News & Notes From the Rodeo Trail, April 28
The May 10 Kingman Patriot Xtreme Bulls Division 2 event will be webcast live from Kingman, Ariz., on the Wrangler Network.
Parker Breding, the reigning Ram National Circuit Finals Rodeo bull riding champion, suffered a fractured ulna in his right (free) arm at the Clovis (Calif.) Rodeo. Breding will be fitted with a cast, and will be sidelined indefinitely …
The pens, chutes and parts of the arena at the Rowell Ranch Rodeo grounds in Hayward, Calif., were painted April 26 through a combined volunteer effort by the Hayward Area Recreation and Park District and the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints. The May 17-18 rodeo will be the 94th annual and the first since the committee learned it had been selected for induction into the ProRodeo Hall of Fame this August …
California Rodeo Salinas has hosted a cowboy poetry event that kicks off the Big Week celebration for 27 years, with attendees experiencing an afternoon full of wine tasting, barbecue, cowboy poetry and music. This year’s gathering on July 13 will feature Western Music Association Entertainer of the Year, Male Performer of the Year and Songwriter of the Year, Dave Stamey. Western artists Ed Montana and Jim and Karen Ross will also perform, with cowboy poet Clem Albertoni serving as emcee. The Cowboy Poetry & Music Gathering will be at Sherwood Hall at 940 N. Main St. in Salinas with the doors opening at 1 p.m. (PT) for the barbecue and wine tasting. Tickets for the event are on sale at the Salinas Sports Complex Box Office at 1034 N. Main St. (Monday-Friday, 10 a.m.-6 p.m.) or by phone at 800.549.4989. This special evening will benefit the Foundation for Monterey County Free Libraries …
This year the Ellensburg (Wash.) Rodeo will have another “Cowboy” at the Ellensburg Rodeo and Kittitas County Fair. Cowboy is the endowment steer that has been donated by the Ellensburg Rodeo Board to be auctioned at the 2014 Kittitas County Fair. The proceeds will go into the Kittitas County 4-H Endowment Trust Fund and the interest from this trust goes to promote and support the 4-H program throughout Kittitas County. Cowboy is a Charolais cross that Cora Clift and her parents, Kerry and Brigid, will care for and have prepared to show at this year’s Kittitas County Fair. Generous donations of feed from Old Mill Store, Payback Feeds, Carl Jensvold, and the Clifts will help Cowboy to be in his best form at the Fair …
The Idaho Rodeo Hall of Fame is offering a $500 reward for information leading to the arrest and conviction of the people who stole two hand-painted wooden longhorn steers that had been displayed on Main Street in Gooding. The pieces had been created for a project to build the Hall of Fame and mentor youth. “This is really disappointing, as the community has really pulled together for this project,” Hall of Fame spokesperson Charmy LeaVell told the Times-News …
PRCA Gold Card Member Crawford “Crow” Gordon died peacefully at his ranch home west of Kaycee, Wyo., on April 21. He was 96. A Harvard University graduate with a love of opera, Gordon was an enthusiastic rodeo competitor for much of his adult life, who considered a third-place finish in the steer roping at the 1968 Cheyenne (Wyo.) Frontier Days his greatest accomplishment in the sport …
Miss Rodeo Texas Stephanie Revels and PRCA bullfighter Robert “Blue” Jeanes, in town for the Buc Days ProRodeo, made a special visit to Driscoll Children’s Hospital in Corpus Christi, Texas, on April 25 to discuss the children’s hobbies and interests, sign autographs and answer questions about rodeo life …
Representatives of the Red Bluff Round-Up visited five area elementary schools a week ago to take part in the “Cowboys and Kids” program which was created five years ago to use rodeo and the Western lifestyle to teach kids about making healthy life choices. “Our Cowboy Up segment is about making your own path, staying away from drugs and gangs and not being pressured to do what everybody else is doing,” presenter Janet Lemmons told the Red Bluff Daily News …
The North Dakota Cowboy Hall of Fame is set to premiere Another Cowboy Moment, the first film in what will be a continuing video project, at a semi-formal affair from 6-10 p.m. May 3 at the Hall of Fame in Medora. The film features interviews with seven North Dakota cowboys. “We are currently interviewing and collecting footage of many of our rodeo and ranching legends for the purpose of preserving their history for all time,” Hall of Fame Executive Director Kevin Holten said in a news release. Hors d’oeuvres, champagne and Pendleton Whisky will be served, and guests will view new exhibits – featuring Hall members Alvin Nelson and Brad Gjermundson – a traveling art show, a Western skit and dance. Actor and artist Buck Taylor of Texas – best known for his eight-year stint as Newly on Gunsmoke – will be among those in attendance. For more information, visit www.northdakotacowboy.com …
The Chutes for Charity Dinner and Auction took place April 25 in Belle Fourche, S.D., to raise money for local people hit by emergency situations, but who could not get the help they needed through other agencies. The Chutes project, now in its fourth year, has its roots in Black Hills Roundup rodeo committee families who saw people in the Tri-State area who were in need. Two years ago, the board distributed more than $25,000. “We have given for medical expenses, travel expenses, doctor appointments,” Chutes President Kelly Bush told the Rapid City Journal. “One family had their house burn down and we gave for household expenses.” …
Dorro Sokol, a lifelong rancher, will be the Grand Marshal of the 2014 Sisters (Ore.) Rodeo Parade. A member of the Sisters Rodeo Association since she moved to the town in 1971, Sokol has been an influential community member who has watched a town of about 400 residents grow into the thriving, diversified small city it has become. “People ask me if I’m not disappointed in the growth of this once quiet little town,” Sokol said in an interview with KTVZ, “but the caliber of people who have moved in is quite extraordinary. I have enjoyed them coming here.” …
Estes Park (Colo.) Western Heritage, Inc., a major supporter of the Rooftop Rodeo, has commissioned renowned Western artist Don Dane to create a piece of Western art that depicts high energy action in the Rooftop Rodeo arena. Unlike a typical rodeo poster, this collectors’ print is of remarkably higher quality and is limited to just 100 copies, with sale proceeds to benefit the Western Heritage Youth Scholarship Fund, the Rooftop Royalty Program and the Rooftop Rodeo itself. The price of the first 50 prints sold prior to May 31 will be $135.45 (tax included). After the first 50 prints, the price will be $145.50. Shipping is an additional $15. Each print will be hand-signed and numbered by the artist. For more information, contact Western Heritage by e-mail at Painting@rooftoprodeo.com or by mail at P.O. Box 1852, Estes Park, CO 80517.
Courtesy of PRCA