American rodeo, cowhorse clinic info, Korkow rodeo school, Yampa River Ranch Rodeo

I got to watch The American rodeo with Dad and we sure enjoyed it. What a great concept for a rodeo. There are still some things to tweak but all in all, it was outstanding. We were sure tickled that Lisa Lockhart won the barrels and the $100,000 for the second year. What a fine lady and horsewoman she is. Louie looks great and is sure running well. Her reflexes are pretty quick too, and picking her leg up out of the way to keep from hitting that barrel in the first round was amazing!

There were so many feel good aspects of that rodeo that it was just a joy to watch it. Of course, the company one watches something with is pretty important too, and I was in great company! I’m already looking forward to next year!

I promised to get contact information for the upcoming working cowhorse clinics to you when I found some so here it is. The one on March 21 at the Tri-State Horse Expo in Sioux Falls, S.D. will have Frank Kenzy of Iona, S.D. as the instructor. It will be $10 at the gate to attend and you don’t have to take your horse. Call Paul at 605-941-7331 for that one. For the one at Seven Down Arena, Spearfish, S.D. on April 4, you call Dave at 605-433-5438 for info.

Remember, you SDHSRA members who want to do working cow horse at the rodeos, you have to attend one of the clinics to compete. You don’t have to haul a horse or anything either. Check out the website at http://www.sdhsra.com for more information on either clinic. There is verification required for it so be sure you do what you need to do to compete.

There will be a Team Sorting Practice at Tiltrum’s Circle T Arena, Hermosa, S.D. on Saturday, March 14, 10 a.m.

That sounds like fun and a welcome break from the winter doldrums.

The 30th Annual Korkow Rodeo School is coming up on April 24-26 at the ranch near Pierre, S.D. There will be all the rough stock events plus bull fighting, with the top hands in the arena as instructors. It costs $280 per event with a $50 deposit due by April 14. There’s also a junior bull riding special for ages 10-13 for $200. You can get more information and entry forms at http://www.korkowrodeos.com, call Jim at 605-224-5607 or email him at korkowrodeos@gmail.com. This is a fantastic school and has their great home-bred stock to get on, so it’s a fine opportunity for the rough stock riders to get good instruction and the right start.

The Yampa River Ranch Rodeo at Craig, Colorado, will be May 15-16 and is WSSRA sanctioned. There will be two nights of ranch bronc riding, plus the ranch rodeo will have big loop team roping, loadin’ & tyin’, doctoring, rustler’s relay, and women’s steer stopping. They’re planning to have the biggest ranch bronc ride with the most money up for grabs in the whole circuit, so it should be quite a show. Entries have to be in by April 15. Call Rand Selle at 307-710-3133 or email him at badmedicinerodeo@gmail.com. You can find details on Facebook on Selle Rodeo Productions, too.

The N.I.R.A. reunion is scheduled for Friday, June 19 and Saturday, June 20 at Casper, Wyoming during the college national finals rodeo. It will be at the Parkway Plaza Hotel and there’s a NIRA discount for a room there. Call Sharon at 602-268-5874 or email her at rodeoalumni@gmail.com. They need to hear from you ahead of time to know how many to expect. On June 20, there will be a NIRA Foundation Lunch and Auction with an introduction of the honorees, awards, entertainment and silent and live auction. You can check it all out at http://www.collegerodeoalumni.com.

If you’ve always dreamed of running some of the homely government horses on your place, your chance is here! The BLM is looking for off-range pasture contracts for bunches of no less than 100 horses. There are some hoops to jump through, but I know it pays better, on a per head basis, than about anything else you can run. There are already over 31,000 horses on contract pastures throughout the country. They are accepting proposals from landowners in Arkansas, Colorado, Iowa, Kansas, Missouri, Montana, Nebraska, North Dakota, Oklahoma, South Dakota, Texas and Wyoming through April 22, 2015. You can call Eric Pagal at 202-591-5079 or Ken Lund at 202-912-7034 for assistance with general questions and to coordinate a meeting with a local BLM officer.

Well, that’s my circle for the week. Send me your events and news items and I’ll share them here.