News & Notes from the Rodeo Trail, August 28
Wrangler Network will livestream the Ellensburg (Wash.) PRCA Xtreme Bulls Division 1 Tour Finale at 8 p.m. (PT) Sept. 2 and the Ellensburg PRCA Rodeo Sept. 3-4, beginning at 11:45 a.m. each day.
ProRodeoLive.com will broadcast Frontier Days in Walla Walla, Wash., Sept. 1-3 at 7 p.m. (PT) each day and the Ellensburg PRCA Rodeo at 11:45 a.m., Sept. 4.
The following people have been nominated as the Top 5 candidates for the PRCA Pickup Man of the Year: Gary Rempel, Jeremy Willis, Shandon Stalls, Shawn Calhoun, and Will O’Connell. The final online voting process will take place Oct. 1-15. Winners will be announced at the PRCA Awards Banquet in Las Vegas in December.
PRCA bullfighter Cody Emerson conducted the inaugural “So you wanna be a bullfighter” day clinic on Aug. 19, for children ages 5 to 15 during the Blanco County Fair and Rodeo in Johnson City, Texas. There were seven children who signed up for the clinic. They each got their own pair of Wrangler denim baggies with patches from California Rodeo Salinas, a custom T-shirt and got to pick grease paint ideas from ProRodeo bullfighters. “I love kids and it’s always nice to give back to your community and to pass rodeo on to the next generation,” Emerson told the ProRodeo Sports News.
ProRodeo Hall of Fame Saddle Bronc Rider Winston Bruce passed away July 10. He was 79. A service in memoriam of his recent passing will be held at the Ponoka Stampede Grounds at 5 p.m. (MT) on Sept. 19. His influence and relationships were the gold standard in the rodeo industry, and since the facility is so large, his family would like to invite everyone to his celebration of life. Bruce was inducted into the ProRodeo Hall of Fame in 1989, becoming the first Canadian competitor to receive that honor. He also was inducted in the Canadian Rodeo Hall of Fame in 1995 and the Alberta Sports Hall of Fame & Museum in 1998. Bruce’s PRCA career was highlighted by winning the 1961 world championship. He qualified for the National Finals Rodeo 10 consecutive times from 1959-68, and was the reserve world champion in 1959 and 1965.
Over 16 years, Rancho Mission Viejo Rodeo has raised more than $1.9 million for local charities. The proceeds from the Aug. 26-27 Rancho Mission Viejo Rodeo will benefit the Shea Therapeutic Riding Center, the Boys and Girls Clubs of Capistrano Valley, and Children’s Hospital of Orange County at Mission Hospital.
QUOTE OF THE WEEK
“Kennewick was a really great rodeo and the short round was phenomenal. I had to be 88 (points on Calgary Stampede’s Yipee Kibitz) to win the short round. That’s how good that rodeo was.”
– Reigning PRCA Bareback Riding World Champion Tim O’Connell told the ProRodeo Sports News about his performance at the Horse Heaven Round-Up, which concluded Aug. 26.
Courtesy of PRCA