The Cheyenne Frontier Days™ (CFD) General Committee has named its new committee members for the 2023 celebration.

Following Concessions Chairman Brad Westby is Woody Acord. Acord is a Senior IT Analyst; and has a BS degree in Management. He has volunteered on the CFD Concessions Committee for 23 years and was voted Volunteer of the Year in 2002. Acord was inducted into the HEELS in 2012.

Following Col. Deane R. Konowicz as Military Chairman is Col. John F. Hundley. He is currently a Vice Commander at the 90th Missile Wing at F.E. Warren Air Force Base. Hundley has two MS degrees and a BS degree in criminal justice. Col. Hundley has also served on the CFD Military Committee.

Following Ruthanne Hubbard as Parades Chairman is James Van Cise. He has spent 17 years as a Facilities Manager of the U.S.A.F. Base Hospital and Laramie County Library Systems. Van Cise has been a CFD Parades Volunteer for 24 years and he has been a Lead Assistant for 5 years.

Following Chad Mathews as Rodeo Chairman is Jason Bain. He is the Owner at KLC Automotive Equipment. Bain has been a volunteer on the Rodeo Committee since 2008 where he has been a Committee Lead for 5 years. He was selected as Rodeo Committee Volunteer of the Year in 2015 and inducted into the HEELS in 2018.

The Cheyenne Frontier Days General Committee has begun the planning process for 2023 by reviewing the results of the 2022 event.

The Cheyenne Frontier Days Board of Directors has named John Contos as the next General Chairman. In this role, he will lead the General Committee in producing the 127th annual celebration. Contos replaces outgoing General Chairman Jimmy Dean Siler.

Contos retired from Laramie County School District #1 as an Administrator of Health, Physical Education, and Safe & Drug Free Schools & Communities. Prior to that, he served as a Physical/Health Education Instructor at Laramie County School District #1. Contos attended the University of Wyoming where he received a Bachelor of Science degree in Kinesiology and a Masters degree.

Contos has been a CFD Volunteer for 39 years; he joined the HEELS organization in 1998; and was a CFD Public Relations Chairman. Contos was a CFD Board Member from 2016 – 2021 where he was: Secretary/Treasurer, Vice President, and Board President in 2018.

Contos will begin preparation for the 127th annual celebration by meeting with the General Committee to review the 2022 show and plan for improvements for the next year.

Contos said, “I am honored, excited and humbled to be selected as the next General Chairman of the World’s Largest Outdoor Rodeo and Western Celebration!”

CHEYENNE, Wyo. (July 31, 2022) – What started in 1897 as a competition between local ranches has turned into a 10-day entertainment extravaganza that celebrates the Western lifestyle known worldwide as Cheyenne Frontier Days (CFD).

The 126^th “Daddy of ‘em All” was deemed a huge success by organizers, thanks to the efforts of the 3,000 volunteers. The rodeo which is the centerpiece of CFD boasted 1,650 contestants and a record purse of $1,080,813. This was an increase from 1,403 contestants in 2021.

The first rodeo performance on July 23, opened on National Day of the Cowboy with a sold-out crowd. Saturday, July 30 also saw a sold-out rodeo. On Championship Sunday, rodeo fans watched history unfold as Jade Corkill won his fourth championship as a team roping heeler, Tim O’Connell won his third in bareback riding, and Stetson Wright won his second consecutive in saddle bronc riding. Through nine performances of the rodeo, attendance topped out at 108,662 compared to 111,617 last year.

Additionally, the qualifying competition and all of the rodeo action was broadcast live on The Cowboy Channel Plus App. The performances were also showcased on RFD-TV and The Cowboy Channel.

A special feature of each rodeo performance was the Pick-Up Man Initiative Combats Suicide. Country music star Garth Brooks provided a public service announcement regarding suicide awareness and prevention. Cheyenne’s rodeo is known for the pick-up men in the arena who help the contestants. The campaign encourages people to “reach out to a Pick Up Man or be a Pick Up Man for someone in need.” Yellow feathers were sold and proceeds will be donated locally.

Frontier Nights was once again popular with 103,798 in attendance compared to 115,618 last year. Part of that entertainment was the Professional Bull Riders (PBR) very first team series event. Last year the PBR’s competition had 20,257 in attendance. This year was slightly down at 19,756. The bull riding was broadcast on CBS Sports Network and PBR’s Ride Pass. Additionally, 32,653 gate admission tickets were sold bringing total attendance to 264,869.

All branches of the military were again honored on Military Monday with active personnel and veterans receiving free admission, where the 75^th anniversary of the United States Air Force (USAF) was also celebrated. A special opening featured and military personnel and families bringing in a huge American Flag. The USAF Thunderbirds attended the rodeo on Tuesday, and performed during Wings Over Warren. An estimated 8,800 people attended the exhibition and many more watched throughout the city. This year’s celebration saw an unprecedented involvement by various military groups throughout the 10 days.

An estimated 6,500 animals were part of the rodeo, parades, and bull riding. On-site veterinarians checked animals multiple times daily, making sure the animal athletes were ready to perform. Only one animal required treatment and unfortunately that animal did not recover.

Downtown Cheyenne hosted four parades and three pancake breakfasts. Fans again lined the streets for the parades featuring all kinds of horsepower and celebrating CFD’s history. The Kiwanis worked to feed 18,788 at the pancake breakfasts.

The Native American Indian Village on Frontier Park had activities for all ages, from storytelling, dancing, flute playing and seeing authentic crafts. Approximately 36,262 people made their way through the village.

“What a ride it has been,” Jimmy Dean Siler said. Siler is finishing his term as CFD General Chairman. “I can’t thank our volunteers, and this community enough for all they do to keep the legend of Cheyenne Frontier Days growing. We offered a great experience for the competitors, the performers and our fans responded. It is a huge effort and one that I’ve been proud to be part of as a volunteer, committee chairman and general chairman. I look forward to seeing continued growth at the world’s best Western celebration.”

CHEYENNE, Wyo. (July 31, 2022) –The 126^th Cheyenne Frontier Days Rodeo (CFD) crowned a mixture of repeat and new champions on Sunday, July 31. Fourteen individuals left Frontier Park with coveted titles from America’s biggest outdoor western celebration known as the “Daddy of ‘em All.”

Clay Tryan and Jade Corkill, the final pair to rope on Championship Sunday, set personal and CFD records. They stopped the clock in 7.5 seconds to win the team roping. Tryan, from Billings, Montana, and Corkill, who lives in Fallon, Nevada, won Frontier Days for the second time roping together. They earned their first CFD championship in 2013.

Corkill, who also won titles here in 2009 with Chad Masters and last year with Clay Smith, joins three others who have won four championships at Frontier Park in a single event. With his winnings here, Tryan became the first team roper in the history of the Professional Rodeo Cowboys Association (PRCA) to pass $4 million in career earnings.

Andrea Busby, a Wyoming native who now lives in Brock, Texas, was the final barrel racer to compete. Five previous racers had stopped the clock in less than 17.3 seconds when Busby rode her mare Tito (registered name Blazin With My Dude) into the arena. Tito, who was making just her fifth run in a professional rodeo, crossed the finish line in a time of 17.13 seconds to win the title.

Busby, whose Wyoming roots are deep, grew up on a ranch near Lusk that has been in her family for more than a century. She made the 140-mile trip to Cheyenne many times growing up. She said that she always hoped she would ride and win at CFD, so this title made a childhood dream a reality.

Tim O’Connell of Zwingle, Iowa, joined the ranks of rodeo legends who have three bareback riding championships at Cheyenne. O’Connell, who has won three world titles, rode Sankey Pro Rodeo & Phenom Genetics’ horse Sozo for 88.5 points to win by a single point. He joins ProRodeo Hall of Fame cowboys Joe Alexander and Clint Corey as well as fellow three-time world titlist Will Lowe as three-time winners at “The Daddy.”

Stetson Wright of Milford, Utah, rode another Sankey horse – Pendleton Roundup’s Marquee – for 88 points to win his second consecutive CFD title in saddle bronc riding. Wright had surgery on his hand in early July and stayed home for less than two weeks. He admits he may have started back too soon as he bucked off the first seven horses he got on after surgery. This week he turned the corner and has been on a winning streak. Wright’s family – his father, three brothers and four uncles – have competed at CFD, but Stetson is the only one to win championships at Frontier Park. He also has two CFD all-around titles.

Ora Taton, a 53-year-old cowboy from Rapid City, South Dakota, also won a second CFD title. Taton won the steer roping in 2003 and repeated the feat 19 years later. He was the first steer roper to ride from the box on Championship Sunday and set a pace of 13.6 seconds that no one else could beat.

Three timed events crowned co-champions on Sunday. In breakaway roping Macy Young of Whitman, Arizona, and Tiffany Schieck of Floresville, Texas, both caught their calves in 4.0 seconds. This was Young’s first time to compete in Cheyenne. She was not part of the invitational field when the event first was introduced in 2019; there was no CFD in 2020 due to the pandemic, and last year she was pregnant with her daughter Hadley. Schieck was roping here for the first time since 2019.

Ryan Thibodeaux of Stephenville, Texas, has competed in Frontier Park on Championship Sunday several times, finishing as reserve tie-down roping champion in 2019. He was the second roper to compete Sunday and turned in a time of 10.3 seconds. Two ropers later, eight-time National Finals Rodeo (NFR) qualifier Cory Solomon of Prairie View, Texas, tied Thibodeaux’s time. None of the next eight ropers could post a faster time.

Trell Etbauer of Goodwell, Oklahoma, grew up watching his father and uncles compete at The Daddy. His dad Robert won two world championships, his uncle Billy won five world titles and one CFD title, and his uncle Dan won two CFD titles, all in saddle bronc riding. Trell won the all-around title here in 2014. He set the pace in steer wrestling with the fastest time of the rodeo – 5.4 seconds –as the second cowboy to compete. No one came close to matching his effort until the final competitor, Justin Shaffer of Hallsville, Texas, managed to stop the clock in 5.4 as well. Schaffer had the quickest time in the finals last year, but a 10-second penalty cost him his shot at the title, so this year’s performance was redemptive.

Etbauer was riding a horse named Corduroy that his uncle Billy had raised and given to him as a wedding present 13 years ago. Trell had won calf roping money at Cheyenne riding Corduroy and started steer wrestling on him after an injury sidelined his steer wrestling horse last season.

The bull riding competition was feast or famine. Nine of the 12 finalists bucked off their bulls before the eight-second buzzer sounded. Garrett Smith of Rexburg, Idaho started the scoring with a 90-point effort on Dakota Rodeo’s bull Scary Larry. Josh Frost of Randlett, Utah, who is ranked second in the PRCA standings, matched Smith’s total on Dakota Rodeo’s bull Stretch.

But Caldwell, Idaho’s Brady Portenier made the ride of the day. He earned 92.5 points when he rode Stace Smith Pro Rodeos’ bull Let’s Gamble. Portenier, who qualified for the NFR in 2020, jumped from 23^rd to 16^th in the PRCA bull riding standings with his earnings at Frontier Park. That puts him in close contention for a return trip to Las Vegas to ride bulls in December.

The all-around title went to Coleman Proctor of Pryor, Oklahoma. Proctor, who has qualified for six NFRs in team roping, recently began steer roping. He and partner Logan Medlin finished seventh in the qualifying round of team roping but did not advance beyond the quarter finals. The steer roping was a different story. Proctor won third in the first round and first place in the second round. He finished fourth overall in the event which was enough to earn him the all-around championship.

The 127th edition of Cheyenne Frontier Days is scheduled for July 21-30, 2023.

2022 Cheyenne Frontier Days Champions with total money

Bareback Riding, Tim O’Connell, Zwingle, Iowa, $10,264

Breakaway Roping, Macy Young, Whitmann, Ariz., $15,497

Breakaway Roping, Tiffany Schieck, Floresville, Texas, $18,078

Tie-Down Roping, Cory Solomon, Prairie View, Texas, $11,403

Tie-Down Roping, Ryan Thibodeaux, Stephenville, Texas, $11,000

Steer Wrestling, Trell Etbauer, Goodwell, Okla., $12,226

Steer Wrestling, Justin Shaffer, Hallsville, Texas, $12,010

Team Roping, Clay Tryan, Billings, Mont., and Jade Corkill, Fallon, Nev., $16,400 each

Saddle Bronc Riding, Stetson Wright, Milford, Utah, $12,198

Barrel Racing, Andrea Busby, Brock, Texas, $15,948

Steer Roping, Ora Taton, Rapid City, S.D., $12,453

Bull Riding, Brady Portenier, Caldwell, Idaho, $10,287

All-Around, Coleman Proctor, Pryor, Oklahoma

(money won in team roping and steer roping)

CHEYENNE, Wyo. (July 31, 2022)- The following are unofficial results from the 126^th Cheyenne Frontier Days Rodeo on Sunday, July 31, 2022.

Bareback Riding: 1, Tim O’ Connell, Zwingle, Iowa, 88.5 points on Sankey Pro Rodeo’s Sozo, $8,481. 2,  R.C. Landingham, Hat Creek, Calif., 87.5, $6,425. 3, (tie)Tanner Aus, Granite Falls, Minn., and Garrett Shadbolt, Merriman, Neb., 86.5, $3,855. 5, (tie) Ty Breuer, Mandan, N.D., and  Yance Day, Tahlequah, Okla., 85.5, $1,542.

Breakaway Roping:  1, (tie) Macy Young, Wittmann, Ariz., and Tiffany Schieck, Floresville, Texas, 4.0 seconds, $10,699 each. 3, Emma Charleston, Reeds, Mo., 4.1, $6,641. 4, Alli Masters, Leon, Iowa, 4.3, $4,427. 5, Lynn Smith, Elfrida Ariz., 5.0, $2,582. 6, Devan McAdow, Hyannis, Neb., 5.3, $1,844.

Tie Down Roping: 1, (tie) Ryan Thibodeaux, Stephenville, Texas, and Cory Solomon, Prairie View, Texas, 10.3 seconds, $8,600 each. 3, Blane Cox, Cameron, Texas, 11.1, $6,800. 4, Reese Riemer, Stinnett, Texas, 11.9, $5,600. 5, Kase Bacque, Huntsville Texas, 12.6, $4,400. 6, Trenton Smith, Bigfoot, Texas, 13.3, $3,200. 7, Trent Creager, Stillwater, Okla., 13.6, $2,000. 8, Tyler Milligan, Pawhuska, Okla., 13.8, $800.

Saddle Bronc Riding: 1, Stetson Wright, Milford, Utah, 88 points on Sankey Pro Rodeo & Phenom Genetics’ Pendleton Roundup’s Marquee, $8,180. 2, Lefty Holman, Visalia, Cali., 87.5, $6,197. 3, Zeke Thurston, Big Valley Alberta, 87, $4,461. 4, Sterling Crawley, Stephenville, Texas, 86.5, $2,974. 5, Dean Wadsworth, Buffalo Gap, Texas, 85.5, $1,735. 6, Tanner Butner, Daniel, Wyo., 85, $1,239.

Team Roping: 1, Clay Tryan, Billings, Mont., and Jade Corkill, Fallon, Nev., 7.5 seconds, $9,200 each. 2, (tie) Erich Rogers, Round Rock, Ariz., and Paden Bray, Stephenville, Texas; and Chad Masters, Cedar Hill, Tenn., and Paul Eaves, Lonedell, Mo., 8.3, $7,400 each. 4, Rhett Anderson, Annabella, Utah, and Max Kuttler, American Falls, Idaho, 8.7, $5,600 each. 5, Garrett Rogers, Baker City, Ore., and Justin Davis, Cottonwood, Calif., 9.6, $4,400 each. 6, Brayden Parker and Dustin Searcy, Scottsdale, Ariz., 9.9, $3,200 each. 7, Paul David Tierney, Oklahoma City, Okla., and Tanner Braden, Dewey, Okla., 10.2, $2,000 each. 8, Turner Harris, Killdeer, N.D., and Matt Kasner, Cody, Neb., 10.4, $800 each.

Steer Roping: (three times) 1, Ora Taton, Rapid City, S.D., 13.6 seconds, $11,451. 2, Cole Patterson, Pratt Kan., 14.0, $9,733. 3, Shorty Garten, Claremore, Okla., 16.6, $8,016.

Steer Wrestling: 1, (tie) Trell Etbauer, Goodwell, Okla., and Justin Shaffer, Hallsville, Texas, 5.4 seconds, $6,450 each. 3, Talon Roseland, Marshalltown, Iowa, 6.2, $5,100. 4, Bridger Chambers, Stevensville, Mont., 6.9, $4,200. 5, Jesse Brown, Baker City, Ore., 7.0, $3,300. 6, Mason Owen Couch, Bronaugh, Mo., 7.3, $2,400. 7, Rowdy Parrott, Mamou, La., 7.5, $1,500. 8, Cody Harmon, Dublin, Texas, 10.2, $600.

Barrel Racing: 1, Andrea Busby, Brock, Texas, 17.13 seconds, $10,239. 2, Leslie Smalygo, Skiatook, Okla., 17.21, $8,474. 3, Jessica Routier, Buffalo, S.D., 17,24, $6,708. 4, Presley Smith, Danham Springs, La., 17.25, $4,943. 5, Katie Pascoe, Morro Bay, Calif., 17.26, $3,177. 6, Taycie Matthews, Wynne, Ark., 17.29, $1,765.

Bull Riding: 1, Brady Portenier, Caldwell, Idaho, 92.5 points on Smith Pro Rodeo’s Lets Gamble, $8,276. 2, (tie) Garrett Smith, Rexburg, Idaho, and Josh Frost, Randlett, Utah, 90, $5,329 each. 4, (tie) Shad Winn, Nephi, Utah, and Tristen Hutchings, Monteview, Idaho, $2,382 each. 6, Tyler Bingham, Howell, Utah, $1,253.

Wild Horse Race: 1, Small Miracles, $10,470. 2 (tie) Team Krening, and Leon Stewart. $6,686.