Ouray Magazine's County Lines Locals Series
Welcome to the County Lines Local Series podcast. Join us as we dive into the heart and soul of our communities, uncovering the stories that shape our lives we'll explore the human experiences that connect us all.
Each episode will feature interviews with local residents, experts, and community leaders. We'll discuss everything from local history and culture to current events and challenges. Our goal is to shed light on the unique perspectives and stories that make Ouray County so special.
So, tune in and join us on this journey of discovery. Let's explore the County Lines together.
Ouray Magazine's County Lines Locals Series
Ouray's Rodeo: A Legacy of Passion and Perseverance
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Discover the incredible world of rodeo culture with our special guest, Erin Stadelman, as we explore how the Ouray County Rodeo Association supports and enriches the local community. You’ll learn about the association's pivotal role beyond hosting the iconic Labor Day Rodeo, including the resurgence of 4-H programs and the revitalization of the fairgrounds, which serve as a community hub. We also bring to light the exhilarating San Juan Ski Joring event, a winter spectacle that captivates thousands, thanks to the innovative designs of the Weber Ranch family.
Celebrate the dedication and spirit of rodeo royalty as we discuss the efforts and commitments young women must undertake to be crowned. From community engagements to maintaining high personal standards, the journey to rodeo royalty is one of passion and perseverance. Plus, relive the fun and excitement of mutton busting, where children and parents alike revel in the cherished tradition of sheep riding. This beloved event fosters a sense of unity and community engagement.
Explore the fascinating intersection of athleticism and animal welfare in rodeo sports. We delve into the care and training of rodeo animals, ensuring their well-being and the high standards stock contractors like Jerry Berenice maintain. Aaron also shares the inspiring story behind constructing a state-of-the-art arena, highlighting the role of community support and grants in preserving the region's agricultural heritage. This episode is a vibrant tapestry of stories showcasing the enduring spirit and cultural significance of rodeo life in Ouray County.
Community Impact and Fundraising Events
Speaker 1Welcome to the County Lines Local Series podcast. Join us as we dive into the heart and soul of our communities, uncovering the stories that shape our lives and exploring the human experiences that connect us all.
Speaker 2Welcome everyone to the County Lines Local Series podcast. I'm your host, marcus Van Meter, and today we're sitting down with the Ouray County Rodeo Association's Aaron Stadelman and I think everybody that's ever read the Plain Dealer will remember. Erin used to write articles for the Plain Dealer and she's married to a local rancher here and has got her pulse, her finger on the pulse of the community and the ranching community in County Erin, welcome to the show.
Speaker 3Thank you, marcus, it's good to see you.
Speaker 2Yes, good to see you too. So for all the listeners out there, I know on Labor Day weekend and we'll get to the Labor Day Rodeo they drive by and they see the stands packed and they see a bunch of cowboys and cowgirls out there with some rough stock. But I know the Rodeo Association does so much more than that. You've got quite a bit over there to manage as far as the rodeo grounds and the 4-H building and everything else. Can you tell us a little bit about what you do and the impact that the Rodeo Association has on the agriculture and ranching community here in Erie County?
Speaker 3Of course, of course. So while Rodeo Association is the heart of my existence, my paying job is I serve as the Erie County Fairgrounds Manager. My job requirements are to maintain the 26 acres that the fairgrounds and the two-story event center and the fair barn sit on. That having been said, we host a myriad of commercial events here at the event center and weddings events here at the event center and weddings the outdoor facilities. Of course, the fair barn takes care of our livestock holding for our Ouray County Fair, which is in August every year. I'm happy to say that we are in a resurgence of attendance, for that fair plummeted to an all-time low back in 2018, when we only had seven kids in our 4-H program. That program has tripled in size. We now have 22 kids in our program and in 2024, at our fair, every livestock pen that's in our barn was completely full, so that was wonderful.
Speaker 2Yes, that's huge. What do you think is the contributing factor to that growth?
Speaker 3The agricultural community, those who wish to raise livestock and be involved in 4-H or FFA. In our area seems to ebb and flow. You know we had a very large grouping of teens and preteens in 4-H back in the early 2000s and those kids have grown up, obviously, and some of them have their own children now and those kids are now involved in the program. We do have one family, the Weber Ranch, that is a fifth generation in the county and on the valley floor and the youngest members of that family are members of our 4-H.
Speaker 2Wow.
Speaker 3As were their mothers and their grandparents and their great-grandparents before that. So that's a good thing. And it keeps the barn necessary, yes, as well as providing an apparatus for outdoor concerts and so forth. Yes, labor Day weekend serves as our rodeo weekend, so the entire property, with the exception of the event center, is utilized for rodeo Always a crazy time, but definitely a necessity. And, as you stated, visible attendance from the highway on both sides is always great. In January, so upcoming, the fairgrounds will be host to the eighth annual actually, I believe it's ninth. Now they think about it.
Speaker 2San Juan.
Speaker 3Ski Joring event. So San Juan Ski Joring began under the Ouray County Rodeo Association umbrella and back in 2023 created their own non-profit and they now have the key event at the fairgrounds annually in January.
Speaker 2Annual attendance at that event of spectators just spectators is upwards of about 5,000 people yeah, it's big, I, my wife and I, and I've photographed it more than a handful of times. And it's funny you mentioned that because I just made a post this morning on the URA Magazine social media about the upcoming ski-juring event. And they use the grounds a little differently than what the rodeo does, right? I mean, the rodeo has the central pen and everything where ski-juring is done a little bit differently.
Speaker 3It is definitely a challenge from a fairground manager's perspective. The San Juan Ski-Juring Committee starts bringing in snow, usually right around New Year, and they start building a horseshoe track that encompasses primarily the south end of the property. They do use the rodeo arena for horse warm-up and horse containment, but the course itself, again horseshoe-shaped, exiting the south end of the arena, wrapping along the interior of the racetrack and then heading north toward the finish line. It serves as a huge challenge for the property, but something that we in the county take great pride in, because we have learned over the years and we are now able to provide not only event security but, more importantly, public safety during that event?
Speaker 3Yeah, it's a challenge, I won't lie, it's tough.
Speaker 2Well, between all of you guys. I mean it's just an amazing event. I mean hats off to. I mean we can all go back for the locals that know that Richard Weber was the instigator and the organizer of that winter event. And from my knowledge the Ridgeway track is the original one. I mean it's not like any other where they just go in a straight line down the road.
Speaker 3That's correct. That's correct. This is the only course, as far as I know, in the ski drawing circuit that takes place from January through March that has the horseshoe shape from January through March that has the horseshoe shape. Having mentioned Richard Weber, I will let you know that Richard Weber and Tyler Smedsrud now contract with Ski Drawing USA and do custom designs for all of their sanctioned events, because their course here is just something that the contestants just rave about.
Speaker 2Yeah, and spectators alike, because the viewing value of having a horseshoe track like that is so much higher because you can stand in one place and kind of see all the action I mean relatively compared to a straight line and, and boy, they've done a great job.
Speaker 2I mean Richard's made that signature red shirt and black hat just kind of legendary in this area and and I know there's a story behind that and later in the series of podcasts we're going to do over the winter we'll have Richard on here and he can share a little bit about that, as well as Sarah, his sister, who have kind of taken the bull by the horns no pun intended up there and made this event such a great thing for winter and kind of contrasts with what the rodeo is. Now going back to, the rodeo, um, september, first weekend in september, for labor day is always a big day, huge day, and but I know you guys were. We were talking off off, uh, off camera here a little bit earlier about some other events you've got going on that you're excited about and and there used to be something on father's day weekend and you're kind of resurrecting that a little bit.
Speaker 2You want to share a little bit about what that looks like.
Speaker 3So, due to the downturn in sponsorship finances, our rodeo board this year, in 2024, needed to come up with a community fundraising challenge because we needed to increase the funds that were available to offset the cost of the rodeo. So in June of 2024, the Rodeo Association, in conjunction with the fairgrounds it was here at the event center hosted a dinner and dance along with silent and live auction items. It was very successful from our point of view, definitely room for growth. We invited the community, not just the agricultural community, not just the ranching community. It was a full, open community event. We had dinner brought in by the True Grit Catering and we had the Sean Moon Band who gave us a great deal of country western and some modern rock music. It was fun, it was really fun. We had a lot of help from our local retail businesses that donated our silent auction items so that we could create some, some revenue from there.
Speaker 3The board, the rodeo board, is looking to continue that tradition in 2025. We now plan on making it an annual fundraising event in and around Father's Day weekend, possibly the weekend prior, possibly the weekend after. We haven't settled on a date just yet for 2025. Our Ouray County Rodeo Royalty we have a queen and a queen's attendant for 2025, are working on a secondary fundraiser, partially for their financial needs but, more importantly, for the needs of the association in general. The girls are trying to put together a barn dance in the barn here on the fairgrounds barn here on the fairgrounds and as the president of the association, I was more than happy to assist our rodeo queen with that planning.
Speaker 3But I have to be honest with you. She's a Weber, she's a descendant of the Weber Ranch. Her mother is extremely tenacious, her Uncle Richard is, as you put it, quite the instigator, and Kimber Cook, who is our rodeo queen, has taken the bull by the horns for this event and is doing quite well in putting it together. So we look forward to seeing that toward the end of July, possibly the first weekend in August, just before our fair. We haven't quite finalized those dates yet. So keep an eye out for those community events coming to you on behalf of the Rodeo Association and, more importantly, you know, if you are a business owner, if you are a community member who is interested in helping us put on our events, please reach out. We not only have opportunities and requests for funding. I need human beings, I need volunteers. Every nonprofit I believe in the country says the same thing. Volunteerism is key to nonprofit fundraising and we are currently lacking. I am sad my friend list is limited.
Speaker 2Well, I get that and you know volunteers are so important. It's quite what makes everything in this community tick, especially for the several nonprofits that we have. I mean, we have quite a few here in your county that kind of make things home. And how can the listeners get involved, Aaron, in the role that they play in making the rodeo happen? What, if they were, will put up some information on the splash page on the website for this podcast and how you can get involved. But what role do your volunteers play in making the rodeo happen and how important are they?
Speaker 3Volunteers are far more than important for us. They are essential. I have a board of five people and it takes about 100 to put on a rodeo. I need able bodied individuals who can pull my bucking chute gates. We are responsible for making sure that those gates operate during the event. I need to have a spry individual on those gates and I don't have that on my board currently. I also need volunteers to work with me inside our rodeo shed putting on the event. We have to organize mutton busting and our stick horse race needs a volunteer head. We've got a swag and merchandise booth that I need people to help man and merchandise booth that I need people to help man. I need folks who are persuasive and possibly retired from this retail sales or the sales industry to assist with collecting our sponsorships.
Speaker 3Yeah, you know pretty much from. If I could get a few cowboys from the local ranches, all the way down to a retiree who just wants to give up their time on the event date, I'll take them all. I'm picky.
Speaker 2Well, you can count on our help, oh yes. You know, moving forward as far as rallying the troops in the county to make this even more successful event. All the hard work that you guys put into that is amazing. And you mentioned something earlier and the royalty and I don't think a lot of the listeners really understand what that is and if I recall correctly, your daughter, Caitlin, was part of that royalty and rodeo queen at one time as well.
Speaker 3Right, yes, yes, I have to confess to you and all the listeners While Steve and I have been on this board since 2007, our children have been voluntold on this board since 2007.
Speaker 2I like the key word there voluntold. I like that.
Speaker 3Voluntold.
Speaker 2Yes, I like that.
Speaker 3Steve and I have a combination of six children his, mine and ours. Most directly, the two youngest have been involved in rodeo since they could sit a horse For most people. For the two of them, it was at about the age of five. They've served as our trash picker, uppers, and Caitlin, during her teen years at Ridgeway High School, designed our advertising with her online talents. That was great. With her online talents, that was great. And beginning in 2012, she became a member of our rodeo royalty and served on that royalty until she graduated and moved on to college in 2019.
Speaker 3So, our royalty girls? So it's a tradition. It's a rodeo tradition that dates back over 100 years of honoring a young woman, or multiple young women whose lives are enhanced by the agricultural community, and working on the events such as rodeo. Our royalties responsibilities at our events. They are solely responsible for the stick horse races under under my guidance and direction. They have to, during the rodeo performance, push the cattle during roping events.
Speaker 3So as soon as the roping event is concluded and a time is recorded for the cowboys, those calves or those steers have to be pushed to a collection zone and our royalty girls sit horseback and they're responsible for that. More to the point, even if they're not my children, as Caitlin has outgrown her royalty purpose, they have to take direction from me. I try to give it in a positive manner, but when you're in the middle of an event that has life-threatening parts to it, um yeah, these girls have to have a pretty good backbone. They have to be able to take direction from just about any adult that's out there, and for that they have my undivided respect yeah, and again you know kimber is is taking the reins on this fundraiser and I'm happy to let her do it.
Rodeo Royalty and Mutton Busting
Speaker 2Yeah, and true Weber fashion too. I mean, that's kind of what it takes is for everybody coming together and how do they get involved in the royalty? Is it being part of FHA, future Farmers of America, or is it your 4-H, or just having a love for it and being hanging around the buck and shoots and hanging around everybody?
Speaker 3Well, it's a little bit more than wanting to be a part of it. They need to have the skills to be successful in a part of a rodeo. I can't have young women who are afraid of cattle, who are afraid of being yelled at, young women who are afraid of cattle who are afraid of being yelled at. They definitely need to have horsemanship skills and they need to have horses that can be controlled in a harried environment. Every year we have a tryout. We circulate an application for royalty. Those usually go out sometime in June and while I have a comprehensive list of most of the families in the county and in South Montrose that have young women on horses, we do advertise it. You know there are prerequisites. You know they have to participate in the 4th of July parade in Ouray. It's a requirement. They have to attend the Montrose and San Miguel County rodeos as volunteers for them.
Speaker 2That's awesome.
Speaker 3They have to maintain a positive grade point average at their schools and not have any disciplinary marks against them. We do hold them to a higher standard, which I believe falls back on the tradition of being in quotes royalty.
Speaker 2Yeah, and it's definitely.
Speaker 2I mean these ladies can ride.
Speaker 2I mean, give our listeners a little context Aaron's husband and I used to work together as cowboys on our local ranch and, boy, you know, you get out there and you think you can ride and then you see some of these ladies and you're like, wow, they really can, can handle a horse, and they're almost like ambassadors for the, for the, not only for the rodeo association but for the county, and the skills that they're learning are life skills that I think a lot of parents would really envy having their kids learn, and I commend you guys for having that program.
Speaker 2I always have a lot of admiration and respect for those ladies that really get out there and do it, and one of the things that I always remember about the rodeo royalty there's a few things, but they're really, and we'll get into this right now is the mutton busting, and they're always there to pick the kids up and after they've fallen off and for all the listeners out there. To give some context to what I'm saying, Erin, what is the mutton busting event that you guys host every year? It's a very popular one with the parents.
Speaker 3I have to say mutton busting is the most popular event at our rodeo. While a lot of people say I go to a pro rodeo to watch the bull riding, we get more people grandstand reaction to our mutton busting than we do to our bull riding. So I am a parent who raised mutton busters. Very simply put, you put your child who is of the age between five and nine and 50 pounds or less, and we load them on the back of a sheep unshorn, on the back of a sheep unshorn, unclean, straight out of the pasture sheep and we open the bucking chutes and the sheep runs away with your child installed onto the back of it.
Speaker 3Some of the kids are very good at it. They're able to get a grip and wrap their legs and they end up taking, you know, a good 30, sometimes 45 second run around our very large arena. Others are lucky if they get out of the bucking chute before they hit the ground. And yes, every child hits the ground eventually and there are often tears, but you know, that's okay, that's part of it. We provide the helmet and a chest, a vest for chest guard, in case the sheep does step on the chest or on the head, because these animals aren't lightweight. I mean they look cute and fluffy but they're not. We also provide everyone who rides a sheep is a winner with the Rodeo Association and our royalty awards them with the appropriate medal. And I have seen those kids after the event walking through the grandstands showing absolute strangers their medals.
Speaker 3Yeah, yeah, of course, at the same time they're showing the medal, they're also itching every extremity that touched that sheep, because I mean they're pokey and your children smell afterwards. Children smell afterwards yeah, it's lovely. So it's welcome to agriculture.
Speaker 2Here's your stinky kid yeah, here's your stinky kid, you know, and and uh, this last rodeo, uh, was the first time I had photographed it in probably a couple years, and the line outside of, with the parents waiting to get their, their kids signed up for it because you only allow so many, right, and then it's kind of cut off after that and the demand's been pretty high from what I could tell.
Speaker 3That's absolutely correct. We don't allow any pre-registration. You have to register day of and you actually register one hour prior to the event. And yes, I have a line because we typically only have 18 or 20 sheep. It depends on how many our stock contractor can get loaded into one of his trailers to bring up here for us. They're not local sheep, they come out of Fruita and they're part of our stock contractor's contract with us. But he can only, like I said, between 18 and 20 every year.
Speaker 3And yeah, there's a lot of folks that we have to turn away and and I have to keep the login sheets from recent years so that new people take priority over folks whose kids have done it before. That's the only way that we've ever been able to determine that it's fair and everybody gets a chance to experience it. But you know those parents, as soon as the event is over, when their kids participate, I am happy to report those parents are usually still hanging out with me. They're still helping me, they're. You know, it's just. It's a great community event. The grandstands love it, the kids love it until it's over, but then it comes back after a few minutes. Yeah, definitely a cornerstone of our rodeo performances these days.
Speaker 2Yeah, it's something that even the grandparents love to come and see. The kids do, the grandkids do and notice always how many parents are actually in the arena with the kids when the bucking chutes open and they're just cheering them on. And for the listeners out there, 45 seconds on the back of a rough stock is an eternity. When you consider that a bull rider only has to go eight seconds, or a bronc rider and then they're timed out and that's considered a successful run, so you can about imagine 45 seconds on the back of one of those things what it's like and we just commend those kids for it. I hope a lot of them grow up to keep the rodeo thing going a lot, you know, for when they get older and get into some of the other events.
Speaker 3Yes, we hope so too. That's why we encourage it. We're also looking forward to, with our 2025 event we're hoping to bring in the mini Bronx to come back so that our local competitors kids primarily between the ages of 10 and 15, if they so choose, can have the opportunity to ride some miniature horses that buck into the arena. It's not a low cost event. It is definitely an addition, but we're hoping, again with our 2025 fundraising efforts, that we'll be able to afford to bring that group in so we can take those mutton busters who have aged out and move them on to a different rough stock category.
Speaker 2Yeah.
Speaker 3And hopefully keep them interested in the competition level of a rodeo.
Speaker 2Yeah, what a fantastic event. And you know I'm always amazed. It's probably just because I'm getting older every year but these rodeo athletes just seem to be getting younger and younger and younger and I was totally impressed with them this year. You know, back behind the scenes and in a traditional rodeo like the Labor Day Rodeo here in Ouray County, what events do you guys we have? You know your traditional bull riding, but I don't think people really understand some of the other events like tie down and breakaway, calf roping and what the women get involved in and what the men do and what they can do together.
Speaker 3Yep, yep. So we host at our Labor Day Rodeo. It's a Colorado Pro Rodeo Association sanctioned rodeo. So these are professional rodeo contestants and they come down to again not only do bulls to not just do the bucking horses. So to ride a bucking horse you have two opportunities. You have saddle bronc, where they put a modified, simplified saddle onto a bucking horse and the bronc rider attempts to stay on, as you said, for eight seconds. There's also bareback riding, which is the same scenario, but you have nothing other than a long cotton rope to hold onto a horse that doesn't have a saddle, that doesn't want you there. So that's always an exciting event. I prefer myself the bareback riding over the saddle Bronc riding just because of the ultimate challenge for women.
Speaker 3Of course you know the internationally renowned barrel racing event, but now a sanctioned pro rodeo event is women's breakaway roping. It's women only. It's all about speed. Your horse comes out of a chute. At the same time a small calf comes out of a chute, and the time that it takes for your loop to land on that calf and your horse to stop, that's the time. Typically, if you are more than five seconds, you're out of the money. These women are roping these calves, you know, 1.8 second to 3.8 second and those are the winning times. Completely, completely, an incredible event. I love watching it. We Co-ed team roping. They call it mixed team roping. You typically have a man or a woman at the head and they head, rope, a steer and then the partner picks up both hind legs. And again, a timed event. That's really the only timed event or the only rodeo event that is a co-ed entry. It's men and women and oftentimes at our rodeo event that is a co-ed entry it's men and women and oftentimes at our rodeo it's husband and wife.
Speaker 3And for that reason we really enjoy that one Tie down roping man on horse ropes calf bails off a perfectly good horse to tie three legs of the calf as it lays on the ground. So a combination of skills on the human's part but, more importantly, a combination of skills on the horse's part. That horse has to stand still and keep tension on that original head rope in order to keep the calf from moving around. I've always admired the horsemanship involved in those who participate in the tie down roping. And then the one event that I still don't understand and I've been involved in rodeo for 15 years now is the steer wrestling. You've got a steer with horns on it and this thing weighs close to 850, maybe 900 pounds. It comes out of a roping chute. You're, as a human male maybe that's the thing, it's a male thing as a man sitting on a horse. You come out of the chute and the goal is to come off a perfectly good horse and land on this steer and pull it to the ground.
Speaker 2At full speed.
Speaker 3With horns. It's got horns. Yeah, while I admire the action, I truly don't understand it, but it's great for spectators because they have the same wow factor that I always do. Oh my gosh.
Speaker 2Yeah, it's one of those case studies in why women live longer than guys, I think, and you know they have. There's a, if I remember right, there's a second horse that comes out, that's the hazer. Is that correct that?
Speaker 3that's correct.
Speaker 2That keeps that steer kind of running in a straight line so that cowboy and neat and dirt when he comes off the saddle.
Speaker 3That's absolutely correct and that hazer's job is a paramount to the success of the steer wrestler. If that, um, if that hazer is not in the correct place to keep that steer moving in a straight line, that steer can very easily go from 60 to zero in about 0.3 seconds. So if that steer chooses to stop, as you said, the steer wrestler is, you know, face first in the dirt and out of the money for sure.
Speaker 2Yeah, or even hurt yeah. And for the listeners out there, all this stuff, I mean we're talking about it in slow motion, but it's happening in a matter of seconds and that's where the true skill of what these athletes including the animals, the horses are doing. It's really impressive and if you haven't been to the rodeo you need to get out there and see it. It's every Labor Day weekend. We'll just mention that right off the bat. Of course, we'll have more information on the splash page at EurayMagazinecom on when this will be and how you can get involved, but it is something to see, that is for sure.
Speaker 3Yes, I agree.
Speaker 2Now, erin, we had talked about this kind of off camera. The rodeo has got a long history in Ouray and it also was a two-day event with the Ranch Rodeo, and that was during my time of working in the ranch and up until about COVID, if I remember right. Is that correct? Can you tell us a little bit about the Ranch Rodeo, what that's about and a little bit of the history of how the Ouray County Rodeo got started?
Speaker 3about and a little bit of the history of how the Ouray County Rodeo got started. Sure, so Ouray County Rodeo Association began back in the early 1900s. There are documented articles and flyers in local papers that state the first official rodeo over Labor Day weekend included a parade through town, horse race, barbecue in the park, and that began in 1920. So in 2025, the association will be celebrating 105 years of rodeo in Ouray County at the Ouray County Fairgrounds. The evolution of the association began as a subdivision of the Ouray County Cattlemen's Association. They were a committee that was in charge of the Labor Day rodeo events that evolved into the Sheriff's Posse, evolved into the Ouray County Rodeo Association, and they were tied in hand in hand with the Ouray County Fair Board who put on the fair. So from 1985 until 2022, the fair and rodeo were hand in hand over Labor Day weekend. We started with two days of fair and then a fair sale, and then the pro rodeo was the Sunday Monday of Labor Day weekend, again with the barbecue in the park and the annual parade In the late 20-teens.
Speaker 3Until 2020, as you said, we as the Rodeo association did host a local ranch rodeo. Um, it was fun. I really enjoyed it, um, as a, as somebody who puts on a ranch rodeo, it's extremely challenging, um, and in this day and age, while we'd love to bring it back and I have hopes of bringing it back for 2025, um, finding contestants in your Ray, in Ouray County, is few and far between the majority of the large ranches that used to put up cowboys to compete in the early teens of this event, late teens of this event. Those cowboys have been let go. The ranches aren't hiring the cowboy groups that they used to. So we may have to reach out to some of our friends in Delta County and see if they can send some, maybe some from Montrose, san Miguel, san Juan County. Hopefully we can get some teams together.
Speaker 3But the Ranch Rodeo, while it is competition and every event is timed, it's an opportunity to display actual working ranch actions and activities. The cowboys typically have to rope a non-domesticated head of cattle and, at the end of an event, get that steer or that heifer loaded into a horse trailer as if it were going to the sale barn. Also, load a horse and get all the cowboys into the pickup truck and ready to head out. I find it humorous, I find it challenging but, yeah, definitely something that we've always loved, and I will be looking for stock contractors for that, actually beginning in January, again, with the hopes of having at least five or six teams to compete and having what I hope is a saddle and a few buckles to give away to the winners.
Speaker 2Yeah, that would be fantastic. I mean, that was always the big event when we were going to the rodeo for so many years after working at the ranch, and then beyond that, and that Saturday event you know half the people out ranch and then beyond that, and that Saturday event, we, you know you, you know half the people out there and it's what makes it so much fun because you know you had just had a beer with them the night before and then they're out there trying to compete on some ranch duties and and I just I hope it comes back. And we have a lot of ranches in the area, not only in your eight County. We have a couple of very big ones, but we also on the Western slope. I mean the whole Western slope is agriculture and and ranching.
Speaker 2And your Ray County is a right to farm County, which is even more of a special designation, meaning that that the cows balling they had a big snafu over lately over in Ridgeway is just part of the game out here. And and uh, and a lot of our, a lot of our roads are open range and when the cattle are on them they have the right of way, which I did not know at the time when I started working out at the ranch, so I think it's really interesting. What changes do you predict are going to be coming? I know you guys are talking about the mini buck and horses. Do you see any changes to the events coming up in the next five years that you're excited about, or where the direction of this may be going?
Speaker 3Well, the direction is and the hope is to remain Colorado Pro Rodeo sanctioned events so that we can get those professional entertainers, both human and animal, back on our fairgrounds every Labor Day.
Speaker 3Labor Day the goal for the next five years we try not to look past five years is to bring back a two-day pro rodeo, so a Sunday, Monday, which is what we used to have, and add and keep that ranch rodeo or those local ranch rodeo events on our Saturday format, All of which take sponsorship and volunteerism. You know I hate to beat the same drum over and over and over again, but while we have these wonderful plans and we have the ability to bring these events and put these events on for the community to watch, the funds and the human assistance has to be there before we can commit to it. There's just absolutely no way I can, with my five other board members. We can't put on a ranch rodeo, we can't put on a pro rodeo. It's a violation of our contract with Colorado Pro to not have a minimum of 25 volunteers. So if I can't have a list of volunteers that reaches 25 prior to the sanctioning of our rodeo, they have the right to disqualify our rodeo, which is something we of course never want to have.
Speaker 2No, we can't have. And just to clarify for the listeners out there, the rodeo in Ridgeway is part of the points series for the Cowboys in the Colorado Pro Rodeo Association that they run all summer, correct in the Colorado Pro Rodeo Association that they run all summer.
Speaker 3Correct? That is correct. And our Labor Day Rodeo is actually the final opportunity in the circuit to get enough points to go to the CPRA finals, which are hosted in Montrose at the end of September. So if you've got human competitors in the rodeo that are within the points bubble but aren't there yet, they're putting on their best show. They are trying the hardest that they have for the entire season in front of our grandstands, in front of our spectators, and I have yet to see them fail to entertain.
Speaker 2Yeah, no, they definitely do. And you know, I think a lot of the people out there, like you'd mentioned earlier, like the bull, the bull riding and, in my opinion, if you're going to ride rough stock, which is a hard way to to run rodeo, um, I think the bucking horses by far they're like riding a jackhammer, I mean, where the bulls will spin the, the broncs just go straight. The only benefit on on a bronco is the horses are really particular about where they put their feet, so they're probably not going to stomp you once you get to the ground, but a bull not so much. And I was really impressed with the level of athletes that you had at this event riding the Broncos, even though we did, I don't remember we had one bull rider go the distance, did we?
Rodeo Athletes and Animal Welfare
Speaker 3That's true. In 2024, we only had one qualified ride, um, but unfortunately, upon review that a young man's points were rescinded. Um. So, technically, in 2024, we had zero qualified rides in the bull riding category. The saddle, bronc and the bareback rides all had qualifying events. Again, while I love to watch the human athletes perform, I find myself more drawn to watching the animal athletes. Yeah, while they only have to work eight seconds out of a day, their hearts are in it, their hearts are in it, they're in it to win it. The combination of points for both the riders of the rough stock and the rough stock performance is combined to find the winner of that event. Winner of that event, and those rough stock athletes, the animal athletes actually, they have a pool of points as well that qualifies them to perform at the rodeo finals at the end of September. So again, our stock contractor is only bringing his best.
Speaker 3Yeah he comes to our rodeo.
Speaker 2Yeah, and I think a lot of people you know think that you know these are just animals that grab out of the pasture. And they're not. They're athletes that are trained to do this and they're not harmed in any way at all. And horses naturally go to buck. I mean you ask any cowboy out there that's gotten on a horse on a bad day and they'll tell you that. And and bulls especially, and you know, being up close in the chutes, you know you don't want to get near those horses' heads because they spook so bad. And then the bulls are just absolute units when they come out of those chutes. I mean you can just tell it's just a battle between the cowboy and the bull rider. You know I noticed some of the bull riders wear a cowboy hat and some of them wear a helmet. What is the rule on that? Or is it just a personal choice if you've got enough guts to do it?
Speaker 3The rule reads in the contestant handbook that you are requested to wear a helmet but not expected to wear a helmet. It is 99% personal choice of the rough stock rider. Those that wear the helmets, you know I appreciate them, you know they're taking their safety first. There are those that choose not to wear the helmets. They say that it blocks their peripheral vision, that it impairs their ability to stay centered, and I respect that as well. Oh, okay, a lot of folks who watch the rough stock or have seen the rough stock but not been a part of a rodeo association find themselves confused.
Speaker 3In my opinion, those bulls and those bucking horses yes, when they come out of the bucking chute they are working. They are doing what they were bred and raised to do. They are doing what they were bred and raised to do. When they are back in the rough stock area where they're resting and they're eating, you can walk right up to them and pet them on the muzzle. I have done it year after year. They're just as tame as the three horses I have in my home pasture that we have raised since they were babies. They're well taken care of. They see an equine dentist, they have their feet worked on. They receive vitamin supplements. Even the roping calves, while they were born to be roped, they do. Some of them have been given bovine chiropractic work After the steer wrestlers take them down. They do have the opportunity, through the stock contractor, to have their necks worked over if the contractor feels they need.
Speaker 3But our stock contractor is Jerry Berenice. We use the Berenice Rodeo Company every year. We have since 2009. My husband, steve, has known him for 50 some years. He absolutely spoils those animals. It's ridiculous. The checklist that the association has to go through to make sure that the facilities are up to his standards and that the hay that we provide for his animals our quality is almost to a point of ridiculousness. If there is one yellow straw of hay, he won't feed that hay. It's got to be green, it's got to be alfalfa. His animals only get the best.
Speaker 2Yeah, yeah, they're beautiful animals. I mean, you get up close to them and I think that's a good point about when they're not working, that they've got a great life and they're very calm. And I know there's a lot of people are probably going to listen to this podcast that are interested in follow rodeo bull rider who, by the way, didn't wear a helmet most of the time bought Bushwacker, a famous bull, and now keeps him on his grounds and goes up and just gives him big back rubs and everything all the time. And these are two athletes that used to battle each other.
Speaker 3Oh yeah, absolutely. I saw that interview as well. And he not only keeps Bushwacker on his property, he keeps him in the front yard. Yeah, yeah, he's in the front yard where you know his children and his neighbors walk from their trucks to his front door. They walk right past that bull yeah. There's no fear yeah.
Speaker 2And I think that's very common of people that have spent any time around livestock at all, that they just fall in love with them.
Speaker 2I mean, you know, I was just out Friday night shooting near the J-Bar M Ranch of nothing but cows, because the cows call me down and I like looking at them and I just adore them, you know, and same with the ponies and even the sheep, and I just think what you guys are doing over there is amazing and that rough stock contractor you guys have is just top notch. I mean he's just really putting the love into that, into those animals and the sport, and it definitely shows. You touched on a subject that I wanted to get out to our readers, or listeners and readers, because this is going to be an article in the first issue of Uramagazinecom on this very podcast. The rodeo grounds about 10 years ago underwent a major transformation because there's a lot of maintenance involved in making sure that that grounds qualifies for these stalkers to come down and release their animals and be used in your rodeo. Can you tell us a little bit about what you guys did and how that went down?
Speaker 3So back in 2014, following our 2013 rodeo, the county, through its liability insurance, was forced to put a condemned notice on the grandstands that have existed on the fairgrounds since the early 1920s. It just wasn't safe for humans to be anymore. So the county took that and ran with it. And the county applied for and received a Go Outside Colorado, a GoCo lottery fund grant of a little over a million dollars, and with that million dollars, the county planned and had erected the beautiful grandstands that we have now, and those grandstands hold 1350 people in them a wonderful thing. The downside was the million dollar grandstands in 2014 were overlooking a wood and panel arena and, having gotten word from the Go Coast group to our sanctioning committees, the sanctioning committees came back and told the Rodeo Association hey look, you've got to do some upgrades to your arena. We don't feel that it's safe for our human or animal athletes anymore and, by the way, you only have nine months to get that done.
Speaker 3So 2014, it was March of 2014. I was given my marching orders. I've got to come up with some money to build a new arena. Reached out to Preford manufacturing, the key panel builder, arena builder in the entire country. They gave us a quote of what it would cost and it was the quote was $115,000 to create what would be a state-of-the-art rough stock facility. The association my husband and I most especially took that obviously as a need to have, and we found what we lovingly refer to as our angel donor, and that angel donor gave us a gift of 125 000 so we were able to bring in the uh the prefer rough stock arena in its entirety four bucking shoots, the return alleys, the roping boxes all of that, as well as 22 loads of prime arena sand and an arena groomer so that we could take care of that arena. And all of this came about in July of 2014. And we put on our rodeo on Labor Day.
Speaker 2Yeah.
Speaker 3At the time, I had an incredible group of retired volunteers and family members. I won't lie. The kids were once again voluntold and we, in about a six-day span, demolished the previous arena and installed this $100,000-plus piece of property, and that's what we are proud to present to those who attend our rodeo every year. It's just wonderful. It's completely operational. There is not one piece of that arena or the rough stock containment pens that isn't up to date and top of the line.
Speaker 2Yeah, I mean Erin, you guys, I mean it's just a class act out there. I mean all the way, from every little detail, uh, that you guys put attention to out there. It shows and I think the fans really appreciate it and we're going to do everything we can do to make that event on Labor Day weekend, and even you know the the barn dance, to become a staple and I think those, those pieces of Americana people are really yearning for now and and like to see the history and and we were just down in San Fe not long ago and I've learned very the hard way that vintage means expensive and I think when people start seeing because of value, that it's expensive and that's the value that you guys bring to your event. Even though the cost of admission and getting in on rodeo day is not much at all, it's nominal compared to what you get. I think it's fantastic.
Speaker 2And you mentioned the GOCO grant. That's sponsored by state lottery money and I know the GOCO has had a huge impact here in Ouray County with the Ouray School had their new playground done by GOCO. Goco has been involved in the Riverwalk Trail in Ouray. They've been involved in the Rodeo Association's efforts up there and that comes from the lottery money in the state. Am I correct on that?
Speaker 3That's absolutely correct. It is a grant application process and the governmental agencies and several nonprofits in Ouray County have been well gifted by GOCO and we love working with those people. Putting my county fairgrounds manager hat back on they are one of the largest grant funders in the state and, I have to say, the easiest to work with.
Speaker 2That's good.
Speaker 3Yeah, so if there are any nonprofits out there that are looking to get a GoCo grant and I have to add to your list the Rat Trails Group is also a beneficiary of GoCo recently.
Speaker 2Yeah, thank you.
Speaker 3If you need help with your GoCo grant application, please reach out to me. I usually complete one, at least one every two years in an effort to improve the facilities here on the fairgrounds, as well as for the 4-H Club and for Rodeo Association. But yeah, by all means, you know I don't hate putting in a plug for other groups, but yeah, lottery funds are a good thing.
Speaker 2Yeah, they are a good thing and they're pretty prevalent out here as well. And you know, that's really impressive that so many different you got government and private coming together to help such a great cause as the Ouray County Rodeo Association. And a lot of people, I think, have this misconception that guys like Ted Turner and Ralph Lauren and Charlie Ergen and John McConnell, and the list goes on are ruining the West, and they're not. They're actually preserving it and they're preserving it by the way they manage their land and put them in trust and conservation easements so that they can never be touched, and then to come in and have an angel donor like that, who will remain anonymous, step up like that. That's the case with a lot of people and I think that's so important for the community that we can never lose the agriculture of the ranching community. It's just the backbone of the West and I'm just so proud to live in an area where that's valued. We are also again as president of the West and I'm just so proud to live in an area where that's valued.
Speaker 3We are also again as president of the board of the Rodeo Association. I also serve on the Cattlemen's Board and I serve on the Fair Board. Yeah, those large property landowners, cattle ranchers, whatever label they wish to have, are beneficial. They are large standing donors to not just the agricultural based non-profits in this county. They reach out to the arts as well and assist them as requested yeah yeah, so we try to keep it going.
Speaker 3The small family ranches are being sold, they are being subdivided but, as you said, due to conservation easements and family trusts, it seems that these large for-profit cattle ranches are going to remain cattle ranches, at least through my generation.
Speaker 2Yeah, yeah, and I hope so, for you know all the young kids that are getting involved, even the mutton busters that are growing up, that they still have that available to them someday to to make a part of their life, because obviously their parents value it, and I'd like to see that way of life continued on with their kids, at least to have that option, and that's.
Speaker 2That's really just so special. Erin, we've been on the horn here for almost an hour and it just time flies whenever you and I talk, and Erin and I go way back 10 years at least, and so we know each other really well and have a lot in common. Like them to know that maybe we haven't touched on on this podcast, or or maybe hammer home something. I know the volunteering is a big deal and we're going to help you with that every way that we can, and and and something maybe you could touch on in your closing comment a little bit about the cattlemen's and and and what that is, and, and I'm looking forward to helping in any way that I can with that as well, and and what is your final message to the listeners out there?
Speaker 3My final message to your readers and listeners is pretty simple. Yes, we have a Cattlemen's Association Typically, that is just those who have branded livestock in the valley but the fundraiser for that association. As we put forward high school scholarships and educational opportunities to our agricultural people, we do a fundraiser every year and I'm hoping to reprise that for 2025. So stay tuned for that. You have offered your assistance in pulling that together. So, on a personal level, you know, keep checking your texts, because I will be pulling that button here pretty soon.
Speaker 2Please do.
Speaker 3More to the point, if you have any questions, any concerns, any comments regarding the use of ranch land in the county being a part of our rodeo association joining us at the fair, my door here at the Fairgrounds and Events Center is always unlocked and always open as long as I'm in the building. My cell phone unfortunately never leaves my hip. While I don't always answer the phone on the first ring, I am well known for returning my calls. Reach out.
Speaker 3I mean even if your question involves why are the cattle in town? Mooing, give me a call. I'm happy to sit down with you and help you understand what the cycle of cattle rearing is all about. It's all good, we're all friends here, but I need your help. So while I say my door is open, realize if you walk through my door I'm probably going to sign you up for something.
Speaker 2That's awesome.
Speaker 2I love that and you know, I know, aaron, you know just a ton of people in the area and anybody that knows you knows just how, what a quality person you are and how committed you are to what you do and your community and your family, and and that's that's totally admirable.
Speaker 2Aaron, we thank you for being a part of the podcast. We look forward to making this an article in the first issue of the magazine due out in April, and we have for all the listeners out there. Go to uramagazinecom and look in the podcast section and there's going to be links on there and some pictures to correspond with some of the things that we were talking about from this past year's rodeo that I shot and contact information for Aaron, how you can get involved, and we'll keep updating that and also in the newsletter Erin and I will be in touch over the coming months and anything that she wants everybody to know. I'm going to push it out in our weekly newsletter and get it out on our website and our social media so that you know and, erin, thank you for being here today. We really appreciate it and look forward to getting together with you on a social time too.
Speaker 3Wonderful. Yes, marcus, as always, it's a pleasure, and we'll have you up for stakes here pretty quick.
Speaker 2We love it. Well, thanks for listening everyone. This has been the Local Series, the Uray County Lines Local Series podcast. Getting ahead of myself a little bit and we'll see you next time.
Speaker 1You have been listening to the County Lions Local Series Podcast. No-transcript.