The WRANGLER Horse and Rodeo News is an equine and rodeo publication with circulation in Colorado, Wyoming, Montana, Nebraska, North Dakota, and South Dakota, Utah and Idaho.
Issue link: http://thewrangler.uberflip.com/i/1522136
ranch roDeo in Big Sky Country Big Sky Country With traditional rodeos becoming increasingly mainstream, another sector of the cowboy community has been silently growing — ranch rodeos. As rodeo has progressed s rodeo has progressed over the past century, it transformed into more of an athletic sport than its traditional predecessor. American ranch rodeos are rooted in "cowboy contests," with contestants competing in various roping and riding events. In the early 1900s, ranch rodeo-esque events became more well documented and often promoted as "Frontier Days" or "Pioneer Days." By the 1940s, professional rodeo was established and the events began to drift from those of the original cowboy contests. The necessary travel to compete on the rodeo circuit further separated the working cowboys from competition. Today, cowboys and cowgirls compete in events like wild cow milking, team branding or doctoring, loading, and penning. To preserve the cooperative aspect of daily ranch life, ranch rodeo events are team-oriented. Although a considerable level of skill is required to compete in rodeo and ranch rodeo events, ranch rodeo events tend to offer more opportunities to showcase horsemanship and stock handling abilities that are used in a working ranch environment. Coveted top hand and top horse awards recognize the work cowboys and cowgirls put into their craft. In the early days of ranch rodeos, women were allowed to actively compete, but when the Cowboy Turtle Association formed in 1936, women were formally excluded from participating alongside cowboys in the rodeos. Ranch rodeos today welcome women, and some even offer a category for women's only teams or women's steer stopping. While organizations like the Working Ranch Cowboys Association (WRCA) and the Western States Ranch Rodeo Association (WSSRA) have hosted prestigious world championships for years, cowboys and cowgirls are stepping up in their own communities to make high caliber events even more accessible. Based in Montana, the Big Sky Ranch Rodeo Finals is aiming to fill the gap for northern contestants who may not be able to travel to finals events in southern states. Their annual event has been steadily growing and I was able to chat with board secretary, Shania Whiteman, about the organization. To qualify for the Big Sky Ranch Rodeo Finals (BSRRF), a team must win one of their sanctioned events. For ranch rodeos interested in sanctioning their event, those nominations are currently open for open teams, women's teams, youth teams, ranch bronc riding, and women's steer stopping. If the winning team at a sanctioned event chooses not to participate, the opportunity will be offered to the second place team, and so on. There are no membership fees required for the BSRRF and sanctioned ranch rodeos pay a $250 sanction fee. This money is added to the finals event, which will be held September 6-8 in Glendive, Montana, at the Dawson County Fairgrounds. The group is still working on final numbers, but 2024 finals will have a minimum of $10,000 added money. The first sanctioned event of the season, an open ranch bronc riding, kicked off in Chamberlain, South Dakota on May 31. As of this publication, there are 26 sanctioned competitions across Montana, Wyoming, Nebraska, South Dakota, and North Dakota. For a full list of those rodeos, All Photos Courtesy of Michael Magill Photography By Teal Stoll With traditional rodeos becoming increasingly mainstream, another sector of the cowboy community has been silently growing — ranch rodeos.