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Gold Buckle Dreams Lead to Cheyenne
By Susan Kanode
It is widely known that the Cheyenne Frontier Days (CFD) is one of the premier celebrations of the Western Lifestyle in North America.
The 10-day event features music, parades, pancake breakfasts, a carnival, trade show, Professional Bull Riders bull riding and more. But, the cornerstone of it all is the Professional Rodeo Cowboys Association (PRCA) sanctioned rodeo.
While there are a variety of reasons to spend some time in Cheyenne the last full week of July, for most of the visitors, the rodeo is at the top of the list, especially the nearly 2,000 competitors.
There’s a reason that the Cheyenne Frontier Days Rodeo is known as the “Daddy of ‘em All”, and it’s not just because of all of the activities. The rodeo actually got the nickname back in 1919, 22 years after the celebration started. Speculation has it that T. Joe Cahill, who served on the committee at that time, coined the phrase when Cheyenne gained worldwide recognition for its rodeo. Regardless of where it came from it’s easy to see why it stuck.
The rodeo started with saddle bronc riding in 1897 and was one day. Now it has nine full performances that include every event in the PRCA, bareback riding, steer wrestling, tie-down roping, team roping, steer roping, saddle bronc riding and the bull riding. In addition, ladies participate in the Women’s Professional Rodeo Association sanctioned barrel race.
Ask any rodeo contestant where they are going the end of July and their answer is most likely, “The Daddy”. While that is how it is affectionately known on the rodeo circuit, the phrase has its own merit. With large contestant numbers, rising stars have the same opportunity to win as the veterans of the sport. However, a large percentage of the time it’s the veterans that leave Frontier Park with the lion’s share of the nearly $1 milion in prize money and the championships.
For Instance, in 2009 out of nine event champions, five had earned the most coveted buckle of all, the gold one that signifies they are the best. And, their earnings from the 113th annual CFD helped each of them earn a trip back to rodeo’s championship events. Will Lowe, who won the bareback riding title has won three world titles and qualified for the Wrangler National Finals Rodeo (WNFR) 8 times, including his 2009 trip to Las Vegas last December. Lowe left Cheyenne last July with over $15,000 in his pockets.
In the team roping, Chad Masters and Jade Corkill had the fastest total time on three to each earn $12,204. Masters was the 2007 world champion header. He has been to the WNFR six times. Corkill qualified for his second in 2009.
The 2005 and 2008 steer roper, Scott Snedecor earned $17,759 en route to his ninth National Finals Steer Roping. Billy Etbauer is one of the most popular cowboys on the rodeo circuit and with every ride and every title, his popularity keeps growing. Etbauer has qualified for the WNFR in saddle bronc riding a record 21 times and has earned five world championships in that event. Etbauer won $14,718 at the 2009 CFD rodeo.
Cody Ohl knows what it takes to win at Frontier Park, but never has a championship had such an impact. Ohl won his third CFD tie-down roping title and won $21,441. The money helped him qualify for the WNFR in eighth place. The top 15 money earners in each event get to compete for world titles. Subtract the money Ohl won at Cheyenne, and he would have missed his 15th WNFR, finishing in 19th.
Steer wrestler Jake Rinehart also used his money won at CFD to qualify for his second WNFR where he nearly won his first world title. Rinehart won $23,413 and finished the year in third place. In the barrel race, Tiffany Fox won $16,964, adding to her earnings to qualify for the WNFR in fourth place.
Brad Pierce didn’t qualify for the WNFR in bull riding, however, the $14,910 he won in Cheyenne was still really important. Pierce, a native Australian missed most of the 2008 season with injuries. He had returned to the U.S. shortly before Cheyenne’s rodeo. The money he earned put him in 32nd place in the world standings which gave him the opportunity to qualify for building rodeos in the winter that have limited entries.
There was only one champion in 2009 that had won a previous title at “the Daddy”, and that was Ohl. An amazing fact when the titles and accomplishments in the rodeo arena of the other rodeo champions are considered.
“There are so many variables at a rodeo like Cheyenne,” said Chad Masters who won the heading title. “With the fresh cattle and long score, it’s anybody’s ball game. It’s one of those rodeos you dream of winning no matter what you’ve won in the past. You still want to win Cheyenne.”
The timed-events at Cheyenne are different than anywhere else in the world. The cattle all get a 35-foot head start and with a long narrow arena anything can happen and it usually does. The rough stock events all have more than one section daily and give fans plenty of opportunities to see great rides.
“It’s the Daddy, plain and simple,” said Trevor Brazile, the PRCA’s 2009 tie-down roping and all-around champion. “It’s one of those rodeos you dream of winning when you’re growing up. I went there as a kid with my dad and now am bringing my own family. Everybody has a chance there and it’s one of the most exciting and frustrating places to compete. But it’s one that we always look forward to.”
The 2010 Cheyenne Frontier Days will be July 23 – Aug. 1 where all of these champions are expected to return and defend their titles. In addition, Brazile will be there competing in tie-down, steer and team roping. He is working on his record-setting eighth all-around world title that will have him standing alone in the record books. He is now tied with Ty Murray with seven.
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