Western Pen

U.S. Smokeless Tobacco pulls Greeley Stampede sponsorship
[Apr. 23, 2008] U.S. Smokeless Tobacco has pulled its sponsorship of the Greeley Stampede and with it a $200,000 scoreboard after Greeley officials decided late last year to ban free sampling of tobacco in the city.

The Life Of A Rodeo Wife
[Mar. 22, 2008] There is just one more day of the Dodge National Circuit Finals Rodeo in Pocatello and there has been a lot of work behind the scenes that you may not know about.

Rodeo Austin breaks ground with first live Internet pay-per-view broadcasts
[Mar. 12, 2008] Can't go to Texas for the big rodeos? Catch them on the Internet and cable!

Professional Rodeo Cowgirls Featured In New Magazine
[Feb. 22, 2008] Two female professional rodeo athletes have been selected as cover girls for Cowgirl Living Magazine, a new western lifestyle publication for women.

Boyd's Blog
[Jan. 30, 2008] A great message from Boyd that I felt was worthy of our front page. I personally believe the best answer to how to promote rodeo and all of the wonderful things it does and stands for is the Rodeo Attitude Program and it's Rodeo Attitude Network on the Internet.

International Finals Rodeo Preview
[Jan. 16, 2008] State Fair Arena in Oklahoma City has a well-established rodeo history. It was home to the National Finals Rodeo for several years when the Professional Rodeo Cowboys Association first moved its championship to the Sooner State capital in the 1960s. It’s where Freckles Brown rode Tornado. It’s where Chris LeDoux won his bareback riding world title. It's where Roy Duvall By Ted Harbin

Keeping up with hometowns can be a chore
[Dec. 28, 2007] Pro rodeo athletes are notorious for holding multiple residences. They’re also notorious for not actually living in the city they call home.

Man Behind the Mike
[Dec. 20, 2007] Man Behind the Mike
Writer Mike Blackwell visits with Hadley Barrett, the Professional Rodeo Cowboys of America's 2002 Announcer of the Year.By Mike Blackwell

The golf cart was pointing up from the bottom of the ramp that led into San Antonio's posh SBC Center, and Hadley Barrett's boot was flat on the floor. In an instant, the 2002 PRCA Announcer of the Year was at the top of the ramp, through the gate and into the crowd, the cart swallowed by a sea of kids, cowboys hats and barbecue pit smoke.

Money is the root of all progress
[Dec. 20, 2007] The National Finals Rodeo just ended the richest 10-day run in its 49-year history with a payout of $5.5 million. BUT... an editorial about money, sports and rodeo. By Ted Harbin

Can’t-miss event being missed by thousands
[Dec. 13, 2007] I missed it. I really missed it. Call it an awfully tiny inconvenience to the ice storm that has left hundreds of thousands of people without power throughout portions of the Midwest, but I missed the National Finals Rodeo – at least the sixth and seventh rounds. By Ted Harbin

Meeting the World's Greatest Rodeo Fan
[Oct. 27, 2007] James Phillips walks slow and purposeful, and moves orchestrated as he maneuvers around Kemper Arena. He's also got a couple of extra "legs" to help him along his path, which winds around the sport of rodeo. Passion drives him, and it's obvious to see even below the black felt hat he wears an inch or two above his eyebrows. By Ted Harbin

Announcer's career spans 60 years
[May 2, 2007] Clem McSpadden is an icon in the sport of rodeo.

ProRodeo Hall of Fame Announces Class of 2007
[Apr. 20, 2007] 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. By ProRodeo Hall of Fame

Rodeo group purchase nets lawsuit
[Apr. 5, 2007] The attorney for an Oklahoma group that recently purchased the International Finals Rodeo and the International Professional Rodeo Association says the other side of the transaction is not holding up its part of the bargain. By by Marie Price The Journal Record