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Pat Ommert – Horsewoman Extraordinaire!

3/13/2024

On February 26, 2024, Pat Ommert dressed in a bright red blazer and white cowboy hat, arriving by carriage to the Opening of the Pat Ommert Trail in Temecula, California.  She has worked to maintain a connected network of safe equestrian trails for over 40 years.  She was honored by the trail being named for her.  Making trails available and safe for equestrians has been on her bucket list for many years.  has also conducted her own personal clinics to introduce youngsters to horses.

Pat was born in Southern California to Bob and Vera North in 1929.  Bob started a hardware store in Bell, California during the Depression.  Vera was taught how to train ‘high school’ horses – circus-type, and became a well-known performer with her black horse ‘Gypsy’, and also did stunt work in the movies.  The North’s had two girls, and they grew up horseback.  Pat learned trick riding from her mom when a young teenager.  She practiced on the Los Angeles River bed and as she practiced, running her horse back and forth in the sand, her mom was there to coach.

Back in those days horses did it all – trick riding, Roman riding.  Pat had ‘Shortcake’ and ‘Cupcake’ the longest.  She went to gymkhanas, showed horses, but also jockeyed at the Agua Caliente in Mexico in their ‘Powder Puff races.  She was featured at All-Girl Rodeos as “Patsy North and her Trick Horse Rex”.  performed for Cotton Rosser, as well as other producers all over California, Arizona, Utah, Mexico City and more.

Since she nor her mother sewed, she had her performing outfits designed by a woman her mother knew.  The biggest problem was to keep an outfit that could withstand the action of a trick rider, without tearing or pulling out the seams.  Eventually she was referred to two women who made costumes - for strippers.  They understood Pat’s problems with her costumes needing to withstand lots of gyrations and such.  Pat remembers the outfits they made for her were beautiful.

In 1953 she was invited to trick ride at the Madison Square Garden Rodeo.  She also was hired for the Boston Garden rodeo that followed New York.  During her stay the gals that performed at the rodeo had a race yearly at Rockingham Park, a nearby racetrack in Salem, New Hampshire, which Pat won that year.

Pat married Willard Ommert, a veterinarian, and they raised two daughters.  They lived in Temecula, California, where Will had a clinic.  However, Pat continued to rodeo as a contract performer.  She admitted she could have made better money in the moving picture business, but Pat said the movie business was a “Hurry up and wait” business.  But she did work as an extra for $25 a day, as it wasn’t far from where she lived.  But her family was more important.  She occasionally went with Will on a medical emergency at night, but otherwise concentrated on her two daughters.

Trick riding was her first rodeo performances, and because she was short she didn’t do many ground tricks.  She did the hippodrome stand and went into a one foot stand while still be running.  She said, “I did the best one-foot stand of anyone, and I called it a ‘flyaway’ and I did it with one hand.”  She finally gave up trick riding, but continued to Roman ride.  But when her girls were 12 and 8 she quit and they began going with them to horse shows.

After Will died in 2004 she spent time with the Rancho California Horsemen’s Association as a founder and leader conducting clinics.  She and Will received a Lifetime Achievement Award in 2000.  Pat was also  involved in trail riding and enjoyed it immensely.  She not only went on trail rides locally, but also went in Arizona to Las Damas trail ride in Skull Valley, Arizona, in 2006.  When she lived near Griffith Park in Los Angeles she rode the trails, but they had to share the trails with walkers, runners and bicyclists.

She was honored by being inducted in the National Cowgirl Hall of Fame in Fort Worth in 2016, and was the recipient of the Tad Lucas Memorial Award in 2020, which is in the National Cowboy & Western Heritage Museum in Oklahoma City.  It’s not unusual to see Pat attending various trick riding, Roman riding or rodeo gatherings, and visiting with friends she has made along the way as well as making new friends.

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The Well Never Runs Dry

5/5/2023

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I often wonder how some people can continue to do amazing things year after year and never get tired of doing it or run out of steam.  I think I’ve found the reason.  It’s because they love what they do.  It isn’t work, it’s fun, it’s what sustains them.  On the other hand, what causes people to be brilliant or highly successful in some avenue and then never be heard of again in that same avenue.  In rodeo, I hear it called ‘the adrenalin rush’ or ‘it’s the fire in their belly’ that keeps them going.  The ones that you never hear of again – the rodeo definition is usually their ‘egg’ busted’ or ‘they just don’t have enough heart’ or ‘get excited about it anymore’.

I have been amazed at the rodeo world for my entire life, but I do believe that in the last ten years 2013 to 2023, there have been so many changes in the sport that have allowed it to grow to what it is today.  There are cowboys and cowgirls that can earn over a million dollars in the sport alone, and that was seldom heard until recently.  Rodeo is not just a sport you do when you are growing up like football or soccer, and then you have to find ‘a real job’.  You can be a professional in rodeo.  If you practice enough and improve as you practice, it can be your real job.

As a rodeo historian,  I have researched and read about people from the 19th century in the very early years of rodeo, when it really wasn’t called rodeo, tot a spontaneous challenge between two cowboys.  If money was involved,  it was done privately between the men watching or the cowboys themselves.

Look what has happened to rodeo today.  Professional rodeo, ProRodeo Cowboy Association (PRCA) has become a sport of million dollar day rodeos, a $13,000,000 National Finals plus more options to win more depending on the event.  Cowboys and cowgirls are continuing to stay in rodeo with numerous jobs that weren’t available a century ago. Some become stock contractors, announcers, breeders of quality timed event horses, barrel horses and more.

Today rodeo has their own television channels – The Cowboy Channel and the Cowgirl Channel, where rodeos can be seen every day, without leaving your favorite arm chair.  Plus they have all types of other shows including Wild Rides, for bucking horse fans, training of timed event horses by proven trainer, and so much more.

The world of rodeo has received a fan base that is so much  larger than it was ten years ago, due to all of these wonderful improvements.  I am doing my best to also spread the word of the history of rodeo.  I write articles, and my books on the history of various events, as well as the beginning of professional rodeo, The Cowboy Turtle Association.  I am presently writing a book on the early day rodeos at Madison Square Garden, which I have always called “the unofficial predecessor of the PRCA National Finals”, 1922 through 1959, the first National Finals.  I am willing to work with anyone interested in the history of the sport.

I was asked once to be on the Rodeo Queen judge team, for a local rodeo.  I feel the beautiful young girl that is chosen should know the history of the sport she is representing.  Apparently my questions regarding rodeo history were too difficult.  I was never asked by that rodeo to help judge the choosing of their rodeo queen again!  But I still believe rodeo queens can promote rodeo so much better if they know the history.

I still have the‘adrenalin rush for researching and finding new information about the history of rodeo.  I work on it every day in some way.  I don’t travel as much as I used to, but I use the telephone a great deal, the computer even more, and never get tired of going through old Hoofs & Horns, old RCA Sports News, The Buckboard which was the predecessor to the RCA Sports News, and so many more magazines from the early 1900s.  I still answer every email I get asking me if I can help in  some way about rodeo.  I certainly don’t know all the history, but I sure the well won’t run dry.  I look forward to each day and each new history challenge in the world of rodeo!

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Some People Just Don't Toot Their Own Horn

5/25/2022

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After spending many hours researching, writing, visiting with cowboys and cowgirls from the past, and I always run across names from the distant past in rodeo who have really made a mark in rodeo. They often win their event or events, they do things for rodeo that others don’t think to do, they have an ability to put together rodeos that everyone enjoys, or they even have an extra-special sense of picking the best stock for roughstock events, and even roping stock.

Those names most often are on the lists of cowboys and cowgirls inducted in to the major halls of fame in our country which include the Rodeo Historical Society Rodeo Hall of Fame located in the National Cowboy & Western Heritage Museum in Oklahoma City, or the ProRodeo Hall of Fame in Colorado Springs. Some have even been inducted since I have been writing about the history of rodeo and those that made it the great sport it is today.

There is one name, however, that has not been inducted in either of these halls, but should be. His traveling partners, and good friends, have been honored by induction and he certainly should be, as well. He has the credentials, longevity in rodeo, and successes in the sport. I wonder if he has been overlooked because he had too many talents, and spread himself across the rodeo world in competing, assisting in putting on rodeos, leading those in his events, and being responsible for improving the equipment used in rodeo. Therefore, he never was a world champion, he didn’t ‘toot his own horn’ and just faded into the past.
This is his story:

Alvin “Alvie” Gordon was born January 9, 1910 in Coeur d’Alene, Idaho, to Loretta and Elmer Gordon. He began riding horses to go to school in 1915, in Athena, Ore. That same year he went to the Pendleton RoundUp to watch his mother ride bucking horses. Whether watching his mother on bucking horses was the catalyst to Alvie making a career as a saddle bronc rider will never be determined. Alvie died February 28, 2004.

Loretta and Elmer separated early in Alvie’s life and he went to live with his dad in Montana. In 1924 Loretta and her husband, Frank Butler, picked fourteen-year-old Alvie up on their way to Belle Fourche, S.D., where he rode his first bareback horses and steers. After that rodeo, they traveled to Wolf Point, Mont., Cheyenne Frontier Days, Colorado Springs and Monte Vista, Colo., then on to Oklahoma and Texas rodeos. By the time he was sixteen, he struck out on his own and traveled with Leonard Stroud, an all-event cowboy. They went to Mexico where Alvie started steer wrestling. In 1926, they were in Fort Worth where he rode his first Brahma bull.

Alvie tried all events and found he liked saddle bronc riding the best, and made the most money in it. “My first saddle bronc was in Seymour, Texas,” Alvie remembered. In 1927 he went to Chicago to a Tex Austin rodeo held at Soldiers Field. There he met Oral Zumwalt, a bronc rider who also entered most events, and eventually became a stock contractor. They traveled together for several years to rodeos in the Northwest, including Montana and Idaho. By 1930, Alvie was traveling with Paddy Ryan and Turk Greenough, two well-known bronc riders. It was Alvie’s first trip to the important Madison Square Garden rodeo. Paddy Ryan and Bob Askin, also a bronc rider, drove back to Montana with him. Other well-known cowboys that traveled with Alvie were Burel Mulkey and Nick Knight.

Leo Cremer, a stock contractor and rodeo producer from Big Timber, Mont., hired Alvie to run the bucking chutes, in the early 1930s, but it didn’t interfere with his competing. His first big win in bronc riding was the Portland, Ore., International Livestock Show & Rodeo, 1932. He married Alice Neilson that year and they wintered in Burbank, Calif., where Alvie worked out of Fat Jones’s Stables in western movies. The movie studios knew Jones had a group of rodeo cowboys that hung around his stables during the off-season for rodeo. Alvie worked as a stuntman, an extra and an all-around hand on a movie set. He also worked Andy Jauregui rodeos and Alice worked in the office while Alvie ran the chutes. Then they were off to the rodeo at the Chicago World’s Fair in 1933, where Alvie rode bareback horses and saddle broncs, twice a day, for thirty-seven days. He won day monies in the saddle bronc event, and ended up sixth in the bareback riding finals. The Saint Louis rodeo followed and Alvie’s saddle bronc rared up and turned over landing on top him. He stayed in the saddle but broke his hip and pelvis.

“My wife had never driven a car before and, of course, I couldn’t drive, but we had to get back to my dad’s place in Yakima, Wash.,. We had a half gallon of moonshine. I’d drink some for pain, and give her a drink. This went on until we got home in fine shape.” He chuckled.

Alvie’s first rodeo after his injury was Tex Austin’s 1934 rodeo in London, England. Competing against a strong field of riders including Pete Knight, Turk Greenough, Herman Linder, Floyd Stillings and Eddie Woods, he won the International Championship Saddle Bronc Riding title as well as a gold and silver belt buckle. Turk Greenough said, in the book about Leo Cremer, Mr Rodeo, “I was the first guy to ride Midnight, in London that year. Alvie Gordon won the bronc riding and he’s the last guy to ride Midnight.”

When the Cowboys' Turtle Association was formed at the Boston rodeo in 1936, Alvie was clear across the nation in Portland, Ore., but rodeo news traveled fast. He was sorry to have missed the strike and joined the ‘Turtles’ as soon as he could, during the Chandler, Ariz., rodeo. He held CTA number 45. The state of Montana chose a picture of Alvie on a bucking horse, taken at the Livingston Rodeo, for the cover of their tourist magazine given to all travelers that visited the state. The same photo was used for the cover of Ketch Pen magazine, August 1989 issue. Alvie also joined the Screen Actors Guild and Teamsters to be able to continue working on western movies as they moved back to California in 1936. He also contested at rodeos and ran Andy Jauregui’s J Spear Stock Company.

The following year he went to Australia as one of the United States’ competing cowboys for the Royal Easter Show in Sydney, where the U.S., and Canadian cowboys competed against the Australians. They had to qualify to be all-around cowboys to represent their countries and had to compete in several events, including wild cow milking and steer wrestling, once they arrived. Alvie was the captain of the American team at the Royal Easter Show in 1938 and 1939. The American team won the bronc riding in 1938. In 1939, a fourth competing team from New Zealand also attended. The Cowboys' Turtle Association selected Alvie to be the Bronc Riding representative for 1939 and 1940.

In 1939, Alvie and family were living at Autry’s ranch in Placerita Canyon, Calif., and he was asked to be in a brief movie, on horseback, for Chevrolet. It was filmed on the Andy Jauregui ranch with Red Lamerell and some think this film might be considered the first commercial ever made.

World War II took many of the rodeo cowboys away from their beloved sport to defend and represent our country. Alvie was competing at the Madison Square Garden rodeo when his draft notice arrived. Gene Autry, the western movie actor and singer had also joined the Army. He had a great deal of respect for Alvie and arranged a deferment with Alvie’s draft board back in California so he could finish the Garden rodeo, then on to Boston and Detroit rodeos. In fact, once Alvie joined the U. S. Army Autry got him assigned to Luke Air Field, in Arizona, where Autry was assigned, and the two worked together.

Alvie excelled at being a first class chute boss in rodeos and he was in big demand with the top rodeo producers. He said, “I used to flank the broncs in the chute, back when the flank strap had a buckle. When the pickup men picked up the rider they had to unbuckle the flank strap, which took time. When I was at Luke Field I saw the ‘quick release’ on parachutes and immediately thought it was exactly what the flank strap needed. I wrote a letter to Hamley Saddle Shop, up in Pendleton, who made the original association saddles and sent them a drawing of a ‘parachute trip,' you could jerk yourself. The first thing the pickup man would do is flip that cinch. Hamley was the first to make them and they made a bunch."

When Alvie was discharged from the U.S. Army he decided not to compete in rodeo. He went to work for the World’s Championship Rodeo, under Everett Colborn, and held the position as chute boss from 1944 to 1956. When the World’s Championship Rodeo was sold by Colborn, Alvie returned to California. He worked in western movies again, worked in the oil field and eventually retired.

He was married three times, Alice Neilson, Hilda Kooyman and Helen Winter, and had two sons with Kooyman, James Albert and Charles John Gordon. He was living with his son, Jim Gordon and wife, in San Diego, Calif., when I was lucky enough to do an audio interview with him in 2003. He had his PRCA Gold Card #4776 and volunteered at the senior center every day as long as he was able, where he received an award for his help. He died February 28, 2004, was cremated and his ashes were scattered at sea.

Alvin ‘Alvy’ Gordon is still being submitted for consideration to be inducted to the Rodeo Historical Society’s Rodeo Hall of Fame and the ProRodeo Hall of Fame.

If you have someone you feel merits being considered for induction please contact both of these organizations on-line and prepare the requested information for submission. Be sure you complete the registration forms thoroughly and accurately. You must be a member of the Rodeo Historical Society to do so. Remember, these are the top two halls of fame for rodeo in the country, and candidates must have been involved in rodeo for some time, and had a number of accomplishments in the world of rodeo.

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December 22nd, 2021

12/22/2021

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2021 PRCA Wrangler National Finals Rodeo

KUDOS to Everyone who had anything to do with the Wrangler PRCA National Finals Rodeo --- and all the fringe activities that make those ten days, or fifteen days if you include the PRCA Convention, in Las Vegas.  It is a time we avid rodeo people look forward to each December.

The Cowboy Channel, and everyone that works for them, did a great job of covering the rodeo, pre-rodeo interviews with competitors, and post-rodeo developments in each event as it unfolded.  South Point Casino & Hotel, where I stayed, also showed it daily on television in my room – but I went to Las Vegas to see it all.  The trade shows, the Junior World Show, the Benny Binion Bucking Horse Sale, the Gold Card Room prior to each performance, and much more at various locations across the city.  The PRCA Awards Dinner when the animals, rodeos and individuals “of the Year” were announced.  I also attended the Gold Card Luncheon, World of Rodeo Reunion and the Rodeo Cowboy Alumni Gathering.

Following the Miss Rodeo America pageant until the new Miss Rodeo America was chosen and seeing the 30-some competitors here and there going through all that is required of them, was interesting and the candidates were delightful.  Miss Rodeo Colorado, Hailey Frederiksen, was finally chosen to represent the sport for 2022.  Runner-ups were Miss Rodeo Idaho – Texas – Nebraska – Oklahoma.  They all were outstanding young ladies and such an asset to the sport of rodeo.  Miss Rodeo America, Jordan Tierney , and Miss Rodeo Canada, Alisha Erickson, for years 2020 and 2021, because the covid pandemic did not allow that much rodeo activity in 2020, were such a delight.  Alisha Erickson spent each night in the Gold Card Room visiting with those attending and helping me with the program.  It was evident why she was chosen as she is such a versatile young lady with a smile that lit up the room as well as a beautiful singing voice .

The top fifteen cowboys and cowgirls, in their respective events to compete at this year’s finale were the best!  Their passion and dedication to their sport is amazing.  Their abilities to perform certainly show the many hours they have spent to be the ‘top of the 2021 crop’.  Watching the timed event horses, waiting for their rider’s signal to “go” , without breaking the barrier, is fun to observe.  Their eyes darting here and there, ears pointing toward the sky in anticipation, and an occasional lip quiver certainly made one know they were as passionate and eager to perform as their rider.  The barrel racing horses were just as involved.  It was evident the cowgirl and her steed had spent many hours in preparation for the quick thirteen or fourteen seconds they spent in the arena circling those three barrels.  What speed!  And the broncs, what can I say.   They love to show what they can do and each and every one bucks his or her heart out to do their very best for 8 seconds.  Not only are they as professional as their riders, but their owners take such good care of them they look like show horses.  No one dare say ranchers and stock owners don’t take the very best care of their livelihood.  Common sense.

The friends and family that came were such support for the competitors.  The new friends you meet along the way, whether they sat next to you during the performances or your brief encounter in a hotel elevator, make the days so short and fun!  The Casinos during this time have nothing but country and western musical performers from Reba McEntire, who grew up with a competing steer roping father and brother to Shania Twain, and so many more.  Ninety per cent of the people were sporting the western uniform -- cowboy hats, boots, and an array of colorful shirts and Wranglers.

The Trade Shows scattered in numerous places throughout the city that never sleeps, have concessionaires that sell everything from turquoise necklaces to horse trailers with living quarters.  Horse blankets – wild rags – spurs & saddles – all in various colors and finishes.  The aisles were crowded with shoppers, pushing strollers, pulling wagons full of toddlers wearing cowboy hats so large they almost completely shadow their tiny forms.

It was a site to behold!  It was exhilarating, exhausting and so much fun – whether you are a ‘died in the wool’ rodeo fan, a real cowboy or cowgirl, or a novice attending your first rodeo and getting your first glimpse of the ‘western way of life’. As a rodeo historian I must say the rodeo world has spent nearly 150 years in the making to get to this level.  It hasn’t happened by luck or chance, it is because thousands of rodeo cowboys and cowgirls have spent countless hours, in numerous capacities, improving and developing the sport to what it is today. I can hardly wait to go back next December!  God Bless Cowboys, Cowgirls, the Western Way of Life and God Bless America!

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November 30th, 2021

11/30/2021

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2021 National Finals

I am packed and ready to go to the National Finals Rodeo in Las Vegas for the National Finals.  I leave in a few days and my mind is beginning to race with all the details of the fast paced ten days.  The National Finals is the goal of every contestant that qualifies to become a member of the Professional Rodeo Cowboy Association and those WPRA Barrel Racers and Breakaway Ropers.  The fifteen top money-makers this year in each event are doing everything in their power to arrive in Vegas with the right mental attitude, a healthy body, and if horses are involved in their event, that they too have the right stuff and are healthy.

It’s an exciting time, and although I have a very small part in the National Finals when I think about those athletes and what they must be going through preparing for this major finale to their year, I, too, want to be in the right frame of mind, as healthy as I can be, and have all my writing materials, clothes, masks, and necessities ready to go.

My job since 2003 is to assist in the Gold Card Room, which is on the street level of Thomas and Mack Stadium on the UNLV campus.  The Gold Card is something most senior cowboys and cowgirls of yesteryear covet because they were the ones doing all the work to make the earlier National Finals Rodeos successful in some way.  They either competed or worked for PRCA in some capacity.  The ProRodeo Hall of Fame is in charge of the Gold Card Room, and Kent Sturman, Director of this very special Hall, has his very stable staff, plus volunteers like me, in place to make each Gold Card member that attends feel welcome and important during the hour and 45 minutes they spend with us before the rodeo starts at 5:45 PM.

It is such a pleasure to welcome these people from across our nation that return to watch the current competitors do their very best for ten performances.  While in the Gold Card Room they enjoy a buffet dinner, which is provided by a very efficient Thomas & Mack staff.  Meanwhile they get a chance to see and visit with some of their old traveling pals, secretaries from the various circuits, and meet people they ‘heard about’ but never had the chance to cross paths when they were competing.

We cram a lot into that hour and 45 minutes.  We offer beverages, a quiz on something that happened at a former National Finals with a chance to win a prize, and we give gifts offered by sponsors like Montana Silversmith and the ProRodeo Hall of Fame.  We generally have  Miss Rodeo Canada with us to help hand out these mementos.  Kent lets everyone know what is happening at the Hall back in Colorado Springs, and we also ask people to become members of the ProRodeo Hall of Fame, it’s the place where the history of professional rodeo is displayed and is so important to the sport.

Meanwhile I enjoy visiting with contestants from the past and present, as well as their families.  I gather so much information necessary for my work as a rodeo historian during this brief ten day gathering I dare not miss it.  If it weren’t for these people, and others like them that contact me during the year I could never do what I do as a historian.  One of the first things that happens when you are called a ‘historian’ is you realize what you don’t know about your subject – and mine is rodeo.  I learn so much and expand my rodeo world so much at this one event.  I thank everyone who takes the time to talk with me, or contacts me, about the history of rodeo or about a specific cowboy or cowgirl.

Gotta run, I just thought of something else I need to pack . . . . . . . . .see you in Vegas.

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November 01st, 2021

11/1/2021

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Rodeo, Getting Bigger & Better Than Ever

I think the world of Rodeo is spreading farther and farther, and I really saw it happening this year when the Cowboy Channel on television started the “100 Rodeos in 100 Days”.  The people I talk with daily are busy people but many have spent hours watching the rodeos they could not get to or haven’t been to before, on the Cowboy Channel, and it truly has been a great success.

I must brag about the Cowboy Channel gang.  Jeff Meador is the best at helping the sport grow, and he knows what the public wants and how to put it across.  Janie Johnson, one of the interviewers of the cowboys and cowgirls, plus holding Tailgate Parties at the various Rodeos has been a pleasure to watch.  This young lady grew up in a great rodeo family who supports her and everything rodeo.  She knows just the right questions to ask, and knows much about the competitors background, as well.  Amy Wilson, the former Miss Rodeo America, is also a great interviewer and her smile will make anyone smile back at her.  She is a real western fashionista and I enjoy seeing what she wears at every interview.  The fellows on board, are the best!  Justin McKee has just the right amount of western charm and knowledge about rodeo and how he expresses himself it appreciated.  I can’t say enough about Steve Kenyon he too knows so much about rodeo.  Patrick Gottsch, owner of the Cowboy Channel,  and family are truly tuned in to the rodeo world and what the audience wants.

Steve Kenyon was the announcer at the Douglas County Rodeo, at Castle Rock, Colorado.  The Rodeo Clown Reunion was held there in early August for two days this summer.  He spent so much time with the retired rodeo clowns attending the Reunion.  At the night performance on Friday, when the amazing six horse hitch came in to the arena carrying some of the retired rodeo clowns that had worked Douglas County in years past, plus the seniors of the Reunion, while the rest of the Reunion honorees all stood in the walkway of the bleachers as they were introduced.   THE AUDIENCE GAVE THEM A STANDING OVATION!  How great was that!  Thanks Steve.

The first day of the Reunion was spent at the ProRodeo Hall of Fame.  We began with a program for the public.  We had the head honcho of Visit Colorado Springs, become a rodeo clown by putting on the makeup and donning the baggy britches and goofy headgear.  Each honoree introduced themselves and told about their rodeo career.  They also did acts, signed autograph sheets, and kibitzed with the visitors to the Hall.  After lunch, with food trucks in the garden, they did more acts in the arena and more Question and Answer sessions.  There were 43 attendees and the oldest was Gordie Peer, age 91, and Dixie Reger Mosley, age of 90.  The youngest was in his early 30s, Jay Brainard, who has retired due to an injury.  I do believe we can call the 2021 Reunion another success.

I spent a lot of the year at home in front of the computer, working on articles, my present project – the early day rodeos at Madison Square Garden, 1922 to 1959, and so much more.  But life is going to get busier the rest of the year.  I will be attending the National Cowgirl Hall of Fame in Fort Worth at their Induction on the 26th of October at Dickie Arena.

The Rodeo Historical Society Hall of Fame induction will be held on November 12 and 13, at the National Cowboy & Western Heritage Museum.  I will be video interviewing the inductees during the weekend for the Oral History Program, which is always so much fun to get to personally visit with them and learn first-hand about their rodeo history.  These interviews are housed in the Dickinson Research Center at the Museum, and are available for researchers, writers, families and such, to learn about early day rodeo and those that competed and performed in it.  There will be a Rope ‘N’ Ride Cocktail Reception on Friday, at 4 PM.  At 11am Saturday a Rodeo Hall of Fame Panel Discussion will be held and is free to the public with Museum admission, followed by the Rodeo Historical Society annual membership meeting.  Saturday evening at 5:00  the Champions’ Dinner, Hall of Fame Inductions and Benefit Auction will be held.  Tickets are required for the evening events.  For reservations for evening events visit nationalcowboymuseum.org/rodeoweekend or phone 405-478-2250.

My next adventure will be hopping on a plane and going to the National Finals Rodeo in Las Vegas for 10 days.  I meet and visit with so many rodeo people from across the nation during that time.  The ProRodeo Hall of Fame sponsors the Gold Card Room and I get to spend  a couple of hours there each afternoon hostessing and catching up with  Gold Card Members of PRCA and their spouses and what they have been doing the past year.

The world of Rodeo is unique in so many ways.  It is totally “Americana." It has grown from a grass-roots ranching competition of the west to spread across this nation.  It includes those raised on ranches and farms but also competitors from the major cities of the country.  It is one of the most wholesome sporting events a family could be involved in from the littlest buckaroo riding a wooly sheep in the mutton-bustin’ event to the tough guys that ride the dangerous bucking bulls or using their well-trained horses to rope calves and steers.  I am very proud to say this event is one of the most patriotic among all the sports that this great country has to offer.  Try it!  You’ll like it!

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June 03rd, 2021

6/3/2021

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Rodeo Clown Reunion
Where Laugh-Getters & Cowboy Savers Relive the Past

The ProRodeo Hall of Fame and the Douglas County Fair & Rodeo is the destination for the 23rd Rodeo Clown Reunion.  It is  a time for retired bullfighters, funnymen and barrelmen to gather and reminisce, don their only familiar baggy britches and personal make-up, and spend time doing what they did “back in the good old days”.  They sign autographs, perform old acts and kibbitz with the fans.  When they have a few minutes to catch their breath in between gigs, they visit with other honorees and tell stories of earlier arena days and things that happened they well remember and other rodeo clowns who are no longer with us.

The purpose of the Rodeo Clown Reunion is to show these seniors that we are grateful for what they did in the rodeo arena entertaining the audience and saving the bull riders from serious harm and more.  Their abilities to promote a rodeo and put a smile on the spectators faces is so important to the success of an event and we are grateful for their years in this profession and their willingness to entertain.

On August 6th, the honorees will be at the ProRodeo Hall of Fame with programs, acts, and autographs.  It will be a day which anyone can spend with these characters and cowboy heroes, asking questions and learning about the life of a rodeo clown.  How did they happen to choose this profession?  How dangerous is it to stand in front of a raging bull and keep the bull riders from harm?  Is the barrel really a safe haven when a bull is charging?

August 7th and 8th the honorees will be in Castle Rock at the Douglas County Fair & Rodeo assisting in many annual venues including the mutton busting, and autographing and performing in their rodeos at 7 PM on Saturday, and 1 PM on Sunday.

When I wrote the book on their history, “Fearless Funnymen, The History of the Rodeo Clown”, I attended the 6thRodeo Clown Reunion that was held in Roseburg, Oregon.  Karl Doering, a retired rodeo clown, had started the gathering in 1974 at Roseburg, during the Umpqua Valley Rodeo, and it was held there every three years.  Retired laugh-getters, bullfighters and barrelmen came from all parts of the country and spent 3 or 4 days with rodeo fans, members of the Roseburg community and were wined and dined as well as participating in the rodeo and their annual parade.  Unfortunately, Karl passed away, and various ones kept it going.  The year I attended was the last year it was held at Roseburg.

Jack Saulls, a PRCA Columbia Circuit committeeman, held it in Moses Lake, WA, in 1992, with the same agenda.  I also attended this Reunion.  The numbers were dwindling and a meeting of the honorees decided to let go of it in the northwest.  They suggested some of the attendees from the middle of the country should see if they could have one near the center of the U.S.  I volunteered to help and we chose Guthrie, Oklahoma and the ‘89er Days Rodeo held at the Lazy E Arena in 1993.  By the time it was held I realized I was ramrodding the affair, and having a heck of a good time doing it.  Since then, I have been the chairman of 15 total Rodeo Clown Reunions held twice in Colorado Springs during the Pikes Peak or Bust Rodeo;
Rodeo de Santa Fe three times, Deadwood Days of ’76  twice, and one year at rodeos at Springdale, AR; Stephenville, TX; Pendleton RoundUp; Sheridan, WY; Dodge City, KS;  Coffeyville, KS and during the Day of the Cowboy weekend at the Stockyards at Fort Worth.

During the years the Reunion has been held we adjust the events, other than the rodeo, to suit the area.  At Deadwood we traveled to Mount Rushmore and Chief Crazy Horse Monuments in addition to the rodeo.  In Guthrie, OK we toured the National Cowboy & Western Heritage Museum and had a Clown-Mule Race at Remington Park, the local pari-mutual horse track in Oklahoma City.  At Moses Lake we traveled to the Grand Coulee Dam by bus.  At Dodge City we caravanned to the town of Greensburg, that had just been totally demolished by a tornado, with a pickup full of books the honorees had gathered together to help start a new library for the ravaged community.

We have second generation rodeo clowns attending today.  Greg Doering the son of Karl (deceased), has attended each reunion since it’s inception.  Other families attending are:  Jerry Wayne Olson, a third generation rodeo clown, who followed in the footsteps of his deceased dad, Jerry, and grandfather, LaRue Olson;  Other two-generation honorees are: Don Bowman and his twin step-sons Dan & Pat Ariaz;  Melvin Fields and son Devlin,  and  John Clark and son, Kelly.   Dixie Reger Mosley, the only woman rodeo clown who clowned for 12 years and was also a charter member of the Girls Rodeo Association.  So far, forty-four rodeo clowns have registered from 17 states and Canada.  Their accumulated years in the rodeo arena as a funnyman, bullfighter or barrelman add up to 939 years.

Every honoree’s story is different in some way.  A few retired after 5 decades in the arena.  Others retired earlier due, some due to injury and others had a variety of reasons for moving on.  Some concentrated on being funny and fighting bulls.  Others were more inclined to fight bulls while others got their adrenalin rush by hearing the audience laugh.  Regardless of how they spent their years in the arena the one common denominator is they have all continued to keep their sense of humor.

Come join us, you’ll be glad you did.  For more information regarding the upcoming Rodeo Clown Reunion contact me at email:  [email protected].

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May 27th, 2021

5/27/2021

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George Doak, Bullfighter-Funnyman, Passes

George Doak was always quick to say the 28 years he was in rodeo were the ‘best years of his life’!  George passed away peacefully on the evening of April 27th, with his wife by his side after an illness of several months.  When George could no longer talk on his phone the rodeo world knew George was in trouble.  His funeral was held at 2PM, May 18, 2021, at the Lone Star Cowboy Church, at 21627 Eva Street, Montgomery, TX 77356.

George was born in 1937 and raised by his aunt and uncle in Fort Worth.  At the age of eight when asked what he wanted to do when he grew up he quickly answered, “Be the best rodeo clown in the world!”.  Many a rodeo hand, during his 28 year era, will tell you he made his 8 year-old dream come true.

He began his rodeo career in 1953 at Mesquite, Texas, when he and two high school friends were riding bareback horses and bulls.  His friend ‘hung up’ and George went to his rescue.  After several years in college learning to be a mechanical engineer, for his aunt and uncle, he gave it up and went to Cowtown, New Jersey, for Howard Harris where he fought bulls through 1960.  The Cowtown, New Jersey Rodeo was on television in 1958 and the entire country watched George fight bulls.

He joined the Rodeo Cowboys Association in 1961 and booked 21 rodeos including Walla Walla, Ellensburg, Pendleton and Lewiston, the Big Four in the northwest.  They had watched him on television earlier, and knew how good he was.  From that introduction to professional rodeo he was hired from one end of the country to the other, and border to border.  He spent ten years traveling with Junior Meek, a bullfighter, too.  In 1971 he worked the National Finals Rodeo, and again in 1977.  In 1979 he helped put the Wrangler Bullfights together and judged various events including the 1981 Wrangler Bullfight Finals.  He also worked the National High School Finals three times, the National Intercollegiate Rodeo Association Finals in 1969, and received numerous awards along the way.  He retired in 1981 at Pendleton, Oregon, where he fought bulls for 19 years.

He was inducted in to the Pendleton RoundUp Hall of Fame in 1983, the ProRodeo Hall of Fame in 2000 and the Texas Rodeo Cowboy Hall of Fame and the Texas Cowboy Hall of Fame that year, too.  He was inducted to the Rodeo Hall of Fame in the National Cowboy & Western Heritage Museum in 2001, and the Cowboy Capital Walk of Fame in Stephenville, TX, in 2002.  He became the President of the Rodeo Cowboy Alumni organization in 2004 and held that office for ten years.

George and Quail Dobbs, clowned the American Bi-Centennial Rodeo, in Philadelphia, PA in 1976.  George put Quail’s make-up on him the first time he clowned.  George and Junior Meek performed at the Royal Easter Rodeo in Sydney, Australia in 1971.  In 1977 he was made an Honorary Shriner by the Ardmore, OK, Shriner Club, the first person to get this award by that chapter.  He appeared in the Academy Award Winning Documentary Film of 1972, “The Great American Cowboy”.  He was a judge for the Miss Rodeo America Pageant in 1988 and 1989.

George had three boys, George Jr., Steve and Mike. He married Reada Vincik  in 1998 and they lived in Montgomery, Texas.

George never left rodeo or his rodeo friends.  It was not unusual to see George at numerous cowboy reunions that were held in various places throughout the country, rodeos across the nation, Rodeo Clown Reunions, and inductions at the various Halls of Fame for rodeo persona.  George worked for Cavender’s Western Stores, and enjoyed working for friend, Bunky Boger, retired bullfighter, who created the TicTacToe Chicken that was featured in various casinos across the nation.  After all, George, thought a lot of his rubber chicken that was his constant companion on the rodeo road.

George is survived by his wife, Reada Kay Doak; sons George Doak, Jr and wife, Laquitta and Michael Doak and wife Laura; Step-son Derron Vincik and wife Amy, step-daughter Lenece Smith and husband Raymond Smith Jr; grandchildren:  Colby Doak, Cassie Hamlin, Samantha Doak, Amberly Andress, Nicolas Doak, Jordan Johnson, Katelyn Macalla, Kelsey Vincik, Kingsley Vincik. Skye Smith and Steele Smith; great-grandchildren Jett & Jake Doak, Chase Hamlin, Ballie Sessom, Gage & Brielynn Andress and Royer and Amberi Doak, plus many other loved ones.

George was preceded in death by his son, Steven Lyle Doak.

Memorials for George should be sent to the Justin Cowboy Crisis Fund, at 101 ProRodeo Drive, Colorado Springs, CO 80919 and/or the Rodeo Cowboy Alumni, Scholarship Fund, 6064 Appleton Rd SW, Albuquerque, NM 87105.

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April 20th, 2021

4/20/2021

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2020 Texas Rodeo Cowboy Hall of Fame Induction Held April 17, 2021

How great to get back to our previous normal, or as close to it as we can.  Although they had to wait a year, due to the pandemic, to honor the Inductees to  the Texas Rodeo Cowboy Hall of Fame Induction.  It was a perfect spring day in Texas.  I headed out early to beat the traffic on I-35 and once I got behind the Brahma bulls being transported to Billy Bob’s of Texas, the largest honky-tonk in the World, I knew every things would be OK.  I pulled in to the parking lot at River Ranch on the south side of the Fort Worth Stockyards and hurried in to see old friends.

After Cowboy Church and a tasty lunch the Induction Ceremonies began with   Darrell Barron, President, thanking everyone for coming and commented that his pro-active Board of Directors were the reason  the entire event was so successful.  Dennis Singleton from the Fort Worth City Council spoke briefly and commended the group and rodeo for it’s patriotism, it’s friendship and camaraderie.

Although the Texas Rodeo Cowboy Hall of Fame golf tournament on Thursday, sponsored by Little Red’s Saloon, was hampered by inclement weather with lots of lightning and thunder  the teams with 144 players realized there was no way they could play, it was decided to draw to determine the winner.

The following Awards recipients were:
Johnny Boren Award:  It was President Barron that presented it to Andra Beatty who worked diligently with High school rodeo teams, and also rode roughstock.
Resistol Horizon Scholarship Honoree Recipients were:  Chisum Allen, Brinlee Freeman & Trace Harris
Special Logan Adams Scholarship recipient was Riley Harris and the Special Leonard Fluitt Scholarship recipient was Landris White.

Steven Kenyon, rodeo announcer and television personality on the Cowboy Channel, was the Master of Ceremonies, and was assisted by Ashley Polson, Miss North Texas High School Rodeo Association; Kendall Pearse the 2020/2021 Miss Rodeo North Texas Fair; and Cheyan Bland, 2020/2021 Miss Teen Rodeo North Texas Fair.

Inductee Honorees were:
Empty Saddle (deceased):  Jasbo Fulkerson,  outstanding rodeo clown that originated the barrel, he worked many rodeos including Fort Worth & Madison Square Garden.  He was killed in 1949 in a truck accident; & Foy & Jody Reynolds, owners of Rockin’ R Rodeos, and Jody was an RCA trick rider.
Rodeo Organization:  Tarleton State University Women’s Team for 1969, 1970, & 1971.  They were National Champions when they won the NIRA Womens Team three years in a row over all college women’s teams in the U. S.  Those on the team were:  Karen Walls, Sally Preston, Angie Watts Averhoff, Vicki Higgins Emerson, Connie Wilkinson Wood, Sharon Harrison Youngblood and Martha Tompkins Jordan.
Rodeo Animal:  Roughstock: Bodacious, 1995 & 1995 PRCA Bull of the Year, owned by Sammy Andrews.  The bull died in 1999.
Rodeo Animal:   Timed Event:  A steer wrestling horse named Free Malone or “Jocko” .  He carried 14  champions to  a World title, in 15 years,  and was steer wrestling horse for over 100 riders. Jocko was owned by Lloyd Hodges and  lived to be 38.
Gold Card:  Roy Angermiller, RCA National Finals steer wrestler many times, winning the Texas Circuit steer roping twice and tying the fastest steer at two PRCA National Finals steer roping; & Jim Houston, PRCA 1964 & ‘65 Bareback World Champion, and  a successful riggin’ maker.
Western Heritage Award:  Jerry Hill, when President of the Texas Professional Rodeo Association to merge with the Central Rodeo Association  to merge, which they did  then they formed the United Professional Rodeo Association (UPRA)  to include 1600 contestants  and 280 rodeos. Becky Frazier was also inducted as she worked along side Jerry in these endeavors.
Rodeo Personnel:  Dollie Beutler Riddle, a trick rider for years, and is still a rodeo secretary for Beutler & Son Rodeo Company; & Vannie Halliday, pickup man for Harry Vold for many years, then worked for Mack Altizer and Walls Rodeo, among many others.
Women’s Contestants:  Trina Powers Hadley, a team roping heeler; & Nancy Gault Mayes, a successful barrel racer who learned under Wanda Bush.
Men’s Contestants:  Royd Doyal, PBR & PRCA NFR bull rider; Casey McGlaun was a roughstock rider who won the 1984 Texas PRCA Circuit Finals All-Around, and runner-up in the bull riding later he successfully trained roping horses; Matt Austin,  PRCA bullrider winning the World Championship & NFR average in 2005;  Leonard Fluitt, 1979 Steer Wrestling Rookie of the Year and a three-time qualifier to the Texas Circuit Finals; Jason Jeter, PRCA NFR bareback rider numerous times who was second in 2002 and won the average;  Pete Hawkins, PRCA NFR bareback rider in late 1990s and early 2000s and was runner-up to the world championship in 1999.

For those who left before it was over, as Pete Hawkins said, “Their loss.”  For those of us who stayed we have decided that Pete should make a career  move and be a comedian on  TV – He’s hilarious!

These inductees did many, many things in the world of rodeo, but to keep it brief only their major wins and activities are mentioned here.  Go to the Texas Rodeo Cowboy Hall of Fame Facebook or website for more information.

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April 14th, 2021

4/14/2021

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The Rodeo World Mourns the Loss of Derek Clark

Derek Clark, of Colcord, OK.,  passed away April 8th, 2021, after a lengthy illness.  He was a fourth generation professional rodeo cowboy and fifteen year National Finals Rodeo saddle bronc qualifier.  Derek was the first-born to Duke and Donna Kay Beals Clark, on September 3, 1960. He followed his dad, Duke and his grandfather, Charley Beals’ rodeo careers as a roughstock rodeo contestant.  His great-grandfather, Monroe Veach was a rodeo producer, trick roper, and founded Veach Saddlery in Trenton, MO. in 1919.

Derek won the 1978 Oklahoma High School Saddle Bronc title; the 1984 National Intercollegiate Rodeo Association Saddle Bronc title, and twelve Professional Rodeo Cowboys Association (PRCA) Circuit titles, plus the 1991 Dodge National Circuit Finals Bronc Riding Championship.  He was Reserve PRCA Saddle Bronc World Champion in 1990.

His grandparents, Charley & Imogene Beals, received a telephone call, while touring in Australia, when Derek won the saddle bronc riding at Cheyenne Frontier Days in 1986.  He qualified for the Wrangler National Finals Rodeo fifteen times from 1983 through 1999, only missing 1984 and 1997.  He won the various PRCA Series Saddle Bronc Championships sponsored by Copenhagen/Skoal for  three years; Dodge for seven years; Coca Cola twice; and Coors for three years and was a member of the Winston Tour Series for 1985 and 1986.  Derek also won the Denver National Western Rodeo in 1983, 1989 & 1991 and the Great Lakes Circuit All-Around Champion, 1998.

The handsome saddle bronc rider was voted Coors Fans Favorite Cowboy in 1993, and had a twenty year career as a professional rodeo competitor.  He was also involved in the PRCA Board of Directors (1998 – 2005) and the NFR Committee Board (1999 through 2005).  He was a Vice Chairman of the Board of Directors for six years and became the Chairman in January, 2005.  He was forced to resign in August due to injury sustained at the Springdale, Arkansas PRCA Rodeo in July of that year.

Derek’s commitment to professional rodeo never waned.  He followed his grandfather’s advice by collecting every bit of rodeo memorabilia and photographs and making friendships with numerous rodeo competitors. Charley told him, “When your rodeo career is over those are your rewards.”

Derek was inducted in to the Rodeo Historical Society Rodeo Hall of Fame, located in the National Cowboy & Western Heritage Museum, at Oklahoma City,  in 2018.  He proudly followed his grandfather Charley Beals, inducted in 2010.   Derek was quoted as saying “He sacrificed a lot for me and my brothers to be able to rodeo.”   His grandmother, Imogene Veach Beals received the Tad Lucas Memorial Award and his great-grandfather, Monroe Veach was inducted in 1993.

Derek is survived by his three children, son Chase, and daughters Chelsea and husband Reece Roberts, and Dally Kay Clark;  Toni Mathis, his devoted companion of many years; his parents, Duke and Donna Kay Clark, and brothers, Doug and wife Linda & Drew and wife Darby, plus nieces & nephews; great-aunts Letty McAlister and Peggy Robinson and families; and extended families.  Derek was also inducted in to the Texas Rodeo Cowboy Hall of Fame, in Fort Worth, and several other rodeo halls.

A Memorial Service will be held Saturday, April 24, at 11 AM at the Oliver Angus Ranch Arena, 11811 Douglas Cemetery Road, Gentry, Arkansas 72734.  It is located near the XNA Regional Airport in Northwest Arkansas.  Derek’s final resting place will be the Clark-Beals Ranch Memorial Park, Colcord, OK.

Author’s  addition:
My association with Derek’s family has been over the last 30 plus years.  Charley Beals, his grandfather, saw something in me when I went to my first gathering at the National Finals Rodeo to research and interview people for my first book on rodeo history.  He introduced me to many rodeo champions, rodeo clowns, cowboys and cowgirls.  It was he and wife, Imogene that recommended me to write articles for The Ketch Pen for 3+ years.  Imogene and I were rodeo traveling partners for over 15 years, after Charley died.  We traveled to New York, Florida,  Pendleton RoundUp, Cheyenne Frontier Days and many other major rodeos and gatherings in between.  Imogene, daughter Donna Kay and I went to the big island, Hawaii to the Parker Ranch Rodeo.

My family is small, theirs was not.  I spent lots of time with them and will say I was amazed and so blessed to be included in such a family that has such a tremendous commitment to rodeo and to each other.  When we would run in to Derek, or his brother, Doug, at some distant rodeo where they were entered, they often shook their head in wonder.  Derek once told his parents, he thought his grandmother got to more rodeos than he did.  Derek has now rejoined Charley and Imogene, God bless them all.

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