A year ago, I wrote a column about the media not being welcomed at the National Finals Rodeo, a damning statement about the perception most of us had as we attempted to cover last year’s championship.

My, how things have changed. The PRCA’s media department staff, just as they were a year ago, has been greatly accommodating. The column wasn’t about them; they put in long hours and handle requests and needs of those who are here to do their jobs. It was a proclamation about the perception most of us had based on serious developments made by PRCA management.

The atmosphere in the makeshift media room – the UNLV’s practice gym adjacent to the tunnel that leads to the timed-event boxes – is vastly different at this year’s NFR. It’s pleasing and helpful. It’s a 180-degree turn from this room a year ago.

There are roughly 100 people covering the NFR this year, documenting the goings-on in the arena by watching three large flat-screen TVs. There are no front-row press seats at this championship, because the logistics don’t allow for it, and that’s OK. We are here to work, to report, to share the information we gather to the various audiences we reach.

Because the PRCA implemented these changes, it has made our jobs easier and more enjoyable. It has made for a friendlier media room and a more comfortable setting for us all.

Kudos to the PRCA for making the change. We greatly appreciate it.