Rodeo volunteer has his share of arena glory

Sisters resident and rodeo volunteer Frank Getty knows the rodeo life.

He took home buckles in saddle bronc riding many times during a 20-some year career that began in 1956.

Born on a ranch near Lander, Wyoming, in 1934, Getty started bronc riding on a whim. There were night rodeos held in Lander, and one night he decided he wanted to give the bareback horses a try. So he did an exhibition ride that night and on other nights when there was a gap in the line-up.

At a high school rodeo a few years later, he thought he was signed up for the all-around, doing bareback broncs, roping and bull riding. Turned out he was signed up instead for saddle broncs, and he ended up winning the competition.

"I stuck with saddle broncs after that," he said.

One of his mentors was the famous Casey Tibbs, a nine-time PRCA World Champion. Getty traveled with Tibbs, watching and learning, and in 1956 he earned the buckle he wears today. It's from the Cody, Wyoming rodeo where Getty rode against his mentor and won.

From 1956 through 1961 Getty and Tibbs traveled steadily, looping through Texas, New Mexico, Arizona, Wyoming, Calgary and Pendleton.

"The furthest east I went was Camden, Missouri," he said.

When Getty married his first wife he settled down, somewhat, raising a family and working on ranches in Wyoming. He'd still rodeo in the summers and must have passed on the gene, because these days his grandson, Tyler, is a professional bull rider.

A tragic accident in 1974 resulted in the death of Getty's wife. He remarried in 1977, and he and Jane moved to Oregon City. Getty worked the next 20 years as a welder, rodeoing occasionally.

"The last rodeo I entered was in 1982 in Canby," he said. He was 48 years old, and said with a twinkle in his eye, "well, at least I placed in one of the go-rounds."

The couple moved to Sisters in 1996 and began volunteering with the Sisters Rodeo Association.

Getty managed to come out of his rodeo career with his body mostly intact. The bad knees he blames partly on old football injuries, and Jane says he's got arthritis, but he stands tall and strong. His job during rodeo weekend confirms his strength; he's on security detail, making sure that patrons behave themselves while on the grounds.

When asked about the changes he's seen in his sport, he noted that now rodeo is a career for many contestants. During his time, the prize money offered barely made it a hobby.

He also marveled at the multi-tasking some cowboys do during any given weekend. They may compete in the afternoon in Oregon, fly up to Washington for the evening, over to Montana for the next afternoon, and be back in Oregon the following evening. He thinks better fitness training and faster airplanes enable this kind of frenetic activity.

But no matter how hard they train or how fast they fly, the dirt still tastes the same and the ground is as hard as ever. Some things just don't change.