While Mother Nature was being fickle, the crowd at Glendon's Roughstock Rodeo was entertained by cowboys competing in bareback, saddle bronc, and bull riding, some hailing from as far away as Australia and New Zealand.
Gerard Oversby, the cowboy from Australia, placed first in the bareback event, after scoring 87 points on his first run, the most he has ever received.
He was awarded 72 points for his second run, which he said “was a bit disappointing but it was still enough to win.”
The Australian cowboy came to Alberta for the summer to compete in various rodeo events.
He admits he does “win a fair bit,” and picks up the odd win in bull riding.
“I like riding bulls more but bareback's what pays the way at the moment,” he explained, adding perhaps it's because bull riding is more dangerous.
“You're not meant to ride bulls, you're meant to ride horses.”
Wayne Powell, general manager of the Professional Roughstock Corporation, said he was impressed with the performances, noting how good the stock was.
“Good crowd, good cowboys,” he said.
Powell admitted he was worried about the weather, especially since the rodeo had already been cancelled due to the weather, but noted how it cleared up.
This rodeo was one of 10 the Professional Roughstock Corporation is hosting this summer, before the finals in Ponoka in September.
Another international competitor who impressed the crowds was 21-year-old Armando Davila, who won the bull riding event. Davila is from Mexico and studies at Olds College.
He started riding bulls back in Mexico when he was 16 years old. But he said Canadian bulls are stronger and faster than the ones back home. He also explained how in competitions in Mexico, he can predict what the bulls will do as the same ones are used, whereas here he can't.
But despite the adjustments, Davila still managed to impress.
When asked what he thinks about when riding he replied, “Ride eight seconds.”
Davila acknowledges the dangers of riding bulls, and admits he has been injured before. But he says it's part of the sport.
“I ride because I like the adrenaline.”
An Albertan cowboy won first in the saddle bronc category, with scores of 82 and 72.
Justin Meston of Tees has been riding for 13 years and although this was certainly not his first win, he said, “It's always exciting.”
Meston said he didn't ride very well in his first round. “The second one started out a little shaky, but then it finished out really good.”
When asked what it felt like when he was riding, Meston replied, “It's hard to explain what you think, everything's happening so fast. I don't know how you'd say it. A lot goes through your head at one time. It's more of just kind of an adrenaline deal, more than anything.”
Meston said he was impressed with the event and would return.
Before the rodeo began, children between the ages of eight and 12 had the chance to prove their skills in a wild pony race. Teams of three had to wrestle and ride a wild pony.
Members of the winning team included 10-year-olds Ryann Huffman and Brooke Skrypichayko, and nine-year-old Emily Aylesworth.
The girls noted how tough their competition was, which included boys, and stronger and older contenders.
“We didn't really think we were going to win actually,” said Brooke. “Emily just got on it and she was just riding it. I was pretty proud of her.”
Emily was the rider, Brooke was at the back and Ryann was by the pony's halter.
“I just fell off on purpose because I didn't want to get thrown against the fence because if I did that would really hurt,” Emily said of the ride.
The competition was the first for Brooke and Emily, while Ryann had a bit of prior experience.
“Last year at the Rich Lake rodeo I chickened out and I was supposed to be the rider,” she explained. “I chickened out and I stood there and we lost. We were the last ones.”
So she knew she had to put up a good showing this time, she said.
“We had confidence in ourselves, but not too much, because we didn't want to get so cocky,” said Brooke. “But we thought we did it pretty good and then when we heard everyone else's time, and we heard that we won, we were really excited.”
The girls each won $25 and already have big plans on how to spend it.
Brooke had already spent $5 on candy at the rodeo, but plans to save the rest, perhaps for shoes. Ryann is saving money to buy an aboveground swimming pool. She said it costs $600 and has $40 so far. Emily said she would save it for “something special.”
As for future plans for these mini rodeo stars? The girls plan to compete at the Rich Lake rodeo and perhaps they will put up a good enough showing so Ryann can buy that swimming pool.
