Monthly Archives: March 2025

GUYMON, Okla. – In early February, Josh Frost received a package from Columbus, Montana, that he’d waiting for all his life. Inside was a symbol of the years he’d put into his craft, a shining example of a trying 2024 ProRodeo season that saw him battle challenges, overcome a shoulder injury and come out on top anyway. The golden piece of hardware was made for moments like this, inscribed with his name and the title of world champion bull rider. “I was waiting for it to sink in, but when that buckle showed up, that was when I realized that was what I was waiting for,” he said of the Montana Silversmiths gold buckle, the trophy presented annually to ProRodeo’s titlists in each event. Will the most cherished prize in rodeo sit in Frost’s trophy case or on his belt? “I go with this theory, which I learned from Robert Etbauer: He said, ‘If I worked my whole life to win this buckle, I’m going to work the rest of my life wearing it every single day,’ ” Frost said of his former coach at Oklahoma Panhandle State University. “That’s where I am. I stuck her on my belt the night it showed up.” He’s earned the right to do it. That shoulder injury happened in August, and he took some time off the rodeo trail to tend to his ailment while building strength to prepare for the National Finals Rodeo, where he was one of five cowboys with ties to the Oklahoma Panhandle to compete: bareback rider Cole Franks, who was born in Guymon; former Panhandle State bronc riding brothers Dawson and Logan Hay; and NFR bronc riding average winner Wyatt Casper, who grew up in Balko. All but Frost are expected to return to their roots for the Guymon Pioneer Days Rodeo, set for 7:30 p.m. Friday, May 2; 2 and 7:30 p.m. Saturday, May 3; and 2 p.m. Sunday, May 4, at Henry C. Hitch Pioneer Arena. Frost, who had surgery on his shoulder in January, is not expected back into competition until mid-June. Until then, he’ll continue to rehabilitate his injury, work on his place in Utah and enjoy wearing rodeo’s gold. “Winning the world meant a lot after being the reserve world champion three years in a row,” said Frost, who earned his second NFR average title this past December while pocketing more than $265,000 over 10 days in Las Vegas; the five-time NFR qualifier ended the year with $476,887. “It was kind of funny how different this year was just with having injuries. “I sat out the whole month of February. In the three years prior, it seemed like the winter rodeos really set me up. (In 2024), I wasn’t even in the top 50 in April, so it looked different. It comes down to the fact that if you stay on the bulls, they pay you pretty good.” With that, he became the eighth cowboy with ties to the Oklahoma Panhandle to earn a world title, joining bronc buster Billy Etbauer, who lived in Goodwell for a time in his career and whose brothers still live there, and six other Panhandle State alums: team roper Jhett Johnson; steer roper Rocky Patterson; and saddle bronc riders Robert Etbauer, Taos Muncy, Jeffrey Willert and Tom Reeves. In all, they account for 17 gold buckles, with Billy Etbauer owning the most with five. Patterson, whose son is a two-time and reigning steer roping world champion, is a four-time titlist, while Muncy and Robert Etbauer have two gold buckles each. “Being on that list means a lot,” said Frost, who has also competed in steer wrestling and tie-down roping and owns four Linderman Awards for being handy on both ends of the arena. “Panhandle State, in my opinion, is one of the most cowboy rodeo colleges there is. It’s dang sure got the reputation for being a bronc rider college, but they take every event serious there. Being a multi-event cowboy, I went there and wasn’t even a bronc rider but being somebody that was riding bulls, roping calves, steer wrestling and team roping. “I feel there aren’t very many places out there that you have the ability to really train in every aspect of rodeo. Even though there were 35 bronc riders on the team, we still had the opportunity to get on bulls, rope calves, steer wrestle and team rope just like they were a priority.” Frost has plenty of reasons to celebrate his magical 2024 seasons, but there’s a level of disappointment in knowing he won’t be returning to competition in time to ride in Guymon the first weekend in May. “That area is my second home,” Frost said. “The whole support the community gives the college and rodeo in general is unduplicated anywhere else I’ve ever been.” Tucked away in the Wasatch Mountains in northeastern Utah, Randlett is hamlet of about 100 people. It’s where Frost was raised alongside his siblings, including another Panhandle State alumnus, brother Joe, also a five-time NFR qualifier. Josh Frost left home to attend college in Texas County, Oklahoma, and he’s proud of how it all came together to help him to develop into a world champion. “I tell everyone that Vernal, Utah, and Guymon, Oklahoma, are my two hometown rodeos,” he said. “Robert Etbauer was a two-time world champion, but he got there because of the hard work and the coaches who have been there prior to him. What’s instilled by going to Panhandle State is being a cowboy, getting up and getting to work.”

GUNNISON, Colo. – The Cattlemen’s Days pink has faded, but a bright shade of gold will emblazon the annual celebration. It’s the perfect transition for Cattlemen’s Days to honor its 125th year during the 2025 exposition, set for Thursday, July 10-Saturday, July 12, at Fred Field Western Center in Gunnison. The volunteer-based organization will focus its giving nature toward the Golden Circle of Champions. “Gunnison Tough is going to carry on our long tradition of the Cattlemen’s Days Tough Enough to Wear Pink campaign,” said Brad Tutor, the Cattlemen’s Days president. “We wish Gunnison Tough the very best along their path to continue helping cancer patients.” Gunnison Tough will continue the legacy established long ago. “A small group of people on the Cattlemen’s Days committee jumped on board with the national Tough Enough to Wear Pink crusade as a way of giving back to families who were being affected by breast cancer,” said Kevin Coblentz, a longtime volunteer who was instrumental in the foundation of the local pink efforts in 2005. “That campaign did an amazing job over the years, and Gunnison was recognized year after year for its contributions on the national stage.” Local families were the primary beneficiaries of those efforts, and that basic premise will continue with the Golden Circle of Champions, which raises funds and awareness in the fight against pediatric cancer. “Because of the dedication of the Cattlemen’s Days committee, we’ve helped dozens of families, which, I think, is the best part,” said Karla Rundell, the committee’s second vice president. “Our purpose was always to give back, and I think we’ve done that very well over the last 20 years. “As we have discussed in our transition, kids are our future. Cancer is devastating enough, but children with cancer hits everyone hard, which is why we are now dedicated our giving to the Golden Circle of Champions.” Rundell is one of the volunteers leading the charge, calling it, “Cowboys and kids vs. cancer.” Traditionally the opening night of Cattlemen’s Days PRCA Rodeo was decked out in pink, but that changes starting this year. The Thursday performance will be Gold Night, helping raise awareness and funds for the Golden Circle of Champions. In addition, Cattlemen’s Days is teaming with Kaitlyn Hayes and the Rocky Mountain Mini Broncs/KH Bucking Horses for a special performance for youth Thursday, July 3, at the rodeo grounds. The event will also benefit Golden Circle of Champions. “We want to offer a ray of hope to the families that are going through this journey,” said Rundell, who took part in a Golden Circle of Champions event this past December in conjunction with the National Finals Rodeo in Las Vegas. “We had Colorado kids with us in Vegas, and that was such a blessing to be part of. “We want to walk beside these families and give them a helping hand. We want to tell the story of pediatric cancer, because we hope that will make a difference.”

ALVA, Okla. – It seems Jacob Haren has no time to be bored. He’s a graduate student at Northwestern Oklahoma State University and serves as the graduate assistant coach for Cali Griffin. When he’s not studying or at practice, he’s often shoeing horses. Most importantly, though, he’s a cowboy and a competitor. He continued to prove that by winning the steer wrestling title this past weekend at the Fort Scott (Kansas) Community College rodeo. He placed in both rounds – his 4.7-second run was worth a second-place finish in the opener, and he tied for third in the championship with a 5.4-second run – to win the aggregate race. The 145 points he collected moved him to third in the Central Plains Region standings. Teammate Emmett Edler of State Center, Iowa, placed in the short round and the aggregate to increase his advantage in the standings; Edler has a 300-point lead with four events remaining on the docket. “This is definitely a good way to start (the spring semester of rodeos),” said Haren of Callaway, Nebraska. “It lets you not be as worried as much, and if you get a good start, then you can get on a roll. “I drew two really good steers, and the horses my teammates are letting me ride are both nice.” Haren rode Easy, a talented bay gelding owned by Logan Mullin. Edler serves as Haren’s hazer, and Haren returns the favor when Edler competes. That type of comradery is what makes college rodeo so special. For his part, Edler also earned points in tie-down roping, where he earned a fifth-place finish in the opening round. Northwestern, which placed fourth in the men’s team race and third in the women’s at Fort Scott, also scored a victory by team roping-header Colter Snook of Dodge City, Kansas. While roping with Cale Morris of Western Oklahoma State College, the tandem stopped the clock in 7.1 seconds to finish out of the money in the opening round, then posted a 5.3-second run – the fastest time of the rodeo – to win the championship round and the average title. Snook extended his lead in the region’s heading standings. “We were at the first slack and not a lot of teams were catching, and I saw a couple of barriers break,” Snook said, referring to contestants’ not allowing the steers an adequate head start, thereby being accessed with 10-second penalties. “My goal is to stay away from barriers. I got one during the short round in Durant (Oklahoma last fall), but other than that, I haven’t hit any. I just wanted to stay clean, but I definitely saw too much (on the start).” Cowboys start their runs by what they see in anticipation of the cow’s start. Sometimes they want to leave the back of the timed-event box at the same time as the steer. Sometimes they want to see the animal’s head or its shoulder before leaving. “I saw the full shoulder, so I was about six inches off the barrier, which put us behind a little,” Snook said. “The first steer kind of stepped left after I roped him, and it took longer for my heeler to get around. He roped him about the fourth hop. “I saw middle of the shoulder in the short round, so I was closer. My partner also got to rope him on the second hope in the short-go.” That made all the difference, but Snook has some aces up his sleeves in the horsepower he keeps. His benefactor in southeastern Kansas was a 5-year-old bay gelding named James Bond, which is named after a close friend, Colton James Bond, who was killed in a car wreck in May 2023. “That horse likes me,” Snook said. “He always wants to learn. When I first got him, we had some issues and weren’t as far along as I wanted to be, but he wants to do better, and he’s easy.” Snook wasn’t the only Ranger team roper in the championship round. He was joined by the tandem of header Kyler Altmiller of Canadian, Texas, and heeler Sage Bader of Kim, Colorado, who scored a 7.6-second run to qualify for the short-go. The women were paced by Savannah Greenfield of Lakeview, Oregon. She placed in both rounds of breakaway roping – she was 2.4 to split second four ways in the opener, then stopped the clock in 2.0 seconds for third in the finale – and finished second overall. Fellow ropers Brylee Zook of Garnett, Kansas, was also 2.4 to finish in a tie for second in the opener, while Payton Dingman of Pyror, Oklahoma, and Morgan Poust of Hughesville, Pennsylvania, were 2.5 to finish sixth in the long round.   Poust also finished sixth in barrel racing after posting a 13.56-second run. Dingman won the first round of goat-tying with a 7.1-second run, while Dale Lee Forman of Highmore, South Dakota, was third in the final round with a 7.7-second run; her two-run cumulative time of 16.0 seconds pushed her to a fourth-place finish overall. Seeing so many Northwestern athletes find success in Fort Scott was good for Haren as both a contender and a coach. “We had quite a few kids in the short round, which was really good to see,” he said. “Hopefully we’ll have the same amount and maybe finish a little better over these next four rodeos.” Only the top three finishers in each event and the top two teams in the regional standings for both the men and women advance to the College National Finals Rodeo in June, so there’s some building yet to do. “We need to really do good at these next four rodeos, but we’re capable of doing that,” Haren said, noting the teams’ next rodeo is the first weekend in April at Garden City, Kansas. “We need to be really aggressive and get as many points as we can.”

Estes Park’s rodeo ups its financial incentive to improve its payout ESTES PARK, Colo. – If the majestic Rocky Mountains weren’t enough to entice cowboys and cowgirls to this vibrant community, the Town of Estes Park is adding more incentives. “We’ve opted to make an overall increase to our local investment into our portion of the purse to $10,000 per event,” said Cindy Schonholtz, the Rooftop Rodeo coordinator. “We understand the contestants are out here fighting to make a living, and this is just another way we can step up on our end of things. “Our goal is to produce an event that is true entertainment for our fans, but this is also a competition and important stop for the contestants. We want them to come to Estes Park and be part of that competition, and increasing our ‘added money’ is just another way we can do that.” The term “added money” reflects on the sponsorship dollars that are put into the pot, which is then mixed with the contestants’ entry fees to come up with the overall purse. Last year’s local investment was $69,000; this year’s is $90,000. All that will be dished out during this year’s Rooftop Rodeo, set for 7 p.m. Saturday, July 5-Thursday, July 10, at Granny May Arena inside the Estes Park Fairgrounds. “I’ve been going to Estes Park for about 10 years, and the committee has always been great to the contestants and to the contestants’ families,” said Kodie Jang, a steer wrestler from Townsville, Queensland, Australia. “They take care of everyone. They keep upping the added money, which is always a bonus. I’ll always support a rodeo that increases the added money.” Cowboys and cowgirls have long recognized the community for how it supports the rodeo and how the contestants are treated. “The hospitality at that rodeo is always fantastic,” said Jett Hillman, a team roping heeler originally from Sterling, Colorado, that won the intercollegiate title while attending Northeastern Junior College in his hometown. “Everybody’s always friendly. There are always stalls for your horses, and you can never park in the wrong place. They cook for us every day. “The only thing for me is that I can’t think of anything to do to repay them for everything they do for us. It’s a special rodeo.” The increased money is just another incentive for the cowboys and cowgirls to make sure Estes Park is on their schedules during the summer run. “It’s actually going to make it tougher to win there, because they’ll have a lot more guys,” said Jang, the 2024 Rooftop Rodeo bulldogging champion who also won the title at the Mountain States Circuit Finals Rodeo in October at Loveland, Colorado. “It’s going to pay out so much more. I bet with all the entries, it’ll pay out almost twice as much as it was before. “Even if you just win a check in a go-round, it’s going to help tremendously, whether you send the money home to pay bills or continue your ventures out on the rodeo trail. If you place in both rounds and the average, man, you’re going to have a pile of money. That’s always important.” Gates for Rooftop Rodeo open at 5 p.m. Saturday, July 5-Thursday, July 10, with the preshow beginning at 6:30 p.m. and the rodeo beginning at 7 p.m. For more information about Rooftop Rodeo, which is a Town of Estes Park signature event, or to order tickets online, log on to www.RooftopRodeo.com. Other ticket inquiries may be made by contacting the Town of Estes Park Events office at events@estes.org or (970) 586-6104.

GUYMON, Okla. – Over the last quarter century, the exposure of rodeo has increased mightily. The Wrangler ProRodeo Tour, established in time for the 2000 season, featured the top events in the sport on programs that were nationally televised. The Guymon Pioneer Days Rodeo was at the forefront of it all, an opportunity that brought viewers into the Oklahoma Panhandle. “We understood then that television was going to be one of the ways we were going to grow our rodeo,” said Ken Stonecipher, chairman of the volunteer committee that produces the annual event. “It’s changed a lot since we were part of that tour, but we’ve continued to gain awareness for our rodeo and for this community because of the television exposure.” The PRCA reported that 26 million people had watched rodeo in 2000 and estimated that about 40 million were set to view the broadcasts in 2001. The rodeo, which occurs annually the first weekend in May, was tape-delayed and shown weeks later to the national audience. This year’s rodeo – set for 7:30 p.m. Friday, May 2; 2 and 7:30 p.m. Saturday, May 3; and 2 p.m. Sunday, May 4, at Henry C. Hitch Pioneer Arena – will be broadcast live on The Cowboy Channel, as has been the case for several years since the network reached an agreement to showcase PRCA events, including the National Finals Rodeo. Rodeo viewership in 2024 was around 100 million. The Cowboy Channel was founded by Patrick Gottsch in 2017 and pioneered 24-hour rodeo and Western-sports broadcasting. It was acquired last November by Teton Ridge, which was created in 2019 with strategic funding from investors, all of whom shared a vision to expand the reach and impact of Western sports. Other than the ownership, not much else has changed with The Cowboy Channel and its association with ProRodeo. The network, which covers most of the 600-plus PRCA-sanctioned rodeos, has distribution agreements with DISH, DIRECTV, Comcast, Cox, Charter, Altice and others. Teton Ridge retained The Cowboy Channel’s licensing agreement with the PRCA during its acquisition. “The good thing for us is that our agreement with The Cowboy Channel broadcasting Pioneer Days Rodeo is unchanged, so we will again be featured that first weekend in May,” said Stonecipher, a longstanding committee member who was instrumental in the event being part of the Wrangler ProRodeo Tour 25 years ago. “We have a great rodeo that’s fun for the fans who come to Guymon to enjoy it, and we put together a great production that can be enjoyed on TV, whether you watch it on The Cowboy Channel or on The Cowboy Channel+ app.” The exposure is not only beneficial to the rodeo but also to its contestants. Not only are they battling for big dollars in the Oklahoma Panhandle, but being showcased on television helps cowboys and cowgirls potentially receive lucrative sponsorships. “I’d say 90 percent of the events I compete at are televised and that rural America is watching,” said Josh Frost, an Oklahoma Panhandle State University alumnus and the 2024 bull riding world champion. “The Cowboy Channel is huge for us.”