Dusty Myers will be the rodeo clown at this year’s Dodge City Roundup Rodeo, his first time working the prestigious rodeo. He was also the barrelman at the 2025 National Finals Rodeo.
(PHOTO BY ROBBY FREEMAN)

 

DODGE CITY, Kan. – Greatness happens inside Roundup Arena every summer.

It’s not just a tradition for Dodge City Roundup Rodeo; it’s a calling. Dozens of volunteers work hard to continue a legacy that will celebrate its 50th year, 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.

It’s not just the competition, which features many of the sport’s elite. It’s the overall entertainment package that comes with it, including the addition of Dusty Myers, who will be the rodeo’s rodeo clown.

“Dodge City has always been a rodeo I’ve heard about,” said Myers, a second-generation rodeo clown from Jumpertown, Mississippi. “Being from my part of the world, I didn’t get to see it, but you always heard about Dodge City in all those Westerns.

“It means a lot for me to get to go to that rodeo.”

It’s a dream come true for Myers, who was selected as the barrelman at the 2025 National Finals Rodeo. He has worked many of the biggest events in the sport and will have the opportunity to add another ProRodeo Hall of Fame event to his resume.

“I know there’s a lot of history that’s been made in Dodge City,” Myers said. “I’m really excited about getting to be part of that rodeo this year.”

He brings an old-school flavor to clowning, but he’s not afraid to venture outside of that comfort zone in an effort to entertain rodeo fans.

“Lecile Harris was my role model,” he said of the late rodeo clown, also from Mississippi, who, like Roundup Rodeo, has been enshrined into the Colorado Springs museum. “For as long as I can remember, this is what I’ve done. When I was 2 or 3 years old, I dressed up like a clown.

“From a small child, I have loved being in the trailer and on the road. I love going to new places. It’s exciting for me to go to new rodeos, so when I book some new places each year, it is very exciting.”

In addition to working the NFR this past December, Myers has been nominated for Clown of the Year and Comedy Act of the Year. His credentials continue to strengthen.

“I call myself a traditionalist,” he said. “I’m really an old-school rodeo clown. I still wear the makeup and the baggy clothes. I still do big-prop acts, and I want to mix it with the dancing, getting up in the crowd and bringing out the laughter. I’m kind of a mixture between what we call an old-school clown and what they call an entertainer.”

It goes well with audiences, and Roundup organizers are counting on it to resonate with fans in southwest Kansas.

“I tell a lot of jokes, and I like to do a lot of stuff with the crowd,” Myers said. “I try to do a lot of my own material so that it’s new and not something they see all the time. I’ve studied the guys that did that really well, so I enjoy bringing that into my own work.

“I’m excited to be there and help bring smiles to everybody’s faces.”