Thousands of fans packed the outdoor arena to cheer on the mayhem in the mud, which slipped up horses and pitched competitors into deep muck.
“It’s a bit sticky out there,” said Jason McClain, who competed in team roping and bull riding while wearing an arm cast. “The best part of this rodeo is that it’s three miles from my house.”
The big event attracts local and national competitors and is put on by the Honeycutt family. It goes through Saturday, and features bareback riding, calf roping, team roping, saddle-bronc riding, steer wrestling, barrel racing, and bull riding.
“The bull riding is a big audience favorite, but I’m a huge fan of the mutton busting,” said Robyn Coty, one of the organizers.
The event puts 30 little kids with helmets and body armor onto really fast sheep who tear around the arena and then toss their riders into the mud.
“There’s no problem getting kids signed up in this community,” she said. “It’s a rite of passage.”
Rodeo Queen Cami Maxwell thundered around the arena with a flag as she expertly handling a large horse that was sliding out in the deep mud.
“It’s a big rodeo, and that fact that it is right here in Montezuma County is huge,” she said. “My job as Queen is to promote the rodeo and answer questions people have about events.”
The muddy conditions didn’t generate any record times in the barrel racing, said Vickie Carter, of Richfield, Utah. She is ranked 23rd in the world for the event.
“The grounds are tough, but that’s Mother Nature,” Carter said, before posting the fastest time of 18.52 seconds.
“It’s getting more competitive,” she added. “As the prize money goes up, the talent has increased and so has the quality of the horses.”
Rodeo comedian Keith Isley jousted and danced with the crowd and told jokes about the weather, Bruce Jenner, President Barack Obama, legal marijuana, and California.
“In Colorado, I’ve heard that secondhand smoke is not so bad,” he said, as the DJ cued up John Denver’s “Rocky Mountain High.”
The rain held off Thursday, and on Friday the sun shone and began to dry out the arena.
“We’re putting on a really good show, and there is a lot of volunteer effort that goes into it” Coty said. “Cowboys from all over look forward to this rodeo, and its a great thing for our community because it brings everybody together and promotes our region.”
jmimiaga@cortezjournal.com