FORT WORTH, Texas – When the hat-maker decided upon its Resistol Rookie Roundup presented by The Cowboy Channel, officials knew just the right stock contracting company to produce the annual event.
Resistol reached out to Dallas-based Pete Carr Pro Rodeo, which will present the event for the fourth straight year during this year’s festivities, set for 7:30 p.m. Friday, April 25-Saturday, April 26, at Cowtown Coliseum in the historic Fort Worth Stockyards. The roundup will feature the top 15 first-year contestants in the standard ProRodeo events over that time.
“When we partnered with Patrick Gottsch and The Cowboy Channel on that event, Pete was just a natural choice for us,” said Mary Jane Carpenter, Resistol’s brand director. “Resistol has a great relationship with him. He puts on a first-class event, and that’s what we were striving for. He understood our mission in making a well-produced event and the best type of stock we could provide for the rookies.
“He was just a natural choice.”
Carr has continued to be the right decision. In fact, he was named the 2024 Resistol Man of the Year, becoming just the 16th person since the award’s inception to receive the honor. Others include Gottsch, announcer Bob Tallman, former PRCA commissioner Karl Stressman and country artists George Strait and Cody Johnson.
“This is an award that is selected by the president of our company,” Carpenter said of Dustin Noblitt, who took over the reins from Ricky Bolin a year ago. “It’s based on outstanding efforts in promoting the Western lifestyle, and Pete is a great choice for that award. He’s done so much for the Western industry. He’s worked really hard in support of cowboys, the industry, rodeo and in raising bucking horses.”
Carr is a 15-time nominee for the PRCA’s Stock Contractor of the Year and has twice been named the WPRA’s Stock Contractor of the Year. In 2023, he was inducted into the Texas Rodeo Cowboy Hall of Fame alongside his great gelding, Dirty Jacket, a two-time PRCA Bareback Horse of the Year. Three other Carr horses – Real Deal in 2005, Big Tex in 2010 and Deuces Night in 2012 – have also won that honor, and Carr’s Bayou Bengal was the 2023 PRCA Bull of the Year.
“Pete’s been a great promoter of the Western lifestyle, but he’s also an outstanding businessman as well,” Carpenter said. “He really brings a great perspective from both sides: the cowboy side and the business side. He’s just been a great proponent for the industry. He’s a self-made man, which is a great trait for a cowboy. He has built a very successful construction business in addition to being one of the best PRCA stock contractors out there.
“He pours his heart and soul into it. There’s something about his love for the game and how giving he is, not only to rodeo but also to all the Western charitable events he participates in.”
Resistol is the preeminent maker of Western hats and is based in the Dallas suburb of Garland, Texas. The Cowboy Channel has taken broadcasting rodeo to a new level. Combined, they are at the top of the rodeo industry, and they lean on Carr and his team of professionals to produce the Rookie Roundup.
“Pete is a very turnkey operator, because he and his people know how to put on a rodeo from beginning to end,” Carpenter said. “He’s just a great choice to produce this event.”
The opening performance of the roundup will feature each contestant battling in his/her respective discipline. After the opening round is complete, the top eight will advance to the Saturday night performance of the tournament-style competition. The contestants with the top four scores or top four fastest times in that semifinal round will advance to the championship, with the winner being crowned then.
The dollars earned in Fort Worth that weekend will go toward Resistol Rookie of the Year standings. The top first-year money-earners in each event at the end of the regular season will win the rookie awards. While some may win multiple world championships over their careers, there is only one season in which a contestant can be named Resistol Rookie of the Year.
“This event has grown so much,” Carpenter said. “We are so grateful to have it because the whole mission is to have it early in the year when they’re kicking off their professional careers. Now, they have a place they can meet and compete against all their peers, and then be allowed to have more formal training on what it means to be a professional cowboy.
“They go through media interviews, some media training, and they will have a roundtable discussion with past rookie winners or world champions. They learn a little about getting a sponsor. When they check in, they will get a bag of essentials and a Resistol hat. They’re kicking off their careers with some education and some guidance on becoming a professional.”
They’ll also see what it’s like to compete at a first-rate event produced by one of the top stock contractors in ProRodeo.