Arlee to kick of 35th anniversary of the Fourth of July rodeo
THE ARLEE Rodeo will celebrate its 35th annual Fourth of July Rodeo Tuesday in Arlee. (photo courtesy of R.T. Hendrickson)
R.T. Hendrickson is coming up on an anniversary for the Fourth of July Arlee Rodeo.
This season will be the 35th Annual Fourth of July Open Rodeo for Hendrickson, who founded the rodeo in 1983 as a bareback and bull rider.
“I used to rodeo when the Tribe owned the grounds and the arena,” Hendrickson said. “When I was still involved as a contestant with the rodeo is when I took it over in 1983 when someone needed to step in.”
The former rodeo contestant admitted he didn’t envision being a part of the rodeo business for 35 years.
“I never imagined being a part of the business for that long,” Hendrickson admitted. “Like I said, there was a need to keep it going.”
Hendrickson said he felt the popularity of the Fourth Of July rodeo in Arlee isn’t what it was when he was a kid though he admits he has noticed a growth in several other local rodeos and expects a good turnout for this year’s rodeo.
“The rodeo isn’t as big as what it was compared to when I was growing up,” Hendrickson said. “(When I was younger), there was far less entertainment. Horse racing was a big thing. Horse racing died out in popularity in Montana. I noticed the Polson crowd at the NRA Rodeo has grown over the last few years. It is all about timing, weather, what else is going on and what people feel like doing.”
Hendrickson said the feature for this year will be saddle bronc riding, bronc riding and regular saddles.
“They are just every day cowboys and instead of an association saddle, they will be riding just a regular saddle,” Hendrickson said. “There will be a lot of every day ranch cowboy types competing in the rodeo.”
Hendrickson said there was a “decent turnout” for last year’s rodeo.
“I didn’t count the total number but we had a pretty good turnout for just one day last year,” Hendrickson said.
This year, Hendrickson said one anomaly will be Brittney Miller, a girl riding the stock saddle. Hendrickson said a girl riding a stock saddle is “unusual.”
“It’s kind of unusual and there is only one around the country that gets into bronco riding,” Hendrickson said.
The livestock for the rodeo will come from Cutbank, Montana, according to Hendrickson.
Admission to the Arlee Rodeo will be $10 and kids will get in for $5 dollars. The rodeo will be from 2 to 5 p.m.