Title Small-Town Charmer - Ten Sleep Rodeo Association

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Behind the Scenes at Top Rodeos and Stock Horse Competitions
● RODEO TRADITIONS● DEPARTMENT HEADING
Title
Small-Town
Charmer
Intro text small ranch in California.
By NAME HERE
The tiny town of Ten Sleep draws
rodeo competitors and fans for its
traditional Fourth of July Rodeo.
Story and photography by GUY DE GALARD
Section Editor SUSAN MORRISON susan.morrison@westernhorseman.com
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Sandy Bob Forbes puts in
a winning saddle bronc
ride on Curly Bill.
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Ten
Sleep. The colorful name itself is intriguing and captures the imagination. Nestled in the foothills of Wyoming’s
Big Horn Mountains, in a region described by Shoshone Chief Washakie as “the perfect place,” the picturesque Western town was
founded in the mid-1890s. Today, the small ranching community—population 304—boasts two saloons, a soda fountain and
one of the best small-town rodeos in the West.
where the town is located today to each of
those two main camps.
Steeped in Western lore, the area is one
of the most scenic in Wyoming and offers majestic mountains, deep canyons,
sweeping vistas and rugged badlands. Ten
Sleep’s name derives from its location. To
the south, there was a large Sioux camp
established on the Platte River, near the
present-day site of Casper. To the north,
near Bridger, Montana, was another large
Indian camp. Indians measured distance
between locations by the number of
nights that passed between departure and
arrival. It was 10 sleeps (10 nights) from
EARLY DAYS
The first rodeos in the Ten Sleep area
were informal gatherings where cowboys would show up to pull leather after
chores on Sunday morning. As early as
1903, George “Cactus” Edwards twisted
broncs along the Upper Nowood River
and around the town of Big Trails. Sam
Mayer, from nearby Hyattville, became
the Cheyenne Frontier Days champion
cowboy.
There was neither purse nor fee at the
informal events in Ten Sleep, which occurred every year before World War I and
for several years after World War II.
Janna Hampton carries mail during the Pony Express ride that kicks off
the rodeo weekend.
Over the years, prominent names in
the rodeo world have ridden in Ten Sleep.
Among them were world champion
saddle bronc rider Enoch Walker, bull
rider Frank Fleury and world champion
all-around cowboy Dean Oliver. More
recently, rodeo legends such as Chris
LeDoux, Jim Sharp and Ty Murray paid
their entry fees in the small Wyoming
town.
“You can’t believe how many top roughstock riders got their start in Ten Sleep,”
says rodeo committee member Gary Rice,
whose family has been ranching around
Ten Sleep since 1912.
The first Ten Sleep Rodeo was organized in 1946. Ten Sleep ranchers bought
shares in the land that has become the ro-
Sam Hampton, driving the buggy, leads the Fourth of July parade. A
prominent rancher, Hampton used to be the rodeo clown.
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deo grounds, a total of 40 acres. Some of
these shares are still owned by the original
families. On a tundra-like open pasture,
corrals and chutes were erected. More
than 1,000 people attended the first day
and more than 1,500 people crowded the
grounds on the second day.
Rowdy and Laid Back
Today, Ten Sleep continues to celebrate its
rodeo heritage during the Fourth of July
rodeo. The event has become an important part of the town’s culture and summer entertainment.
A Pony Express race from Hyattville to
Ten Sleep kicks off the two-day bash. Some
15 riders carry the mail in saddlebags over
the 15 miles that separate the two towns.
While they gallop along the scenic route
and across sage-covered pastures, a dense
crowd lines up on Main Street to watch
their arrival.
Then, the parade—mostly comprised
of riders, buggies and wagons—goes
through town. By 12:30 p.m., the crowd
congregates at the fairgrounds, where the
real show begins. In true Western fashion,
spectators back up their pickups along
the fence and settle with chairs and coolers for an afternoon of wild rodeo action.
Those who choose to sit in the stands find
no assigned seats.
Junior Johnstone has been a fixture at
the Ten Sleep Rodeo, where he has been
competing since 1951. He rode bareback
broncs that first year and switched to
saddle broncs the following year. Now, he
team ropes and has missed only one year
in Ten Sleep.
“It’s an old-fashioned rodeo, the way it
Mutton busting is always a crowd pleaser.
used to be in the old days,” he says. “There
aren’t many left. Ten Sleep stayed a Western town pretty much the same as the first
time I came here.”
The small office at the fairgrounds entrance is packed with contestants who line
up to pay their $50 entry fee.
“We have about 120 contestants this
year. It’s not a PRCA-sanctioned rodeo,
but we follow the same rules,” says Sam
Funk, who is in charge of the rodeo office.
After a tour of duty in Iraq, Funk came
back to Ten Sleep and is now part of the
Ten Sleep Rodeo Association. R.C. Carter
took the reins two years ago when he became president. In their 20s and 30s, they
take their responsibilities seriously, but
have fun doing it.
“We were all in high school together.
Our dads used to be part of the Ten Sleep
Rodeo Association,” says Kraig Gossens,
who is in charge of maintenance. “We’re
all volunteers. It’s all about good Western
values, camaraderie and family. It’s like
having a second job, but we all love it.”
Carter adds that the event would not be
the success it is without all the volunteer
help.
“It’s the Ten Sleep effort,” he says. “We
are community-oriented and nonprofit.
All the profit goes right back into the rodeo association.”
In the crow’s nest, announcer John
Costello starts the festivities. This will be
Costello’s sixth year announcing in Ten
Sleep.
“It’s as Western as it gets,” he says. “I love
the small-town atmosphere; everyone
comes together. It’s like a family reunion.
When you know everybody in town and
get on that mike, you can say things that
make everybody chuckle. You can’t beat it
for a Fourth of July rodeo.”
Prime Bucking Stock
In Ten Sleep, a laid-back atmosphere and
prime bucking stock go hand-in-hand.
Both keep the contestants and the crowd
coming back year after year.
John Forbes rode saddle broncs for
more than 20 years and has been a stock
contractor for 11 years. He provides stock
for the Johnson County Fair in Buffalo,
Wyoming, the Sheridan County Fair and
the Kaycee Evening Rodeo every other
Friday during the summer. He has been
providing the broncs in Ten Sleep for the
past four years.
Based in Kaycee, Wyoming, Forbes
brought 24 head to Ten Sleep, including
12 bareback mounts.
“I brought solid horses because some
are bucked both days, and it’s a long way
from Kaycee, over the mountains,” he
says. “The youngest horse I brought is 5.
Younger horses can’t do that.”
Forbes’s stock comes from some of the
most respected names in the business,
such as Ike Sankey, Burch Rodeo Company, Hal Burns and Binion Cervi.
“The crowd wants to see some good
buck-offs, and the cowboys want some
good rides,” he says.
Behind the chutes, the contestants
share the same opinion about the stock.
Because of its quality stock, the Ten Sleep
rodeo is a place where young cowboys
ride for added experience and seasoned
riders come for practice.
The wild horse race is the rodeo’s biggest draw.
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For example, Ricardo Larroyed is a bareback rider from Brazil. After being a dentist for 10 years, he made a career change to
rodeoing in 1997. He’s been forking broncs
in Ten Sleep since 2004, and won the 2006
bareback event.
“It’s special to ride here,” he says.
Blood and Dust
After the grand entry and its array of flags,
the first bronc bursts out of the chute.
Rough-stock events alternate with timed
events. However, the biggest draw and the
top crowd-pleaser remains the wild horse
race. It’s rough, exciting and 100 percent
Western.
Several teams of three men each, consisting of an anchor, a mugger and a rider,
are required to catch, saddle and ride the
bronc to the other end of the arena, and
then race back to the finish line carrying
the saddle.
At the signal, the chutes open while the
anchor holds the bronc at the end of a long
lead rope. The dust flies as each team tries to
control 1,000 pounds of ornery horseflesh.
Rope burns, bruises, blood and sometimes
broken limbs are part of the deal.
Only a handful of rodeos feature wild
horse races. D.J. Shuman is a mugger, the
most dangerous position, and was the
2008 winner in Ten Sleep. For him, competing here is both an adrenaline rush and
a family tradition.
“It’s a real rodeo, it’s local and the area is
so beautiful,” Shuman says. “It’s also a wellrun event. The guys who put it on always
stay on top of things. Their families have
been doing it for years.”
Future plans for the Ten Sleep Rodeo
Association include improving the grandstands, owning its own stock, creating a
museum dedicated to the his­tory of the Ten
Sleep Rodeo and hosting a weekly rodeo.
3:24:22 PM
The surrounding hills turn a vibrant
red at sunset, but the fun is not over yet.
In the town’s two saloons, patrons belly
up to the bar to celebrate Independence
Day in a fun and low-key atmosphere.
Adults wander through town and enjoy
the balmy evening. Then the crowd parties
the night away at a street dance, under the
star-dotted Wyoming sky.
“This rodeo,” says Gossens, “carries on
the American tradition of freedom.”
Guy de Galard is a writer and photographer
based in Wyoming. Send comments on this
article to edit@westernhorseman.com.
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