles up next to children to pose for pictures.

"We can teach kids about (snakes), and they learn quicker than their parents," Gay said. "They know to be calm and not make sudden movements when they see a snake."
Taylor catches snakes in a bag

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