News and Opinion from Sisters, Oregon
News and Opinion from Sisters, Oregon
The Sisters Rodeo produced plenty of crowd-pleasing action - and it wasn't all in the riding.
Mark Gomes rode Red Plume to an astounding 87-point score in the bare- back bronc riding event to take home a $3,113.70 check.
Brad Goodrich won honors as the all-round cowboy, finishing in the money in both calf roping and steer wrestling.
But just as enjoyable as the topnotch athletic performances were the antics of rodeo clown Flint Rasmussen, who entertained the crowd and even managed to crack the stoic demeanor of the Dodge Truck pickup riders.
Rasmussen, on Saturday night, led the pick-up riders in a "horseback dance" version of The Village People's "YMCA."
"They looked like they were perfectly choreographed," said one spectator. "I've never seen the pick-up guys act like that. They're usually so serious."
"That clown made the show," another spectator said.
Rasmussen and announcer Curt Robinson had their work cut out for them, filling a noticable void left by the absence of horseback "color commentator" Phil Gardenhire.
Gardenhire, a fixture at the Sisters Rodeo for nearly a decade, was killed in a car wreck in his native Oklahoma earlier this spring. His 14-year-old son Tyler was in the car with his father and survived the accident.
The Sisters Rodeo Association is donating Garden- hire's fee for this year's performance to the Gardenhire family as a scholarship for his son.
In his absence, Robinson, his long-time announcing partner, worked extra hard to keep the crowd entertained and well-informed on all the events.
The association offered a touching memorial to the announcer, saddling "Gus," the horse he always rode when he came to Sisters, and leading him riderless around the arena as a memorial.
The weather proved cooperative, providing blue skies and comfortable temperatures for Saturday's parade (see results, p. 6) and a glorious sunny day for Sunday's finale.
Jim Cornelius is editor in chief of The Nugget and author of “Warriors of the Wildlands: True Tales of the Frontier Partisans.” A history buff, he explores frontier history across three centuries and several continents on his podcast, The Frontier Partisans. For more information visit www.frontierpartisans.com.
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