It`s Rodeo Time!!! - The Horse Resource Magazine

IJRA
IJRA News
Photo by John Beals
Drew Thomas & Ginger
It’s Rodeo Time!!!
LaPorte, IN
Saturday All-Around Champions
K-1-2 Clay Yadon and Emma Morris
3-4-5 Dalton Hartle and Gracie Pickett
6-7-8 Zach Hunter and Addie Keller
Sunday All-Around Champions
K-1-2 Kolton Hartle and Emma Morris
3-4-5 Dalton Hartle and Gracie Pickett
6-7-8 Zach Hunter and Sydney Hurley and Lois Thomas
Clay Yadon Goat Tying at LaPorte
rodeo photo by Kelly Yadon
S
ummer is here and our rodeos are in full
swing! The Cinch Junior High Division
kids have safely returned from Gallup, New
Mexico and all of the IJRA kids have their sights set
on the IJRA State Finals! This year the State Finals
will be
held in
Columbia City, IN on August 13th and 14th at the Mizpah Shrine
Horse Patrol Grounds. The weekend will be packed full of excitement
and fun. Saturday will kick off the 2011-2012 IJRA Princess Contest
with the contestant’s speeches and interviews at 10:00 and horsemanship at 1:00. The preschool rodeo will be held early in the day on
Saturday and the first IJRA performance will kick off at 5:00 with our
Grand Entry and a presentation from the Mizpah Shrine Color Guard.
The second performance will be held at 2:00 on Sunday with the 8th
grade graduation ceremony and the announcement of the IJRA 20112012 Princess being held immediately before the performance. IJRA
will be holding a silent auction during the weekend with many great
Grace Hassler & Bugsy
donations offered by many IJRA sponsors. The 40’ Powder Creek
round pen or $500 raffle will also be drawn on Sunday at the Finals so
be sure to get your tickets before it’s too late!
Our La Porte, Indiana rodeo was a success with many cowboys and cowgirls putting together
clean runs and making great rides. Congratulations go out to Clay Yadon, who won his first
All-Around Cowboy title on Saturday. Clay won the Goat Tying and Chute Dogging and
placed in all of his events. Stockwell, Indiana cowboy, Hunter Verhey won first in the Mutton
Busting on Saturday with a 67 point ride. Cowgirl Greeley Eastep swept the Barrels, Poles and
Goat Tying on both Saturday and Sunday. Ryann Pitchford scored a 62 point ride in the Mutton
Busting to win first, while Emma Morris claimed the Chute Dogging win on Saturday with a
time of 4.22. On Sunday, Kolton Hartle won the Calf Riding, Goat Tying and Barrels to cinch
up an All-Around title. Brandon Manuel’s 60 point ride was unmatched in the Mutton Busting.
A time of 3.103 in the Chute Dogging, gave Bryce Tieman a win and ten points for his race in
the year end All-Around Cowboy title.
On Saturday, 3-4-5 Cowboy, Dalton Hartle’s time of 3.288 cinched the win in the Chute Dogging and he then came back on Sunday to win the Goat Tying and Step-Down Roping. Grace
Hassler found herself with a win Saturday in the Goat Tying as well as first place points in
Barrels and Poles on Saturday and Sunday. Gracie Pickett put together great runs to win the
Steer Daubing on Saturday and Sunday. Lexy Petro had a point filled weekend as she placed
in all four of her events on both days. Goat Tying cowgirl, Maci Zimmerman, won the goat
tying Sunday when she laid down an 11.446 second run. Cooper Morris put together another
Breakaway Roping win on Saturday. A clean catch by Cody Turner won the Breakaway Rop-
Sage Thomas & Jag
Melanie Hassler & Count
Photo by John Beals
www.ijra.org
Gracie Pickett
Story provided by: Rachel Thomas
IJRA News
ing while Clayton Coll made some noise in the
rough stock end of the arena when he put together a 69 point ride to win the Calf Riding .
The 6-7-8 cowboys found Zach Hunter in
the All-Around seat on Saturday and Sunday.
Zach and his partner Casey Coll won the Team
Roping on Saturday and Zach found himself
with wins in the Breakaway and Calf Roping over the weekend. Jordan Banta won the
Chute Dogging on Saturday. Addie Keller had
a great day on Saturday, when she put together
a smooth pole run on her great bay mare and
claimed eighteen Barrel Racing and Goat Tying points to pushed her to the top for an AllAround Cowgirl title. Lois Thomas won the
Barrel Racing on Saturday and Sunday. Trevor
Colby was on fire on Sunday with a 2.301 second time in the Chute Dogging and a quick
catch in the Breakaway Roping to cinch first in
both events. Brayton Dewees and Kyle Mackey had quick loops in the Team Roping that
took them to the top spot on Sunday. Michael
Shreeve’s 70 point score in the Bull Riding
gave him another win toward a year end title.
IJRA would like to thank the families of Paul
and Doreen Lloyd and Dale and Caren Thomas for putting together the rodeo at LaPorte!
Please find our Facebook page under IJRA
Indiana Junior Rodeo Association so you may
support our rodeo sponsors that have supported our IJRA cowboys and cowgirls this year.
Our sponsors are very important to our association and we are very thankful for all they
do for IJRA.
Make sure follow us next month when we feature Team Indiana and their trip to Gallup, New
Mexico for the Cinch Division National Finals!
T
his month’s spotlight shines on the Morris family from Cicero, Indiana. David and Amy Morris have 3 great kids, three of which are
currently members of IJRA. Their family has been involved in
IJRA for 6 years and they continue to play an important part in
our association. Amy and David
have run the Preschool rodeo
in the past and David presently
leads the Cowboy Church service for us on Sunday mornings
and does a wonderful job leading our prayer during our Grand
Entry. The Morris family is always full of positive encouragement for
all of the IJRA cowboys and cowgirls. IJRA would like for you to meet the Morris family and see what
they have to say about what IJRA means to them.
Cooper
The Morris Family
Emma
Cade
Cooper (10 years old): The rodeo is part of my life, I love it. I love all the people that have helped me
get to where I am. I chute dog and rope calves. I love both events a lot. I try to be as good as I can in each
event, it’s the only sport I do. I’ve been a member of IJRA for five years, I started as a preschooler and
joined the association my kindergarten year. This is my fourth grade season.
Emma (8 years old): I really like the chance to do something I couldn’t do anywhere else, like chute
dogging, it’s usually for boys, but I can do it too. My pony’s name is Weapon, she’s 30 years old and
has been rodeoing most of her life. I love weaving the poles on her because she’s really smooth.
Going fast in barrels is pretty fun too. I love seeing my friends and spending time with my family.
Rodeo weekends are special to me. I’ve been in IJRA 3 years, this is my second grade season. I
started as a preschooler.
Cade (6 years old): I really like sheep riding and chute dogging, I’m pretty small, but I can still
ride a sheep and get a calf down if I do it right. I like the quality time with my family at the rodeo,
too. I like it most when my Mammaw comes to see me, she’s a really good mammaw! This is my
first season as an IJRA member, I’m a kindergartner this year, I was in preschool rodeo for 2 years.
Amy & David: As a family of seven we appreciate the IJRA for what it offers as a sport and hobby.
There aren’t many clubs or associations that offer something for the whole family. Our children
range from almost two years old up to ten years old and each one of them can participate in IJRA
events - Preschool rodeo for the little ones and progressive age groups for the older children. All the
events are held in the same location on the same days so we don’t have to split the family on weekends or weeknights to get everyone to their events. We love that!
Beyond the convenience and variety of events, we most appreciate the skill crafting, encouragement,
and integrity of the IJRA. Our children have always received a lot of help from the IJRA Officers,
board members and members in general. Anytime one of our children is having a difficult time
perfecting their skills, there’s always someone willing to help. We feel like we have a huge extended
family and everyone knows everyone and genuinely cares for everyone. It’s like small town values
that move from rodeo to rodeo.
Morris Family pictures provided by Amy Morris
Member Spotlight