There probably aren't very many people who have heard of Rhodes, Iowa, but for the sixth consecutive year this tiny town is rocking with bull riding action. This year is extra special as the town is celebrating it's 125th birthday. Larry Sheuy was a fixture in Iowa rodeo and when he became very ill six years ago the first bull riding was held for his benefit. Larry lost his battle but his memory lives on in the Larry Shuey Memorial Bull Riding. What is so outstanding is the calibur of bull riders this event draws. Among the riders in this years event is NFR qualifier, David Dyke. David is from Fremont, Iowa. Another name well known in bull riding is 2 time PBR World Finals qualifier, Craig Sasse from St. Peter, IL. Craig is also the currently leading the standings in the National Federation of Professional Bullriders (NFPB), the sanctioning organization of this event. Last year's champion for the NFPB, Skeeter Kinsolver, of McLouth, KS, is also participating. Skeeter has been competing in many PBR events this year but is still competing in some NFPB events and chose to make Rhodes one of them. Two brothes who are always big fan favortes, Brad and Curt Check, are also competing. Their brother Cory is also one of the stock contractors for the event. Curt has won championships in boh the Bullriders of America (BOA) and the NFPB. Remember this is just a few of the top bull riders competing.
The stock isn't shabby either. The event is produced by stock contractor, Bryan Weyers, of High Risk Bucking Bulls. The quality of the bulls in this company is proven by the awards they have won. Bryan has also brought in bulls from CC Bucking Bulls (Cory Check) and from Walkowe Bucking Bulls (owned by NFPB co-founder, Frank Walkowe). In short the riders have their work cut out for them.
Award winning funnyman, Shawn "Boom Boom" Thompson did an excellent job on opening night keeping the crowd laughing. Troy Goodrich has also won many awards for his announcing ability. Troy does an excellent job of not only keeping the audience informed about who is riding, making very sure each man's score is delivered to them clearly, but also did a fantastic job of entertaining as well. His use of music to highlight the moments was phenominal. Just got to give him a super high rating.
Now when it comes to the bullfighters, this writer is just a little prejudice, as Brandon Brazier is one of our officers in the Rodeo Attitude Program. What can I say, he is just plain good! Along with his partner, Eric Glueck, made some great moves that "saved" more than one cowboy. The rains the last two nights had left for a rather sticky arena floor which was creating a few problems for both the bulls and the riders and made these two men's job harder than normal but they most certainly met and overcame the challenge.
In short, Rhodes, Iowa, may be a small town but there was nothing small about this bull riding! I highly recommend trying to catch round two tonight!
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