Badlands Circuit Finals Rodeo names 2026 personnel

Selected rodeo professionals will work the PRCA championship event Oct. 9-11 in Minot

Minot, N.D. (September 8, 2026) – The list of the contract personnel for this year’s Badlands Circuit Finals Rodeo has been set.

For two men, it’s their rookie year at the championship rodeo held in Minot Oct. 9-11.

Brandon Hatzenbuhler and TK Sampson, both pickup men, were selected to work the rodeo.

Hatzenbuhler, Solon, North Dakota, and Sampson, Interior, South Dakota, have worked together much of the year, often at rodeos with Muddy Creek Pro Rodeo as stock contractor.

Sampson competed at the Badlands Circuit Finals eight consecutive years in the bareback riding, in the early 2000s.

Both men were pleased with being selected by the top twelve bareback riders and saddle bronc riders in the circuit.

“It’s an honor,” said Hatzenbuhler. “We have some of the best pickup men in our circuit, so getting this is an honor.”

In the bullfighters category, the Badlands bull riders selected a veteran and a first-timer.

Beau Schueth returns to work his second Badlands Circuit Finals Rodeo. For Ely Sharkey, it’s his first circuit finals.

For Schueth, Douglas, Wyoming, this will be his fourth circuit finals, which includes trips to the Columbia Circuit Finals and the Turquoise Circuit Finals.

Sharkey, a Granbury, Texas resident, grew up in Nebraska and started his career as a freestyle bullfighter before turning his attention to PRCA rodeos and bull rider protection in the last few years.

“It’s a big honor that the bull riders trust us to protect them,” Schueth said. “There are a lot of really good guys in the circuit, so to be selected is huge. It’s such a big opportunity and it recognizes the hard work we put in throughout the year.”

Other personnel include co-announcers Garrison Allen and Bob Tallman. For Allen, of Oelrichs, South Dakota, it’s a family affair: his mother-in-law, Lisa Lockhart, is a perennial Badlands Circuit champion.

Rodeo clown and barrelman is Dalton Morris, Odessa, Missouri; music director is Jake Ostrum, Pilesgrove, New Jersey. Rodeo secretary is Val Lundquist, Gary, South Dakota, and timers are Amy Sutton-Muller, Agar, South Dakota, and Kim Sutton, Onida, South Dakota.

 Photographer is Jackie Jensen, Winnett, Montana.

The top twelve cowboys and cowgirls in each of eight events qualify to compete at the Badlands Circuit Finals Rodeo.

This year’s rodeo is Oct. 9-11, with performances beginning at 7 pm on Oct. 9-10 and at 1 pm on Oct. 11.

Tickets are $35 for reserved seating (the five rows closest to the arena floor). General admission tickets are $25 for adults and $12.50 for children ages 3-12.

Tickets can be purchased online at BadlandsCircuitFinalsRodeo.com.

For more information, visit the website.

–Badlands Circuit Finals