Page 9 - 2022 Rodeo Program

August 16-20, 2022, 64th Annual
9 – CANBY RODEO
Mert purchased Red Rock, and what a smart decision it was. He used to stay here in Canby during Rodeo week in a pen by himself so the other bulls wouldn’t pick on him. In over 300 attempts, no one had a successful 8 second ride on him. Red Rock had sired many great bulls for John Growney and Donny Kish.
A little known fact is that Canby Rodeo held a record in 1994 for the highest score made on a PRCA bull ride. The bull, named Wolfman, sired by Red Rock, was born in 1986. In 1994 at the Canby Rodeo Wolfman was ridden for a score of 96 points on a Tuesday night. On a Tuesday night! We figured we would be short bull riders the rest of the week but they all showed up trying to best the 96 point ride. In February the following year Wade Leslie from Moses Lake, Washington rode the same bull, Wolfman, for a perfect 100 point score.
On a side note, Donny Gay (Mesquite, TX), did hold a PRCA record of 97 points on a bull ride back in the 1970’s as well as Denny Flynn’s (Charleston, AR) 98 point ride in the late 70’s, although neither rides were in Canby so I’m not quite sure how the PRCA records are kept. Another great Canby Rodeo ride was by Myron Duarte from Colorado who rode Red Wolf, another Growney/ Kish bull, in the 1996 Canby Rodeo for a score of 93 points. Needless to say Canby Rodeo has had some of the best bulls and riders in the world of rodeo, including Tuff Hedeman, Ty Murray, J.B. Mauney, Shane Procter, Charlie Sampson and Ted Nuce to name just a few.
In 1992/93 the Clackamas County Fair Board asked a group of us to serve on a newly formed Rodeo Committee. The original Committee was a group with diverse backgrounds all with the love of the sport of rodeo. Out of the original dozen or so members only four of us remain. Many have since passed or moved on to different locations far away from Canby. We did have a member who moved to Baker, Oregon but still had business ties in the area and he stuck it out for over a year still coming to meetings until it was no longer feasible. We now have eighteen directors that work extremely well together. And not to forget the endless amount of other volunteer help we have as well as associate members that work countless hours making the Canby Rodeo a success.
The growth we have seen is unbelievable. I found an old set of meeting minutes that said we should cap the sponsorship dollars at $10,000 until we knew what to do with all that money. This year the added money per event is $12,000. Added money is what the committee adds to the purse over and beyond the cowboys’ entry fee money which goes in the pot for prize money.
We have worked hard to give everyone their monies worth in rodeo entertainment.
Hold on ‘till next year’s program where I’ll bring you up to date on another 20 years’ worth of Canby rodeo memories. And may God Bless America!
Written by Dan Mickelsen
THE CANBY RODEO
The Beginning Part Three: Part II, from last year’s program, ended in 1987 which was the end of an era with Sombrero Stock Company out of Terrabonne, Oregon and a few years with the IPRA (International Pro Rodeo Association.)
In 1987 a contract was signed for a three year deal with Beard Rodeo Company from Ellensburg, Washington. They were a PRCA (Professional Rodeo Cowboy Association) contractor and it was time for us to go big time.
Frank Beard, his wife Charlot, and sons Casey and Pat showed up and put on a heck of a show that first year, and years to follow.
A notable difference with the addition of the Beard Rodeo Company was the pool of contestants we were exposed to by going with the PRCA. Many were recognizable as these were the cowboy’s we saw at the National Finals Rodeo every year.
I remember in 1989 and 1990 a young Donny Kish brought bulls up from Red Bluff, California for Frank Beard. Although Frank and Charlot Beard are no longer with us their rodeo legacy lives on today.
In 1990 a contract was signed with Growney Brothers Rodeo from Red Bluff California for the 1991 rodeo. John entered the ranks of the PRCA as a competitor in 1971 while still serving in the United States Army.
John Growney showed up and hit the ground running. John loved to put on a show and he will still say, “We are competing for entertainment dollars.” How true. John said what you need here is music. The following year we contracted with Gogi Grant also from the Redding/ Red Bluff, California area to be our sound guy. Gogi furnished a microphone for our announcer and played the driving music that we all know today. I went up to the crow’s nest (announcers stand) and watched Gogi doing his thing. He had adapted a telephone receiver to a head phone jack. He would que up cassette tapes listening for the right spot on his telephone head set on his shoulder. Then insert them in this player that must have held a dozen tapes at once. Then as the riders were getting ready one song would play and when the chute gate opened he would change songs to get the crowds attention. Then que up more tapes and repeat all night long. He was really fun to watch. I asked why the telephone set and not head phone, he said he had to listen to music in one ear and the rodeo announcer in the other.
John had managed to sweet talk Mert Hunking from Sombrero Stock Company into a deal earlier to buy the famous and now legendary bull “Red Rock.” Red Rock was born in 1976 on the Burnt River Ranch in Burns, Oregon. Red Rock was orphaned as a small calf and was raised by the family milk cow. In 1978 as a two year old