LOVINGTON, N.M. – It gets plenty hot in this neck of the woods throughout the summer months, but that’s just part of living in a desert.
Organizers of the Lea County Fair and Rodeo realize this is part of the equation when it comes to drawing the top contestants in rodeo to town, which is why they’ve invested in cold, hard cash as a way to fan away the heat and park themselves in Lovington during the second week of August.
“We’ve seen a lot of turnouts, because you see a lot of rodeos up north that time of year,” said Kris Allen, the Lea County Fair Board’s president and member of the rodeo committee. “A lot of them still come down to Lovington, but I want them to know that making that trip down south is worth it. They can come here and get the big money that counts for Vegas.”
This year’s rodeo is for 7 p.m. Wednesday, Aug. 7-Saturday, Aug. 10; that also includes Lea County Xtreme Bulls, which is Tuesday, Aug. 6. Hundreds of cowboys and cowgirls put their names in the hat to compete in Lea County, but there are several who opt out when the competition starts. They “turn out,” meaning they pay a small fine in order to skip the trip.
The fair board is hoping the additional $100,000 investment into the rodeo purse will offer the right enticement to the contestants who make their living in the game and who strive to qualify for the National Finals Rodeo, which takes place in early December at Las Vegas.
“Last year when we were at the PRCA convention, they brought up the issue of turnouts at all the rodeos,” said Kyle Johnston, a member of the fair board and chairman of the rodeo committee. “We looked at that, and we thought this was a way to get our turnout number down and get some more people come down this way and stay. We’re going to test it this year and see how it goes.”
Allen said the fair board has recognized the importance of every dollar when it comes down to cowboys and cowgirls making decisions as to where they play the game. In rodeo, money doesn’t just pay for expenses and cover bills; it’s also how points are tabulated. Only the top 15 on the money list in each event at the end of the regular season advance to the NFR, where world champions will be crowned.
“We are now going to be the third highest-paying rodeo in the circuit,” he said. “We are the highest-paid rodeo in the month of August. We want to continue to draw the top 10 in the world standings in regards to the cowboys and cowgirls.”
The rodeo has done that consistently. In addition to increasing its contribution to the purse to $25,001 per event, the Lea County Fair Board is also increasing the Lea County Xtreme Bulls payout to $37,500 – that’s an increase of $7,500 over previous years, and it was already one of the best-paying stand-alone bull-riding events in the PRCA.
“We’ve had a lot of comments from the contestants about how nice our facility is, and that it actually does cool off at night,” Johnston said. “We also have Pete Carr as our stock contractor, and he and his stock are very good. He makes our rodeo very entertaining, and his guys are great to work with.”
Lovington’s rodeo has always been about putting on a good show while also catering to the contestants. Jake McClure is a Hall-of-Fame cowboy, and his name is emblazoned across the arena. Folks in southeastern New Mexico recognized the greatness that comes out of Lea County when they talk rodeo.
The fair board wants that trend to continue.
“Pete Carr provides the best livestock to our rodeo, and I think that tells the cowboys and cowgirls why they want to come to our rodeo,” Allen said. “You’re going to get high scores and fast times, and you’re going to see good cowboys and cowgirls. With the mixture of Pete’s livestock, you’re going to see a good quality of entertainment.”
Fans will also see the best in the business battle for big bucks in Lea County.
“The prior people that took care of this rodeo did a great job, and we’ve just seen the opportunity to maybe grow our rodeo a little bit,” Johnston said. “That’s a lot of extra added money, and it moved us up pretty high in the rodeo world.”
That’s just where the Lea County Fair and Rodeo belongs.