PART 1 – Minor Heron presents The World Poetry Bout Association's 1996 All Ages Open Poetry Slam at the Sagebrush Inn, Taos, New Mexico. Julia Torrez, Master of Ceremonies. Twenty-eight poets in two recordings.

How this slam works:
“Contestants, you can have one original poem. You have a three-minute limit, no props, no music. We have five audience judges, and the judges will score in the Olympic style, one being the lowest, ten being the highest. Judges should remain fair and consistent throughout the whole time with your scoring. Stick to your guns and don’t let the audience influence you. Audience, you can go ahead and boo the judges or applaud. We have a scorekeeper too. We knock off the top and bottom score and come up with the mean. We want judges to use decimal points, hoping to avoid ties. From 28 total we go to 9 in second round, and the final round is 3 poets.”
– Juliette Torrez, Master of Ceremonies