Monthly Archives: June 2020

WEATHERFORD, Texas – Parker County is situated deep in Texas rodeo country, with cowboys and cowgirls stretched across its 910 square miles. There are world champions and day workers, all unified in a common belief about the game they love. It’s one of the reasons why so many people are interested in the Parker County Sheriff’s Posse Frontier Days and PRCA Rodeo, set for 8 p.m. Wednesday, July 8-Saturday, July 11, at the Parker County Sheriff’s Posse Arena; that also includes the Xtreme Bulls competition at 8 p.m. Tuesday, July 7. “We really needed to have our rodeo,” said Rick Wilson, chairman of the Parker County Sheriff’s Posse, which organizes the annual rodeo. “We were just getting inundated with calls about having the rodeo. It was something we felt we needed to do if it was safe to put on.” The Professional Rodeo Cowboys Association has estimated that approximately half of its roughly 700 rodeos have been or will be canceled due to the COVID-19 coronavirus pandemic. Many others, including the one in Weatherford, have been postponed. “We did a lot of juggling when it came down to picking our dates,” Wilson said. “Once we canceled for our regular dates in June, we had to pick the weekend that worked best for us and for our contract people. So, in July, our announcer, Andy (Stewart), could come; our stock contactor, Pete Carr, could come; our clown, Keith (Isley), could come; and our sound man (Josh Hilton) could come. “Put that all together, and that was the main thing about that week. It’s pretty rare to have that many people be able to have the same week available, so we took it.” All are vital to the success of Weatherford’s rodeo, which has been recognized as one of the top rodeos in the country with its nomination for medium rodeo of the year a few seasons ago. Carr and Stewart are regular nominees for end-of-the-year awards in their respective categories; Hilton is a two-time winner of Sound Director of the Year; and Isley has been named Clown of the Year, Comedy Act of the Year and Coors Man in the Can multiple times in his career. “I think it’s a really big deal and an accomplishment of having a rodeo with all this stuff that’s been going on,” Wilson said, also noting that there will be a concert on the grounds after each performance of the rodeo and bull riding. “Everybody’s ready to go for it. “We’re very proud of the contract personnel we have for our rodeo. Pete’s the best stock contractor we could have. Keith is always great. Andy is the heartbeat of the rodeo, in my opinion. Your announcer is one of the most important things out there. Andy’s the best in the business.” While there is excitement, there have been many hurdles to climb; the biggest, of course, has been the pandemic. “The challenge we faced was having our rodeo or not,” Wilson said. “We waited until the last day to make the call if we could have it in June.” As rodeo fans consider their next moves, the posse is going to follow state guidelines. As of mid-June, crowds for that type of venue were to be about 50 percent, but the committee is hoping for even better. “We’re hoping by showtime that we could be pretty much open,” he said. “We’ll have signage out and hand sanitizers all over. We’ll do our best to sanitize the whole place after each rodeo, wiping down the hand rails and the seats. We’ll have several stations for people to clean their hands. “I think the best part of our rodeo is bringing the community together. There are people that haven’t missed a rodeo for 50 years or better. It’s better than a high school reunion for a bunch of Parker County natives.” Reunions are gatherings meant for friends and families, but the Parker County Sheriff’s Posse Frontier Days and PRCA Rodeo is just another cause to celebrate.

DODGE CITY, Kan. – Dr. R.C. Trotter has been on the front lines of the COVID-19 coronavirus pandemic. He’s tested hundreds of people over the past few months. He has one thing to say to people interested escaping the “new normal” that has come to life since the virus took its hold on the world: “Ford County is safe; even with the spike in cases, we’ve had very little illness and very few fatalities.” Trotter is also president of the Dodge City Roundup Rodeo, and he understands the skepticism that some may have about an event of such magnitude. Rest assured: He also knows the reasons why having the rodeo back in town is important. “This just has to happen,” Trotter said of the rodeo, set for 7:45 p.m. Wednesday, July 29-Sunday, Aug. 2, at Roundup Arena; Dodge City Xtreme Bulls is set for 7:45 p.m. Tuesday, July 28. “We just have to bring this community together. The rodeo plays such an economic impact to this community. For the spirit of Dodge City and Ford County, it just had to be. “So far, we’ve lost a couple of sponsors, but we’ve been able to replace them. We’ve sold all the premium seating. We’ve been selling tickets since before this thing ever happened. We’re hoping the local people will be hungry for this kind of entertainment. There won’t be as much to do as in the past regarding Dodge City Days, but there will still be a rodeo.” The decision to move forward was based on many factors, and the safety of everyone involved was at the top of the list. With Trotter involved from the beginning of the pandemic, the volunteer committee had a solid foundation from which to begin the process. “We started testing about any symptom at all,” Trotter said. “We actually got rid of the CDC guidelines, because that didn’t mean anything to our people. Right about the same time, the state got a bunch of supplies and sent them to Ford, Finney, Seward and Lyon counties, which have the beef packing plants. “In Ford County, we were testing 180 people per thousand. No county in the state of Kansas is close to that. We tried to identify people through contact tracing. Since June 6, we’ve pretty much been in the single digits as far as new COVID cases.” The local hospital, Western Plains Medical Complex, has yet to be overwhelmed, which is an indication about how quickly doctors and county officials reacted to the circumstances they faced. “At this point, we’ve pretty much burned through our population of positive cases,” he said. “A lot of the testing we are doing now are people who want to have elective surgeries or are having other procedures done so they need to have the testing. “We were the epicenter of the pandemic; we are no longer the epicenter. Our water park has opened with some restrictions. The racetrack is open.” That bodes well for one of the biggest events in southwest Kansas every summer. Hundreds of cowboys and cowgirls converge on Dodge City to play the game they love. Not only is this a historic cowtown, but Dodge City has been recognized as one of the best events in the Professional Rodeo Cowboys Association; it’s a regular nominee for Large Outdoor Rodeo of the Year and has been inducted into the ProRodeo Hall of Fame. “We’ve got to have some normalcy back in our lives,” Trotter said, noting that sanitation stations will be set up around the complex, and the committee will encourage the wearing of masks. “I think we’re in a good position to have a rodeo. We’ve worked together as a community to follow through, and I think that shows. Not only did we have the county testing for COVID, but we had the various clinics testing. We all worked together.”

CROSSETT, Ark. – Rodeo fans in southern Arkansas have grown accustomed to seeing some great animal athletes at the Crossett Riding Club PRCA Rodeo. It’s an annual occurrence, thanks to Pete Carr Pro Rodeo, one of the premier livestock producers in professional rodeo. The Carr outfit features hundreds of the top bucking horses and bulls in the game, and the very best will make their way to Crossett’s rodeo, set for 8 p.m. Wednesday, June 24-Saturday, June 27, at Cap Gates Arena. “As far as I’m concerned, Pete’s stock is top notch,” said Rob Adkins, the riding club’s president. “This is probably the best it’s ever been in Crossett, Arkansas, and we’ve been around 72 years. The one thing we know is if you’ve got good stock, you’re going to bring good cowboys.” This is the eighth year the Carr team will be performing in Crossett, and that team is pretty elite. Carr buckers have been named world champions five times, starting with Real Deal in 2005. Big Tex won the title in 2010, followed by Deuces Night in 2012 and Dirty Jacket in 2014 and ’15. But those are just a few of the long list of talented equine and bovine athletes. Over the years, dozens of Carr animals have been selected to perform at the National Finals Rodeo. Not only is it the sport’s grand championship, but it also features the top 100 bareback horses, saddle broncs and bulls in the game – the animals are hand-picked by the NFR cowboys to give themselves the best opportunity to cash in. “When you look at what is happening with rodeos right now, you see big numbers as far as entries,” Announcer Scott Grover said. “I think Crossett will be the same. I think we’re going to see more top 15 contestants at this rodeo than we’ve seen before, so Pete’s going to bring his best stock to this rodeo. “This is going to be the cream of the crop of what Pete has, and that’s the cream of the crop in ProRodeo. The horses and bulls have been to the NFR or will be going. I can’t wait to watch.” The Carr herd continues to grow and impress. In addition to a solid stable of experienced buckers, Pete Carr has mixed in a healthy dose of up-and-coming stars that have been raised on the Carr ranch. For every Dirty Jacket and Big Tex, there’s a South Point Gambler and San Angelo Sam. With that, Carr’s breeding program is receiving more notice in rodeo circles. “We love that Pete brings such great animals to our rodeo, because with them, we know we’re going to draw some top-notch cowboys,” Adkins said. “It’s very exciting that we’re going to have our rodeo after going through COVID-19. Still, it’s very tiring. We prepare all year, but you’re never really prepared. “We’re ready to have it. We feel like we’re going to see more contestants than we’ve ever had at our facility, and I think that’s going to be great for our community.” But there’s more to a rodeo than bucking animals, and the Carr crew understands that. Rodeo is a fine mixture of world-class competition and entertainment. It takes a solid production to keep fans involved and entertained. “The thing about working with that crew is that everything moves smoothly,” Adkins said. “There are no egos when it comes to the work it takes to put on this rodeo, and we work well together to make it all happen. “It takes a whole team of us and them to work together. If there’s ever a hiccup, nobody in the stands every knows it. Pete runs a smooth rodeo, and it moves right along. Us working together makes it look effortless.” That type of teamwork is why the Crossett Riding Club PRCA Rodeo is happening in a challenging year. It’s just one of many reasons the cowboys and cowgirls are looking forward to their June adventure in southern Arkansas.

CROSSETT, Ark. – This small city in southern Arkansas of nearly 5,000 folks needed a shot in the arm. Eight months ago, Georgia Pacific decided to shut down its plant in Crossett. As the town’s largest employer, it was a body blow to the community. As if that weren’t enough, the world was hammered by the COVID-19 coronavirus pandemic, and weeks of isolation turned into months of uncertainty. The Crossett Riding Club is hoping it has the remedy needed with its annual PRCA rodeo, set for 8 p.m. Wednesday, June 24-Saturday, June 27, at Cap Gates Arena in Crossett. “We need a community celebration,” said Rob Adkins, the riding club’s president. “Our rodeo has been going on for 72 years, and we just had to wait it out with the COVID-19. We just went through the things that have been shut down, and we thought we’d like to have it. “We also know what it means to the cowboys and the cowgirls. It’s been shut down for them, so we wanted to have the rodeo for them, too.” Indeed. Like all other professional sports, ProRodeo shut down in March and only recently resumed in late May. At events in Woodward, Oklahoma, and Coleman, Texas, the second weekend in June, about 800 contestants signed up to compete at each. They are eager for the sport they love to return, and so are others who make their living in the game. “For that committee to step out on a limb and take the plunge of having a rodeo and having a plan is amazing,” said Scott Grover, Crossett’s announcer for the last several years. “The easy thing to do is cancel when things like this happen, and it’s hard to work through the challenges to have a rodeo. “I applaud the committee for the hard work and for having this rodeo. They’re just one of three happening that weekend, so I think they’re going to see big numbers as far as contestants.” For much of the first 70 years of its existence, the Crossett rodeo occurred the second weekend of August. That changed a year ago, when the committee opted to change its dates to late May and early June. Had the pandemic not delayed things, the rodeo would have remained on that schedule. “We were able to get on the same dates as the rodeo in Fort Smith (Arkansas), and we believe our number of contestants doubled in size last year,” Adkins said. “The community was a little thrown off by the date change, but I think it made more sense. The weather was more comfortable in regards to the heat.” The time of year also helped reach more contestants in 2019, because August features more than two dozen rodeos a week through the month spread out all across the country. The schedules in May and June feature far less action, which is why the move was so necessary. “That rodeo had been in August for a very long time, but they made a good decision to get off that date to get in a time of year where there was a better opportunity to reach the contestants,” Grover said. “With the move again this year because of the virus, they’re going to be the biggest money rodeo of the weekend. That’s a big deal.” There are still precautions the committee will adhere to in order to make it a great and safe experience for all involved. At the time of the rodeo, the state health department will require that large venues be held to two-thirds their capacity; that means about 3,200 people can be safely in place for the rodeo. “We will follow the CDC guidelines and will have social distancing set up,” Adkins said. “We will have hand sanitizers all over, and we will be bleaching everything we can before every performance. We’ve always done that, but we’re going to be sure to be more thorough now. “I work in these mills around here all the time, and we haven’t slowed down any. We’re going to have signs all around the facility. We’re going to do everything we can to take the precautions needed. It’s better to be safe than sorry.” That’s a solid approach, but this isn’t the riding club’s first rodeo; it’s just the first one after a challenging spring. This year’s event will see the return of barrelman Ronald Burton and the trick-riding antics of the Trixie Chicks. Combined with the bucking stock and production from the crew at Pete Carr Pro Rodeo, it should be the perfect medicine for a community that needs it.

Tanner Brunner has had just a taste of the National Finals Rodeo over the previous two seasons. Though things in Las Vegas didn’t go as he had hoped or expected – he has placed three times out of 20 rounds and earned $28,629 – he has a distinct hunger to return. Truth is, he’s earned his way there in two straight seasons when most steer wrestlers dream of reaching the grandest stage in the game one time in their careers. He’s making a statement as ProRodeo has returned on a smaller scale this month. In fact, he earned a share of the victory at two rodeos this past weekend: He and Gabe Soileau threw down their steers in 3.7 seconds to earn the title in Coleman, Texas, while Brunner and Trell Etbauer were 3.8 to claim the crown in Woodward, Oklahoma. For that, Brunner pocketed $5,191 and moved his season earnings to more than $26,000. He sits eighth in the world standings with a great deal of time left on the interrupted 2020 campaign. How much time is left in the season remains in the air; the typical year rolls Oct. 1 to Sept. 30, but this season is anything but typical. Some speculate whether the season will end as scheduled or be extended into, or possibly, through October. Nonetheless, the second weekend in June offered a big opportunity for Brunner, 27, of Ramona, Kansas. The weekend before, Brunner won the title in Mesquite, Texas, pocketing $1,077 in the process. It’s a solid re-start to his 2020 campaign, but it’s also something he needs. Last year, he earned just shy of $75,000 through the regular season and qualified for the 15th and final spot in Las Vegas. As many rodeos have been canceled or delayed because of the COVID-19 coronavirus pandemic, questions remain about what kind of money it will take to qualify for the NFR this year. For Brunner, he’ll take everything he can get.