Gooding Pro Rodeo to honor history with its 100th anniversary
GOODING, Idaho – The pioneering spirit the developed this desert region into a farming community still stands strong in southern Idaho.
It will be honored with the 100th anniversary of the Gooding Pro Rodeo, set for Thursday, Aug. 14-Saturday, Aug. 16, with a special “Beauty and the Beast” performance set for Wednesday, Aug. 13. All performances take place at 8 p.m. at Andy James Arena.
“What is now the Gooding County Fair and Rodeo was originally the Farmers Fair in Wendell, just 10 miles south of us,” said Don Gill, the fair and rodeo’s manager. “It was started in September of 1916 as a way for the pioneering farmers to bring their bounty to town and celebrate what they were doing on their homesteads.”
Nine years later, the Gooding city fathers moved the fair to the 116th Cavalry Grounds, which is where the fairgrounds sits today, and added activities like a polo match with the cavalry and bucking and roping contests.
“That’s what made it a true fair and rodeo,” Gill said.
That legacy still exists but on a much grander scale. Thousands make their way to Gooding County for the experience and the high-flying action that is ProRodeo in this century.
“Top cowboys have always considered Gooding as their home away from home,” Gill said. “In the early days, men like Pete Grubb, Mike Bryant and Yakama Canutt matched their skills against the horses from Haley Tucker, the Christian Brothers and Swanny Kirby.
“That tradition continues with the world’s best making Gooding an important stop on their rodeo schedules.”
Take Kassie Mowry, who tied the Andy James Arena record in winning the rodeo last year en route to her first barrel racing world championship. She is one of many who own those prestigious gold buckles who have not only earned good money in Gooding but have also left town with the rodeo’s title in hand.
“There have been a lot of people who have made important contributions to the longstanding success of our fair and rodeo,” Gill said. “In 1990, then-fair manager Lucy Osborne took the bull by the horns and formed the Save Our Seats Committee to raise enough money to replace the old wooden bleachers, which had been condemned.
“She conducted numerous fundraisers – including Baxter Black, a bison roast and just about anything else she could come up with – and the construction began two years later. Local farmers, the highway district and anyone else who volunteered hauled in the dirt to where the current bleachers sit.”
The condemnation was just an obstacle that those who had forward thinking were willing to hurdle. The process continues with Gill and his staff, who have built the fair and rodeo into the exposition that thrives on greatness. Because of that, more than $255,000 was paid out to cowboys and cowgirls last year, with a good portion of that money going to nearly 50 contestants that have qualified for the National Finals Rodeo.
“I believe that pioneer spirit and can-do attitude lives on today,” Gill said. “Over the last several years, Gooding has received many awards for the rodeo. I’m certain the founding fathers never envisioned their bucking and roping contests on the polo fields of the 116th Cavalry would be televised across the world 100 years later.”