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News & Notes from the Rodeo Trail, Jan. 5

by ProRodeo.com | Jan 05, 2015

A delegation from the Canby (Ore.) Rodeo committee recently presented a check for nearly $7,000 to fund a cancer awareness program through the Willamette Falls Hospital Foundation.

A delegation from the Canby (Ore.) Rodeo committee recently presented a check for nearly $7,000 to fund a cancer awareness program through the Willamette Falls Hospital Foundation. Shown here, left to right, are Canby Rodeo Director and chap maker Dan Mickelsen, Jane and Terry Marsh of Fox Erosion Control, Canby Rodeo Director Roberta Pittman and Tiffany Gillespie, past director of the WFHF.

After 25 years of being headquartered in Pueblo, Colo., the Miss Rodeo America organization has found a new home at the PRCA building in Colorado Springs. Following the retirement of longtime business manager Raeana Wadhams in November 2014, Stacy Bandock has taken over Wadham’s position. Bandock, along with administrative assistant Whitney Seufer, have moved the MRA office to Colorado Springs, and are excited with the change. “We’re thrilled to be here at the PRCA office,” said Bandock, who was the 1997 Miss Rodeo Colorado. “It’ll help to be in the same building and share ideas, and have a place to meet with sponsors. We’re very excited for the new era of Miss Rodeo America, and we want to continue positive growth from all the hard work Raeana did.” Bandock says digitally organizing Miss Rodeo America’s records is a priority at the new office. “Raeana was meticulous with the records, and we want to add to what she’s done,” Bandock said.

Canby (Ore.) Rodeo directors Roberta Pittman and Dan Mickelsen recently presented a check for $6,972 to the Willamette Falls Hospital Foundation for cancer research and the rodeo has now provided $23,308 to cancer awareness programs over the past seven years. The majority of this year’s amount ($5,500) was generated by the auction of a pair of pink-accented chaps made by Mickelsen. The winning bidders were Fox Erosion Control, the Kerry Stiles family and Para Heva Arena. Jake Fallesen served as the auctioneer.

Team roping header Clay Tryan, who paired with Jade Corkill to break the single-season earnings record for his event ($220,057) en route to claiming their second consecutive gold buckle, was named the Billings (Mont.) Gazette’s Male Athlete of the Year.

The Stephenville (Texas) Chamber of Commerce and the Cowboy Capital of the World Pro Rodeo Association staged a WNFR Welcome Home Celebration Dec. 18 at the Cowboy Church of Erath County to honor the area cowboys who earned a combined total of $1,265,856 in Las Vegas last month. Stephenville Mayor Kenny Weldon presented Tryan and Corkill with keys to the city while also paying tribute to saddle bronc rider Jacobs Crawley, tie-down roper Marty Yates, bareback rider Richmond Champion and other area residents. “This is a big deal,” Weldon said. “We’re proud of you and we appreciate what you do. Some people talk about Western tradition; we live it. Some people talk about Western heritage; we have it.”

Officials of the National Western Stock Show & Rodeo in Denver have named millionaire businessman Philip F. Anschutz the winner of the 2015 Citizen of the West Award, as a community leader who exemplifies the spirit and determination of the Western Pioneers.

Evan S. Dillard, president and chief executive officer of Forrest Health, will serve as the grand marshal for the 30th annual Southern Mississippi Coca-Cola Classic Rodeo in Hattiesburg on Feb. 20-21.

The nonprofit FISH (Friends In Service to Humanity) Food Bank recently received a $1,000 donation from the Ellensburg (Wash.) Rodeo Association to help cover the community food bank’s needs in the wake of a Nov. 28 fire that destroyed its service building at Second Avenue and Water Street in Ellensburg. A raffle, silent and live auction, organized by Bailey Linder, a 2014 Ellensburg Rodeo princess, brought in an additional $6,872, with a few more sales donations yet to be collected that likely will push the total closer to $7,000. “The generosity of the community really was evident at the (Dec. 18 fundraiser),” Linder told the Daily Record. “The community really shined. It was wonderful.”

The committee for the Redding (Calif.) Rodeo will be accepting theme contest entries through Jan. 31. The theme must be short and create a subject matter that all local businesses can decorate around. The winner will be the special guest of the Asphalt Cowboys for the May 16 Redding Rodeo Week Parade and will receive an award of $100. All entries should be mailed to the Asphalt Cowboys at P.O. Box 992211, Redding, 96099-2211. No entries will be accepted after Jan. 31.

Pendleton® Whisky, the official spirit of the PRCA and the presenting sponsor of the All American ProRodeo Series, has expanded its roster of cowboys accepted into the Legendary Cowboy Program, a platform designed to honor and encourage ProRodeo cowboys currently competing in a roughstock event and a timed event at PRCA-sanctioned rodeos across the country. Sixteen cowboys have been accepted into this program, including newcomers Wade Harvey, Tyrel Nelson, Logan Allen, John Leinaweaver, Kaden Deal, Joe Wilson, Kaleb Asay, Josi Young, Wade Sundell, Travis Reay and 2014 Linderman Award winner Joe Frost. They join Kyle Whitaker, Bobby Mote, Steven Peebles, Luke Gee and Jesse Jolly, who have all been accepted back to the program for a second year. Mote, Peebles, Frost and Sundell competed at last month’s Wrangler National Final Rodeo. “Pendleton Whisky, much like the 16 talented riders and ropers accepted into the Legendary Cowboy Program, are born of the rich tradition that celebrates and honors the bold spirit of integrity, independence and hard work,” said Ron Dodge, Hood River Distillers president and CEO. To qualify for the Pendleton Whisky Legendary Cowboy Program, cowboys must be PRCA members, 21 years of age or older, compete in at least one roughstock and one timed event during the current rodeo season, and demonstrate Pendleton Whisky brand values. Legendary Cowboy Program participants receive a $250 gas card and official Pendleton Whisky Legendary Cowboy patches, while also having the opportunity to qualify for additional sponsorships throughout the year at select events. Enrollment into the program will be open through Nov. 30, 2015 for the upcoming rodeo season.

The North Dakota Cowboy Hall of Fame will celebrate its 20th anniversary with the first “Another Cowboy Moment” Western gala at the Outlaws Bar & Grill in Watford City on Jan. 7. This will be the kickoff for a series of events across North Dakota that will debut segments of the NDCHOF’s “Another Cowboy Moment” video collection. For the past year, the Hall of Fame has been preparing the collection, a series of taped interviews with North Dakota’s notable cowboy and cowgirl heroes that explore their lives and stories. “These interviews of our rodeo competitors and ranchers are amazingly entertaining for the present and immeasurably valuable as an education tool for the future,” said Kevin Holten, executive director of NDCHOF. The Hall of Fame has interviewed 20 people – including the late Alvin Nelson, Jim and Tom Tescher, Brad Gjermundson, and Wayne Herman –and the organization plans to continue long into the future, Holten said.

QUOTE OF THE WEEK
It’s the same …I don’t think they were doubting me, but I think everybody was kind of surprised and as happy as I was.”

-Spencer Wright in the Gillette (Wyo.) News Record on whether his world championship in December has changed the family dynamic with the Wright brothers.

Courtesy of PRCA

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