Mini Roughstock Rodeo adds new event to schedule

Alexis Barker
NLJ News Editor
 
All of the roughest and toughest cowboys and cowgirls from across the area will be out to compete Tuesday, July 27, when the Weston County Mini Roughstock Rodeo holds its second annual event during the Weston County Fair. 
The free event will be open to all kids ages 4 to 18, and includes mutton bustin’ for ages 4-7, mini bareback for ages 6-14, bull riding for ages 9-14, a wild pony horse race for ages 8-14, and high school bareback and bull riding for ages 15-18, to include any senior who graduated in 2021.
According to Mike McFarland, the secretary-treasurer of the association, this year’s event includes a new competition for high-schoolers, the saddle bronc riding.
Online sign-ups close July 24 and can be found at forms.gle/C27KSTfY8BwTrBvu8. The first 15 applications per category will be entered into each event. 
The event was formed by a group of “rodeo minded” individuals who wanted to add another event for kids to the Weston County Fair. 
“We had been kicking the idea around for two to three years. We decided we needed to do something for the kids,” McFarland said. 
Putting their thoughts into action, the group came together to form the association in 2020 and approached the Weston County Fair Board about hosting a rodeo at last year’s fair. The group’s board of directors includes Eric Gewecke, Kacy Jones, George Graham, Tim Sewell, Scott Sewell, Alvaro Baeza, Nancy McFarland, Tim Jones and McFarland. 
“The fair board was enthusiastic but said they didn’t have any money for us, but we could do it. So, we formed the association and split up into different areas and just started going around and asking for sponsorships,” McFarland said last year. “I like to think of it more as a partnership. We are partnering with them for the kids. The response from the partners has been overwhelming. I can’t believe how fast and easy it was to raise the money.”
According to McFarland, last year’s event was a success and featured cowboys and cowgirls from several states as they took to the arena to strut their stuff.