ProRodeo Hall of Fame Announces Class of 2007

By ProRodeo Hall of Fame
Posted Friday, April 20, 2007

COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. - The ProRodeo Hall of Fame will celebrate the colorful careers of nine rodeo legends this summer. The Class of 2007 includes 1986 World Saddle Bronc Riding Champion Bud Munroe; two-time World Champion Steer Roper Jim Davis; longtime Wrangler National Finals Rodeo Committeeman, former Las Vegas Events Chairman of the Board and South Point Hotel and Casino owner Michael Gaughan; Doug Corey, DVM, a longtime leader in rodeo industry animal welfare issues; three-time PRCA Clown of the Year Lecile Harris; late 1948 and '67 World Champion Team Roper Joe Glenn; late 1961 and 1966 World Champion Bull Rider Ronnie Rossen; late rodeo secretary Dorothy Apodaca; and three-time PRCA Bull of the Year Skoal's Pacific Bell.

The nine members of the 2007 class will be inducted in the Hall’s garden area at 10 a.m. MT on July 14 in Colorado Springs, Colo. The 11-member ProRodeo Hall of Fame Selection Committee selected the nine inductees on April 17 at a meeting at the ProRodeo Hall of Fame.

Munroe, 55, competed at the National Finals Rodeo 12 times, highlighted by the 1986 world title. The native of Lewistown, Mont., attended Montana State University and won the National Intercollegiate Rodeo Association saddle bronc riding title in 1975 before earning a degree in agricultural business. Munroe later achieved the distinction of being the first saddle bronc rider to win $100,000 in a season. Munroe, who now calls Valley Mills, Texas, home, continues to be active in the rodeo community, serving on the Heart O’Texas Rodeo Committee in Waco. He previously was inducted into the Montana State University Athletic Hall of Fame and Texas Cowboy Hall of Fame.

Davis, 50, is one of the most consistent and decorated steer ropers in PRCA history. He qualified for the National Finals Steer Roping a staggering 19 times, which is third most in the event behind only Guy Allen (30) and Arnold Felts (20). Davis of Abilene, Texas, claimed world titles in 1985-86 and finished as reserve world champion four times in 1987-88, 1994 and '97.

The Hall is recognizing Gaughan and Corey in the notables category. Gaughan has had an integral hand in the development of the Wrangler National Finals Rodeo since the event moved to Las Vegas in 1985. When the PRCA was approached about moving the event to Las Vegas, it was Gaughan, along with Benny Binion, who made the successful pitch and paved the way to bring the Wrangler NFR out West. Today, Gaughan, 64, operates the South Point Hotel, the McCarran Airport Slot Concession and the F&M Advertising Agency, and has been a member of the Las Vegas Events Board for 17 years. He also serves on the Wrangler NFR Committee.

Corey, a veterinarian from Adams, Ore., has been instrumental in crafting many of the PRCA's current animal welfare policies and programs. In Dec. 2006, he was named president of the American Association of Equine Practitioners, which boasts more than 9,000 members. Previously, Corey served on the AAEP Board of Directors from 1995-98. For more than two decades, Corey has volunteered countless hours to animal welfare issues in the cowboy sport, including authoring the “Guide to Veterinary Service in the PRCA.”

Harris, 70, of Collierville, Tenn., has been entertaining crowds at professional rodeos since 1955. The former football player at the University of Tennessee-Martin started his career as a fill-in bullfighter, but later carved quite a niche as a funnyman, earning honors as PRCA Clown of the Year in 1992, '94 and '96. After 52 years, he's still going strong in the arena.

For nearly 25 years, Glenn, a native of Douglas, Ariz., was among the sport's elite team ropers. He won his first world title in 1948 and qualified for the National Finals Rodeo a total of seven times, including his last in 1970 at the age of 56. At the inaugural NFR in 1959, Glenn finished the season in second place, a mere $64 dollars behind World Champion Jim Rodriguez Jr. Glenn, who won his second gold buckle in 1967, died in 1984 at the age of 70.

Rossen, a native of Ogallala, Neb., competed in the National Finals Rodeo eight times. While names such as Freckles Brown, Larry Mahan and Harry Tompkins — all ProRodeo Hall of Famers — headlined the event during the 1960s, not many were more consistent than Rossen. During the decade, Rossen won two world titles in 1961 and 1966, and two NFR average titles in 1964-65. Rossen died Aug. 16, 1991, when he was killed in a bull riding accident at a senior rodeo in Rocky Ford, Colo. He was 54.

Apodaca carried out duties as a professional rodeo secretary for 22 years, starting in that role in 1948. Among many career highlights, she witnessed the first Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo in the Astrodome in 1966. When she worked her final rodeo at the Astrodome in 1970, the Astrodome's world-famous scoreboard recognized her achievements in the sport. Apodaca passed away in 1992 at the age of 68.

Western Rodeos' Skoal's Pacific Bell was the first and only bull to earn honors as PRCA Bull of the Year three consecutive years, doing so from 1988-1990. The bull, which was also named the top bull at the 1987 National Finals Rodeo, bucked off the best, including ProRodeo Hall of Famers Ty Murray, Jim Sharp and Tuff Hedeman, just to name a few. In 1988, Sharp opened the NFR with an 85-point ride on the bull, paving the way for the first of his two world titles.

Rodeo history lives on at the ProRodeo Hall of Fame and Museum of the American Cowboy in Colorado Springs, Colo. Induction into the ProRodeo Hall of Fame is considered the highest accolade in the sport. While more than 100 nominations are submitted annually, only a small percentage are selected to join this elite group. The members of the Hall of Fame are divided into 14 categories: all-around cowboy; bareback riding; bull riding; contract personnel; lifetime achievement; livestock; media; notables; saddle bronc riding; steer roping; steer wrestling; stock contractors; team roping; and tie-down roping.

Since the Hall’s opening in 1979 and not including the 2007 class, 189 people and 23 animals have been inducted into the ProRodeo Hall of Fame. More than 40,000 visitors annually visit the 30,000-square-foot facility that is located adjacent to the national headquarters of the Professional Rodeo Cowboys Association (PRCA) and on a 20-acre site in Colorado Springs