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Wednesday November 19, 2025 | Volume 150, Issue 47

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Local duo ride away with world title Dallas agrees to explore solar array By DAVID HAYES I-O Editor

Growing up in Perrydale, Kyndle Cummins, 24, has always enjoyed being around horses, especially being friends with Dustin and David Silver, whose parents own Silver Mesa Morgans ranch. Winning multiple world championships was the furthest thing from her mind when she acquired her own Morgan from Silver Mesa – Raindrops on Roses, or Reba for short. But after years of riding lessons, the duo rode away from the Grand National & World Championship Morgan Horse Show in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, last month with multiple titles. “This was kind of like a once in a lifetime show for us. She can be a funny horse. We’ve had to work really hard to get where we are together,” Cummins said. “She was my first horse ever and she was a baby. It doesn’t always go well. But it can. We’ve had our ups and downs. We’ve never performed that well in so many classes together, especially at worlds.” Cummins attended Perrydale schools from first grade until graduation, when she first started taking riding lessons. The same

By DAVID HAYES I-O Editor

COURTESY PHOTO

Kyndle and Cameron Cummins pose with Reba after winning two world titles and several national championships at the Grand National & World Championship Morgan Horse Show in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, last month. year, she bought her first horse and started showing. “Morgans are the United State’s first horse breed and are really versatile,” Cummins explained. She enters her horse in many disciplines, including Trail,

Hunter English style, and Western Dressage. “Some people use Morgans for working ranch horses. They’re super versatile. They’ve very loving horses. Very people oriented. People pleasing,” Cummins said.

Cummins makes a daily 15-minute drive from her home in Perrydale to the barn that is home to Raindrops on Roses, or Reba for short, in Monmouth. See TITLE, page A3

Taphouse owner reflects on pluses, minuses on 10th anniversary By DAVID HAYES I-O Editor

on which selections should move forward. “Whichever one wins, gets a tap throughout the year, which is Brix IPA right now,” he said, adding the local favorite Salt Creek Cidery and the local wines are rarely rotated out. Duffner said West Valley Taphouse’s opening was greeted with enthusiasm. Two of his biggest supporters came from a local business up the hill, Jill and Darren Lockridge. They lay claim to mugs 2 and 3 in the tap house’s mug club of most dedicated regulars. Duffner said opening in Dallas was actually a big gamble, with an untapped clientele and questionable median income. “We put the sign up ‘Coming Soon’ and within the first couple days Darrin came in and said, ‘A taphouse? Here in Dallas? How can I help?” Duffer recalled. “Ever since then, Home Comfort has been a great partner. Anytime we need anything, he’s down here helping out.” Duffner added there was a pretty big outpouring from people happy to have something like this in the community. Looking back, Duffner said there were two particularly hard times for the tap house – the first, during the pandemic shutdowns in 2020. The second, now.

The Dallas City Council has approved an agreement with a Corvallis business to explore constructing a solar array on cityowned property. The agreement gives Oregon Clean Power Cooperative (OCPC) a two-year term to research whether a 7-acre parcel of land off James Howe Road meets their needs to construct their solar array. The agreement did not compel the city leaders to any specific construction plans at the Nov.3 meeting, but would instead be worked out at the end of OCPC’s due diligence period. Despite not needing to approve the overall project at this time, council members had many questions for OCPC General Manager Dan Orzech. Council President Larry Briggs was initially concerned about the project encroaching on other plans for the city-owned property. The staff report indicated the city purchased the property in 2020 with the intention of constructing a finished water tank. The original intent is still valid and design work on that project is under contract. The location of the water tank is planned for the forested area of the property nearer James Howe Road. The proposed location for the solar facility would not conflict with the plans for the water project. Councilor David Shein expected all the details of the construction plans “are going to come out in the wash” when OCPC comes back with a concrete proposal. “In principle I’m in favor of renewable energy and I’m in favor of anything that is going to help the city budget. But I want to be absolutely sure this could not interfere with our plans for the water system. Because between the two, water wins,” Shein said. However, Briggs pointed out the city council has also discussed over the years using the property for a football or baseball field, a city park, or as a location to construct a connection for Webb Lane to James Howe Road. “I’m a little reluctant to just jump in there and approve an agreement without first sending this back down to the admin committee for more discussion or discussion with the council,” Briggs said. Councilor Michael Holsapple’s main concern was the impact the solar array would have on nearby residents.

As West Valley Taphouse celebrates its 10th anniversary this week, co-owner Sam Duffner, along with his wife Suzanne, credits Tim Taylor for getting him on the path that eventually led to ownership in Dallas’s only tap house. No, not Tim “The Toolman” Taylor. Rather a member of a Salem book club that met monthly where members brought interesting things to their meetups. “This guy Tim would bring his homemade cider and it was so much better than anything I’d ever had,” Duffner recalled. “So I convinced him to teach me how to make it.” So, back when there were only two cideries in the state, the Duffners decided they could make this work on their own. They purchased a property outside town in 2012 out near Airlie Road to open a commercial cidery. During that process, the building at 957 Main Street became available, which was the former home of Capones and Tiga Sushi, which moved to Salem after the building’s rental price was increased.The Duffner’s purchased the building from the bank. “We opened this place with a real heavy emphasis on cider at the very beginning because we were going to transition that into our cidery,” Duffner said.

After their cidery plans didn’t come to fruition after two years, they decided to focus on developing the space into a tap house, expanding into more beer and food options. They started with 63 taps, with a local focus. At the time, a tap house was actually a novel concept, Duffner said, where they’re common today. Back then, there were just B2 and Sparky’s in Salem. “Sparky’s was offering limited times they would allow minors to come in. The others were just an all adult only thing,” Duffner said. “Our mission was doing the same thing but doing a food aspect. …

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PHOTO BY DAVID HAYES

West Valley Taphouse owners Sam and Suzanne Duffer, with daughter and employee Katie, are celebrating this week the business’s 10th anniversary.

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A4 A4 A4 B2 B2 B6 B4 A6

We wanted to do the food and family friendly gathering place, just with a lot of options for beer and all the local wines, too.” He said new customers come in all the time who are initially overwhelmed by the selection available. “Some people come in randomly and look at it and go ‘Holy cow!’ Have to direct them up to the screen. Here’s your list,” Duffner said. While he rotates in new beers and ciders frequently, only one beer stays on tap throughout the year, the winner of their annual March Madness bracket. They take the 64 highest selling beers and have their customers vote after blind tastings

See TAPHOUSE PAGE A3

See DALLAS, page A2

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