Roundup Arena gets a facelift
DODGE CITY, Kan. – A local grant mixed with volunteer labor will result in a bit of a facelift to Roundup Arena in time for this year’s Dodge City Roundup Rodeo. The planks of wood that served as flooring and seating for the north grandstands of the arena have been removed and will be replaced […]
Cattlemen’s Days is still growing
Top names in ProRodeo are expected to ride for Gunnison’s big money GUNNISON, Colo. – The word is out about the Cattlemen’s Days PRCA Rodeo. While many people knew about the gem of Colorado rodeos before, the 120th celebration helped set the record straight. Even though the COVID-19 pandemic kept fans away, the contestants showed […]
Bullfighters put their skills to use
GUNNISON, Colo. – Darran Robertson and Cody Emerson look at life inside the rodeo arena vastly different than most. When danger appears, they attack it. When a 1,600-pound bull charges, they return the favor, utilizing their athleticism and experiences to help themselves and others inside the arena escape harm’s way. It’s their nature; it’s their […]
4-H still big in Gunnison County
GUNNISON, Colo. – There are more than 2 million acres across Gunnison County, and about a tenth of those acres are used for agriculture. This is a home for farmers and ranchers and many others that care about agriculture. It’s the legacy left to many in Gunnison County, and it’s one of the many reasons […]
Ropings honor Gunnison legacy
GUNNISON, Colo. – COVID-19 reared its ugly head around the world in 2020, and the isolation and devastation was only part of the problem. For the Gunnison Roping Club, it meant an alteration to its traditional plans surrounding the annual Cattlemen’s Days celebration, the biggest community event in all of the Gunnison Valley each year. […]
Gunnison champs eager to return
GUNNISON, Colo. – It really doesn’t matter how many times Shali Lord has made barrel racing runs in this beautiful Rocky Mountain town, she loves returning. “It’s an old-fashioned setting, but everything they have there is modernized,” said Lord, a two-time National Finals Rodeo qualifier from Lamar, Colorado. “They have a great announcer, great stock, […]
No slowing down yet for Harris
Champion may be retired from bull riding, but he’s got plenty on his plate Life as a professional bull rider can be hectic. From training to travel to competing – sometimes at two locations in the same day during the busiest times of the year – there’s a lot that goes into being elite. J.W. […]
Howard Henry ‘Dude’ Summers, 1941-2021
To my Uncle Dude, nicknames were something of an artform. He and his siblings were pretty darn good at it, but he and Uncle Donnie have always been spectacular. Maybe it comes from a man who always went by a nickname. Born Howard Henry Summers, I rarely ever heard anyone but family call him that. […]
Rangers find success at CNFR
CASPER, Wyo. – The dreams of national championships came crashing down for two Northwestern Oklahoma State University cowboys during last week’s College National Finals Rodeo in Casper. Bridger Anderson, the 2019 college champion in steer wrestling and a three-time CNFR qualifier, and Riley Westhaver watched their intercollegiate rodeo careers end on the third day of […]
Talley makes his mark in rodeo
Louisiana bulldogger goes from one-stop town to the top of the world Tucked away in DeSoto Parish in northeastern Louisiana sits a little hamlet called Keachi, which boasts of 238 residents. Steer wrestler Jacob Talley is one of them. This is where he was raised and taught right from wrong. His father, Jeff, used to […]
Bulldogs grab 3 national titles
CASPER, Wyo. – Cole Franks wasn’t quite sure what to get his dad for Father’s Day. He and some of his teammates from the Clarendon (Texas) College rodeo team collaborated to provide the perfect present: three national championships in one fell swoop. Franks is a sophomore at his hometown college, and his dad, Bret Franks, […]
Coaches, dads have a happy Father’s Day
A quarter century ago, Bret Franks and Jhett Johnson were teammates at Panhandle State University. Now they’re two of several former Aggies who coach in the National Intercollegiate Rodeo Association, Franks at Clarendon (Texas) College and Johnson at Casper (Wyoming) College. They’re also dads who happen to coach their sons. On Saturday night, they celebrated […]
Rodeo folks trust the Carr brand
PECOS, Texas – While this community came to grips with the global pandemic, the organizers of the West of the Pecos Rodeo debated about what to do with its 2020 event. Each step of the way, the volunteers sought advice from people they trusted. With more than a century of history, the committee knows how […]
The face of a rodeo clown
Isley brings his comedy, personality back for Cattlemen’s Days GUNNISON, Colo. – Watching Keith Isley entertain crowds at any rodeo across North America, it seems as though entertaining was just a natural fit. The truth is far from reality, though. He wasn’t necessarily funny; he was, however, talented and has always had an amazing work […]
Rangers excited for CNFR to begin
ALVA, Okla. – While he’s experienced the College National Finals Rodeo before, it’s never something Bridger Anderson takes for granted. The last time he played on this stage two seasons ago, Anderson walked away with the coveted steer wrestling national championship. He was just a sophomore then, and it was the last time the college […]
A Stretch of the imagination
Cattlemen’s Days sound director is always ready for the action GUNNISON, Colo. – Randy Mayer was just clowning around when he came upon the task of music direction. It’s not funny business anymore for the Mississippi man, who will return to Gunnison for this year’s Cattlemen’s Days PRCA Rodeo, set for Thursday, July 15-Saturday, July […]
Barrel race continues tradition
GUNNISON, Colo. – There are a handful of barrel-racing events that take place in Gunnison every year, but the one everyone looks forward to most is the Watershed Legacy Barrel Race. That’s because it’s part of the annual Cattlemen’s Days celebration and will feature locals competing for prizes and bragging rights. The competition is set […]
Stewart rides high on the Frontier
Cinch endorsee is the man behind the scenes of PRCA’s top stock contractor Heath Stewart didn’t have to dream of being a cowboy like most boys. He was born into it, the son of a ranching and rodeo cowboy named Butch Stewart, who, with his wife, Brenda, raised their two children around grasslands and pastures. […]
Horse show a big part of celebration
GUNNISON, Colo. – For nearly eight decades, the open horse show has been a staple for the Cattlemen’s Days celebration. Of course, the community-based gathering dates back even further, to 1900, when the inaugural Cattlemen’s Days helped bring people to the town of Gunnison to celebrate their lives and livelihoods. That was a time when […]
Pearson likes comforts of home
ATOKA, Okla. – The sloppy conditions at the Atoka ProRodeo may have muddied Tyler Pearson’s clothes over the weekend, but it didn’t dull the shine on his gold buckle. Originally from Louisville, Mississippi, Pearson and his family moved to this southeastern Oklahoma hamlet in 2017. He recalls it vividly, because that was the same year […]
Okies collect Atoka roping win
ATOKA, Okla. – Jake Clay and Rance Doyal are having a nice bit of luck roping at events in their home state of Oklahoma. On Friday night, the team ropers stopped the clock in 5.5 seconds to win the opening night of the Atoka ProRodeo at the Atoka Trail Riders Arena. That was worth $790 […]
Carr brand is key to Stampede
CLAREMORE, Okla. –A decade ago, the organizers of the Will Rogers Stampede PRCA Rodeo were regularly seeking more sponsorships and hoping to fill the stands. My, how things have changed. Those same organizers are expecting good crowds for this year’s rodeo, set for 7:30 p.m. Friday, May 28-Sunday, May 30, at Stampede Park in Claremore. […]
Champs will be part of Atoka rodeo
ATOKA, Okla. – Cord McCoy knows what it takes to be a champion. He won five IPRA world titles nearly two decades ago as one of the top all-around cowboys in the Oklahoma City-based association, and he’s been in contention for the PRCA and PBR gold buckles over his lifetime. There was also the time […]
Mooney puts his stamp on rodeo
Announcer, Cinch endorsee uses Southern charm to make the right calls Just six days after announcing his fourth National Finals Rodeo in December, Roger Mooney packed up his family and made an 80-mile drive from their home in Ellijay, Georgia, to the state’s capitol in the heart of Atlanta. “My kids got to go into […]