I can't believe I'm about to admit this.. But all the years I've been involved in the back end of the rodeo industry that I have never checked out a Ranch Rodeo before in person .Let me tell you, I'm glad I took the time to check out the Ranch Rodeo industry this weekend in Billings, MT at the Nile Ranch Rodeo Finals. I was SO into the Ranch Rodeo Finals and focusing on every bit of information and all the ranch teams from Montana and Wyoming. There were some ranch's that were close to me that I didn't even know about such as Fink Quarter Horses in Hysham, MT and Pryor, MT!
Powder River Rodeo, LLC provided the broncs and boy were they ready to dance in the arena! Guy Simanton had the highest scored bronc ride of the night with a score of 75 points! With Guy riding for 75 Points on his bronc he gained 10 Points for his team, Olsen Grain And Livestock out of Whitewater, MT!
The list of events went a little something like this:
Ranch Bronc Riding - The rider has to stay on till the buzzer and there is no set rules really. You just want to make sure you mark out good and stay on for the full time.
Trailering - The Rodeo Annoucer Will Rassmussen picks a random number. The Ranch Rodeo team has to herd there number out of the group of cattle in the rodeo arena. Before they start herding the cattle they placed a line of powder in the front half of the rodeo arena to help the Ranch Rodeo Teams out a little bit. Once the ranch rodeo team herds there # of cattle they were given they have to run them up to the trailer and make sure the trailer door is shut. Can't have any other numbered cattle in that herd or your given a penalty. The fastest team wins!
Branding - This event is like any other branding on a ranch. Instead of an actual " REAL " branding they use a branding iron and baby powder to brand the cattle that they rope in and bring the cattle up to the bucket across the finish line.
Doctoring - This time they are " Doctoring " steers. What this means is they rope the steer in, and the steer has to be on the ground with all 4 feet up in the air. Once that happens, one of the team members grabs a piece of chalk out of there pocket and they mark the steer on it's forehead. I know, I was kind of confused with this " doctoring " situation at first. But, it is what it is! Haha.
Milking - Have you ever seen a wild cow milking before? If you haven't.. It's pretty much you rope the cow in and your team try's to get a hold of the cow and you fill up the bottle to the marked line on the bottle with milk.
Hopefully, those explanations give you an idea of the ranch rodeo a little better. If you get the chance to check out a ranch rodeo in your hometown I would recommend that you do! There's a lot to learn, and you get to see the everyday work that a working ranch rodeo cowboy does everyday on the ranch. For more info on Ranch Rodeo's and the rest of the winners from the Ranch Rodeo Finals please check out the Nile website here, http://www.thenile.org/
I hope you all enjoyed learning about the Ranch Rodeo Industry this week! I will be back next week, with a brand new blog post for you all. Have a great rest of the week everyone... :)
Paige Gregory
Owner And Founder Of RodeoChat
Bighorn, MT
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October 19, 2016
