DICKINSON – For the rodeo enthusiast, there is just no substitute for bull-riding.
Hundreds of fans showed up for the Next Generation Bull Ride during the two-day event from March 3 to 4 at the Dickinson State University Indoor Arena, and they didn’t come away unhappy. The Friday-Saturday event featured more than $3,000 in prize money, tons of bull-riders, an after-party at Phat Fish Brewery and tons of fun for the entire family.
Among those families were Dickinson resident Hannah Ingman, who brought her 5-year-old son, Bennett, and her daughter, Payton, along for the ride. Hannah has been a rodeo enthusiast for most of her life, having watched it with her grandfather, Charles Bastian, while she was growing up in the area. Payton, 12, was enjoying the rodeo as well, and said she is into archery as a hobby. And as for Hannah’s son, Bennett, she said, “He loves it!”
“He’s a big fan,” Mrs. Ingman said. “It’s the only sport he wants to play and all he wants to do and he is totally, 100-percent cowboy.”
Among the participants in the rodeo were Minot’s Tyler Villareal, Killdeer’s Ryan Walker, J.D. Cowhill from Fort Thompson, SD, Montana’s Mark Watson, Underwood, ND’s Lane Davis, Billy Stevenson from Texas and Dickinson’s own Dalton Praus, among many others.
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One of the best rides early on came from Brenton Ross, 18, who is originally from Buffalo, Wyo., but now lives in Gillette, Wyo.
His 8-second ride came in at a score of 83, and he said the quality of the bulls surprised him at the Next Generation event.
“It’s my first time coming up here to North Dakota and they got a really good set of bulls here,” he said. “I wasn’t really expecting this kind of caliber, but when you get ‘em rode it’s all fun.
“(On his ride) The only thing I could think about was my Dad yelling at me, telling me to, ‘Stay square and don’t whip your free arm!'”
Dickinson native Robbie York, a Dickinson resident who owns and operates York’s Barbecue Pit at 1681 3rd Ave. W, was serving up his specialties and enjoying the sights and sounds of the rodeo. He said events like these are good for the community and bring folks out for an exciting, fun-filled evening.
“This is our first rodeo, and it’s just kind of a small community event,” York said. “Some people reached out to us … and we know what it’s been like to be in a bind, so we had a free weekend and filled the spot. I like rodeo, and don’t get to them enough, but they’re enjoyable.”
“We know what it’s like to help things come together and we wanted to do what we can to help the community. Being a Dickinson State University alum, myself – my father-in-law is with the Touchdown Club – we just like to help our own.”
Jessica Woodberry came to town from Bismarck to watch her husband, JD Woodberry, and she said, attends 10-15 rodeo events per year with him.
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“I didn’t record it all that well, though,” she said with a laugh. “But he’s the one that hit the fence on his ride. He likes it and it makes him happy.”
For more information, please visit the Frontier Productions Facebook page at https://www.facebook.com/people/Frontier-Productions/100057223488449/.
