About: Ted

DUNCAN, Okla. – A year ago, header Andrew Ward of Edmond, Oklahoma, and heeler Buddy Hawkins of Columbus, Kansas, knew of the possibilities that could come their way if they were to win the Prairie Circuit’s team roping year-end championship. They realized everything and more. After winning the heading and heeling titles, the tandem went on to compete together at the National Finals Rodeo, where they won just shy of $100,000 in 10 days. They both finished fifth in the world standings in their respective disciplines. Then this past spring, they took their regional title to the RAM National Circuit Finals Rodeo, where they won again. They placed in the first two rounds and finished third in the two-run aggregate, then dominated the semifinals and finals to pocket $19,706. That financial boon has been a key reason they are in line to return to the NFR, set for December in Las Vegas. They also lead the regional competition again heading into the Chisholm Trail Ram Prairie Circuit Finals Rodeo, set for 7:30 p.m. Thursday, Oct. 14-Saturday, Oct. 16, at the Stephens County Arena in Duncan. The race for the team roping titles will come down to the final three days of the circuit season in southern Oklahoma. Both Ward and Hawkins own leads of just $1.26 over the No. 2 cowboys in the standings: header Curry Kirchner of Ames, Oklahoma, and Austin Rogers of Crescent, Oklahoma. But that’s just the top two in each discipline. Take this into consideration: Ward and Hawkins have each pocketed $12,723 in the region made up of rodeos and contestants primarily in Oklahoma, Kansas and Nebraska. The top five headers includes C.J. Yeahquo ($12,279), Jake Clay ($12,140) and Coleman Proctor ($10,484); the top heelers include Jim Ross Cooper ($12,309) and L.J. Yeahquo ($12,279). All will be in the mix during the three rounds in Duncan. Cooper and the Yeahquos all earned a good portion of their money at the largest rodeo in the circuit in Dodge City, Kansas. Ward and Hawkins, together, and Proctor also collected paychecks in western Kansas. The Yeahquos also won in Abilene, Kansas, that week, and Cooper placed there. Just a week before that, Kirchner and Rogers finished second in Burwell, Nebraska, while Cooper, Ward and Hawkins all captured nice paydays in Lawton the second week of August. They’ve all battled through a rugged summer run. With just a few weeks left before the circuit finale in southern Oklahoma, all know they’ll have to put on quite a show inside the building at the Stephens County Fairgrounds if they hope to walk away with the year-end title.

DICKINSON, N.D. – This part of the country knows a thing or two about rodeo. It’s part of the fabric that makes up western North Dakota, where ranchlands and agriculture are everyday life. It stems from 4H and FFA programs and builds into a passion, a dream and a sport, the most popular of all Western sports. This is where Fettig Pro Rodeo was founded decades ago and why Alicia Fettig still carries the flag and a large herd of incredible bucking animals. She’s ready to show it all off during the Wild Rides Rodeo Dickinson, set for 2:30 pm. Saturday, Sept. 18, at the Stark County Fairgrounds in Dickinson. “This is special to me because this is where I’m from,” said Fettig, who owns a ranch just outside of Killdeer and also runs horses on her family’s property just south of Golden Valley, North Dakota. “This is what my grandfather founded so many years ago, and I’m glad that I can carry on that tradition.” Wild Rides Rodeo Dickinson is a one-day rodeo, with competition beginning Saturday morning. There are hundreds of cowboys and cowgirls who have tossed their names in the hat to compete for the prize money available. That money is vital. In rodeo, dollars equal points, and only the top 15 on the money list in each event when the regular season concludes Sept. 30 will advance to the National Finals Rodeo, the sport’s grand finale that takes place at Las Vegas and December; it’s where the world champions for 2021 will be crowned. The Dakotas is well known for its prowess in rodeo, especially saddle bronc riding, which will feature 24 cowboys all battling for that Dickinson title. They’ll be matched with an impressive squadron of Fettig horses, but the contractor is doing one better: Fettig is also bringing in Alberta-based Macza Pro Rodeo, which has been recognized for having some of the best horses in ProRodeo. In fact, Macza’s Get Smart was named the 2019 Saddle Bronc of the Year, just a few months removed from being named the top bronc at the 2018 NFR. “I’m really thankful that Ward (Macza) was able to come here and stay here to bring horses to these rodeos,” Fettig said, noting that Macza and Pete Carr Pro Rodeo had animals featured at the two days of rodeo in Killdeer earlier in the month. “He’s got some really great bucking horses, and that just helps make our rodeo better.” The combined forces and bronc power is a big reason so many top contenders in saddle bronc riding will make their way to Dickinson on Saturday. That includes Dusty Hausauer, an NFR qualifier, who has a great chance to win his hometown rodeo.

From ranching to rodeo, Wyoming country artist tells his life through song Chancey Williams sees himself as much more than a musician or a country artist. He’s a rancher and a cowboy who happens to love playing music, and his songs reflect his lifestyle and his raising. He’s also an athlete, a two-time state champion wrestler at Moorcroft High School in his hometown in northeastern Wyoming. He combined it all and rode broncs professionally for a while. He qualified for the National High School Finals Rodeo, then went to Casper (Wyoming) College and the University of Wyoming to compete in rodeo. He’s ridden at the College National Finals Rodeo twice and has been a winner at the Cheyenne Frontier Days Rodeo, the biggest event in his home state. He knows what it means to be horseback and what it’s like to get bucked off a scary bronc, and fans can hear it in the tunes he plays with his group, Chancey Williams and the Younger Brothers Band. “I’ve always felt like if I put out songs about cowboy, about rodeo, I’ve got to be an ambassador for the sport,” Williams said. “My lingo and lyrics have got to be accurate to represent the rodeo world. There’s been a lot of people in country music who sing about cowboys; the one thing I love about it the most is that I can back it up. “It wasn’t like I just kind of rode broncs. Having the background and experience in rodeo backs up the stuff I’m singing about.” Oh, he knows. He was the first artist since the late Chris LeDoux to perform at the Cheyenne Frontier Days after also being a contestant. Williams has a lifetime of ranching and rodeo to help vocalize his lyrics. “My dad was a rancher, and my mother was a school teacher,” he said, noting that his father, Dennis, also was a bronc rider. “I really didn’t play music growing up. “Our main focus growing up was rodeo and wrestling. I went to college to rodeo, and I just assumed I would rodeo forever. To go to college rodeos, I had to pick a degree, but I wasn’t really focused on music or anything other than bucking horses.” That’s pretty much the way of life for those who raise families in rural Wyoming. Moorcroft is a community of less than 900 people, and it’s in the second least populated county in the least populated state. Everybody there knows everybody, and it was the perfect way for Williams to grow up. Being raised on a ranch teaches humility, the benefit of hard work, a respect and compassion for animals and a love for community. During the cold of a Wyoming winter, Williams and his brothers were most often in the wrestling room. If it was wrestling season, that’s what they did. Dennis Williams was a 1969 state champion while wrestling for Moorcroft; his brothers both competed at the state tournament, just as he had done. In fact, Chancey Williams’ brother, Charlie, wrestled in college and coaches the program at Moorcroft High; he’s led the Wolves to nine state titles. So, how did music come his way? He started a band for fun in high school and entered a talent show with a friend, Travis DeWitt. The two continued to perform while in college, making a little extra cash, some of which was likely used for rodeo entry fees. “All growing up through elementary school, the music teacher would always give me the main part,” he said. “She kind of favored me, which made me want to be a performing. Me and a couple of buddies got together, and it went from there. People just started hiring us. We weren’t good, but we had a band. We figured out we could make some money; maybe we could do this through college and not have to have a job.” While some entertainers have gained popularity a bit quicker than Chancey Williams and the Younger Brothers Band, he likes the steady roll of his career. As a Cinch endorsee, he wears cowboy every day, and his rise to more fame has come at a pace that is befitting of such. He’s played fairs and honkytonks. He’s opened for big-name artists and seen his music rise up the charts. “It’s that feeling of performing in front of people,” he said. “Just the crowd’s reaction is what drives you.  I guess it’s the same thing if you were getting on bucking horses; it’s in front of a crowd that you hope likes what you’re doing. Singing or riding broncs, it’s the physical part of it is appealing to me. “Now that I write most of my stuff, it’s neat to see people singing the songs that I write.” Some of it is going one better. A few years ago, the University of Wyoming came up with a slogan, “The World Needs More Cowboys,” and Williams realized the slogan needed an anthem. He wrote it, and now that song has continued spread the same message. Whether it’s played before a rodeo or during a Williams concert or at halftime of a Wyoming football game, people are excited to hear about the world needing more cowboys, even if they’re cowgirls, too. “The Wyoming marching band will play that song,” he said. “They sent me the score they had worked up for a marching band. It’s pretty neat. That’s pretty special; there are a lot of artists that have written a hit song that has been played by a marching band, but this is pretty cool for me. “It’s not the act of being a cowboy; it’s about the life of being a cowboy. It’s about standing up for what you believe in, not getting pushed around. It’s about a respectful, good person, and we call those people cowboys in our industry.” He’s certainly a cowboy, and the fact that he has a guitar on stage instead of a horse doesn’t change that.  Continue Reading »

HEMPSTEAD, Texas – The people of Waller County needed something. They’d been stuck in isolation for months, and a reprieve was in order Enter the community’s biggest event, the Waller County Fair and Rodeo. It was the perfect escape from the monotony that had come through the early months of the pandemic. “First off, we were blessed that our governor allowed things to open up sooner than many other states,” said Matt Hyatt, president of the Waller County Fair Board. “The next thing that happened was that we as a board decided to push forward with our fair and rodeo. We believed then, just as we believe now, that it was important for the people in our communities to have our fair and rodeo last October.” That dedication to serving the community paid off. With the help of a faithful group of sponsors, there were concerts, livestock shows, exhibits and all the activities at the rodeo arena, from the PRCA rodeo to the popular Eliminator competitions. “We felt an obligation to help as many as possible through the pandemic in our control, like food vendors, beverage companies, entertainment, rodeo companies and all the people that are in that industry,” said Mike Higgins, vice president of the fair board. “Those that help put on our rodeo – our announcer, our sound director, our pickup men, our rodeo secretary, timers, clown, bullfighters – and the contestants live on what they do at the rodeo. “We were looking out for them, too.” The 2020 fair and rodeo wasn’t a full exposition. Because of the pandemic, some items were pared down a bit, but the fair board continued to push forward and have as many events and exhibits as possible to provide an outlet to the community and to allow its people to celebrate. “It will be nice to have our carnival back and going, along with the natural flow of people enjoying their fair experience,” Higgins said. “I’m very proud of what we accomplished a year ago. The families, the kids … they needed that. We needed that. “This community needed to feel the excitement that comes with having the county fair and our local rodeo. Every community was impacted by COVID, and our community was blessed with sponsors that still supported our event. We were able to let the kids finish the projects they started, and they were excited to show them, too. Yes, this is a community event, but really, it’s always been about the kids.”

DICKINSON, N.D. – There are so many fascinating aspects of a rodeo. Todd Pettigrew loves them all. Pettigrew is a rodeo clown and entertainer from Sedalia, Missouri, and he will be one of the featured pieces to the Wild Rides Rodeo Dickinson, set for 2:30 pm. Saturday, Sept. 18, at the Stark County Fairgrounds in Dickinson. “I just love the atmosphere of a rodeo … the people, the contestants, the audience, the committee,” he said. “It just suits my way of life. I believe this is what the good Lord put me on this Earth to do.” He may be right. Pettigrew grew up around rodeo in central Missouri. His father was a team roper, and as a child, Pettigrew rode steers and junior bareback horses. Once he got into high school, he qualified for the National High School Finals Rodeo as a bareback rider, finishing among the top 20 in the country. “After that, I became a bullfighter, and I fought professionally in the PRCA for five or six years,” Pettigrew said. “In 2008, I was selected to work the Great Lakes Circuit Finals Rodeo.” That’s the regional competition that features contestants and rodeos from most of the Midwest states; only the top 12 in each event in the region advance to the circuit finals, so his job was to keep everyone safe during the bull riding. It’s a task that relies on the bullfighters’ athleticism to keep anyone I n the arena out of harm’s way, including himself and the bull riders. The transition, then, seemed natural to move on to clowning. He uses his athleticism a lot less, but he brings a new technique to the game: he utilizes his comedic prowess. It’s a vital part of any rodeo, which is an equal mix of fantastic competition and family-friendly entertainment. “I like to make people laugh,” he said. “It gives me enjoyment to see people with a smile on their face. I try to play off the situation that happens in the arena. I try to make it come naturally. “I’m definitely not a scripted guy.” By not following a certain path, he allows the events of the performance come to him. That could be something from the competition or a play on words with the announcer. It might even include some of the goings-on in the crowd, which makes for a delightful night of comedy for everyone to enjoy. The key, of course, is to make sure those that are watching the show are enjoying it. They’ll see some incredible athletic feats, from a fast steer wrestling run to a big ride in saddle bronc riding. Pettigrew’s job, then, is to be an accent point to it all and bring out everyone’s funny bone when the opportunities allow. He looks at being a rodeo clown as his calling, and he’s probably right.