Fiddle contests can be a strange world to navigate to the average listener. Young hot shot fiddlers come and go, making their mark and disappearing for other pursuits once they win the titles they were after. Years of lessons from top fiddle teachers and the application of said lessons can give a person a track to stardom..at some contests.. Then, there are the ones who learn from the recordings, hunt down their heroes, who may or may not offer lessons and absorb all they can. This path is not the direct path to win the title, but over time, and to a dedicated listener of fiddle music, the difference is pure gold. Forged from deep dedication, studying the music until they get as close as their ear tells them, or until they find the person who made it up. This is how gold is formed, and this is the story of why a California fiddler keeps going back for that Texas gold.