Assignment Iowa Classics; 306; Tri-State Rodeo

On. Assignment. With Mary Jane. Tonight from Fort Madison the tri state rodeo. Mary Jane. Fort Madison Iowa is a quiet and little river town a town that got its start and its name from the first military outpost west of the Mississippi and a town that most people know about simply because it happens to be the location of I was only men's penitentiary. But there's a lot more to Fort Madison in that the people here like to talk about the quiet beauty and the fact that it has a healthy mixture of old will have homes like these and it's new housing development. They also point out a few curious landmarks such as the waterfront which they say is one of the cleanest on the Mississippi. The longest double backswing bridge in the world. There courthouse one of two

in the county which is the oldest one in continuous use in the state. And the three hundred fifty million dollars worth of industry that has developed here in the last 10 years. Fort Madison is a community. Its people are very much ordinary folk a kind and conscientious group who give you the impression of being concerned about your well-being instead of just their own. But all that aside there is something that happens here every year after Labor Day that temporarily changes the character of this town. Fort Madison and its people go country. The occasion is the Fort Madison tri state rodeo a 30 year old

event that attracts nearly 30 people. Illinois and Missouri don't account for three days and nights a pack roping deer chasing a boy riding a bike. The people down here say that the Fort Madison try's to. One of the. Best. In the country. Which is a claim that outsiders usually don't quarrel with. After all this brings a lot of things to this town. Enough excitement or passion to satisfy the needs of people who have given hundreds of miles for a chance to become weekend cowboy's for a chance to unwind get away from it

all and have some fun. This is. For the performers and the money for the worth of advance ticket sales and the bills. That start up that. Look at. All of this has come a long way from 30 years ago when the closest thing Fort Madison had to a rodeo was a one day stopover in the railroad yard by Gene Autry who was on his way to New York City's Madison Square Garden championship rodeo. People in Fort Madison didn't think that one day was enough so they sent a man named Eddie Richards to Texas

to talk with Colonel Everett C. Coburn the producer of the Opry rodeo. In short order they raised $50000 organized citizens groups and had themselves a whale of a time and Fort Madison had itself one whale of a rodeo with good stock good contestants and good entertainment like Gene Autry himself who appeared in one thousand forty eight thousand nine hundred forty nine and one thousand fifty seven. The range rider and Dickie West been Tintin with of course the ever present lieutenant masters and rusty Michael Landon who was Little Joe on the television series bonanza before he bought the Little House On The Prairie. And bestest and bestest being Ken Curtis before donning Western clothes was a replacement for Frank Sinatra in Tommy Dorsey's orchestra. All of this was quite a feat wouldn't you think. Boring my and I will Rivertown

the people of Fort Madison thought so and in 1970 named their rodeo park for the man who started it all in the first place. Eddie Richards and he is here looking out over this arena and this is the 30th rodeo that you've been on here what are some of your personal reflections. Well there are many and varied of course as you might imagine but I think the most personal of all is one of pride and that's pride in the people of Fort Madison that we have here because this is not a one man program by any means. It takes a minimum of 500 people a year each and every year and sometimes I'd say if you probably look behind the scenes there be as many as fifteen hundred people. That help in producing this has been going on now for 30 years and the beginning never solves and said it probably last three or four years and that would be all. That's number one number two is if you look around. We do have this 285 acre park their arena here occupies about five acres.

The rest of it is recreational purposes and they have over 100 sheltered houses and the tennis courts we have baseball courts and we have places where the kids fly their planes and so forth and just good old family picnics. Now if I was your own enthusiasm holding up after all this time you get a little bored with it now. No I love it because now I can step back. Things are going along fine and I was most everything's paid for and we've got these nice operation here. We have good operating committee and we've got a 43 past chairman now that we formally got it by the committee and we don't have to worry on our hands and we had that first year first year we had a contractor pocket. I don't want to put it on no plates but it ought to lead you had a lot of guts you've already Oh yeah before there was any place to put it. Well that's true era but if there was any Richards doing now it's gone mad about now so what's your favorite event at a favorite event to see this thing complete it will make

profit for half a year. I'll say this civil writing is probably my favorite if you get to see the clowns work as well as the Cowboys. I'd say the next is a bare back. They're all good as far as that goes. Let me ask about the pray does it get bigger and better every year or better every year it's a big spread not without a doubt. This parade is just one example of how Fort Madison and its surrounding communities get behind the town's annual community enterprise. More than 40000 people turn out each year to watch hundreds of floats catch a glimpse of their neighbors and

the jealous looks of thousands of course. It's as if nothing else is a slice of American Western outfits and cowboy hats. It is the kind of thing that has become a tradition at the Tri-State. There was a time when anyone not wearing western clothes who dared to venture down Main Street as I'm doing right now would've been hauled before the Fort Madison kangaroo court in some appropriate punishment would have been administered and I endanger that Mike today. Not

today. Why is that. Well we did this for a number of years and they got a little too enthusiastic about it and we discontinued it. Mike Mike Howard is the permanent secretary manager of the Chamber of Commerce He's a former rodeo chairman and he's pretty much in charge of the effort that goes on here all year long for this shindig. Mike what does the rodeo mean to the community of Fort Madison economically for this three day event. We had a survey last year taken and it means about half a million dollars worth of new business in the community. How do the shopkeepers and the merchants cooperate. Well they have various promotions. They have the banners and signs put on their windows and they many of them get involved in the various activities of the rodeo. What about the various clubs and organizations in the community. Well this is a community activity and there's many many organizations

that are very much involved in it. J.C. Lyon and we could go on and on and there's used to say 500 people involved in it and I would say that there's probably closer to a thousand or fifteen hundred in the community that gets involved and that's very good. What reward what sort of reward do these people actually get Mike. Well individually it's just the satisfaction of doing a good job and having the community project. Now the committee chairman do go to a party sponsored by the rodeo corporation on a Thursday night prior to the rodeo. That's your reward party. The only thing they get. Thank you very much Mike Howard. I guess if I'm going to go to a rodeo tonight I should be appropriately dressed would you hold this for me a moment or. A ha moment here. Yes.

My way. To get back.

Dog. Is. Still. Ill. I think as most people know about. You. Brad. Pitt is a rodeo. And anti US thing that usually happens when a cowboy gets home from the Bronx. If a cowboy knows he's going to sleep Dan usually has to hang on for a

rodeo talent for leather. In addition to saving his life pulling leather knees immediately despite the planet. I am. At the Fort Madison rodeo as an all professional rodeo cowboy advanced rodeo stock is matched randomly with rodeo cowboys a process rich used to be accomplished by drawing an animals number out of a hat and matching it with the Cowboys 44 47 a fifth that's not done anywhere. Instead it's now all done by computer which just may give you an idea of the business that rodeo has now become. It is expensive one that demands that a cowboy make seventeen thousand dollars in prize money just break even each year and for some cowboys like Chip Whitaker that's 17000 doesn't come easily. And my dad was a tabloid for seven years. The Pentagon started it was kind of natural they did a Christmas order but I

don't care as much about eight years old. About thirty nine monks about same time I guess I'm to damn where the South Tower sank you know next year I can better die Never. Even the best I have I didn't do as good as I'm sittin down. This year for my $7 I haven't done nearly as well I've won about a thousand so far. The three events I work very really the easiest on a person's body in their own right and it's really hard on a person's arm and Bowron it's you know you're going to get hurt if there's just no way to keep from dying that you mostly just concentrate on start horse get. Rhythm. Thank you. I

am. Just. I am. Sad for Brock riding is the classic Evangel professional rodeo and eight second wild ride that traces its origins in the braking and training of horses on Western ranches don't let its brevity. It is very very difficult. Can't be down. To the traffic control people of our state police to look at trouble. Mike O'Neil the real model. Manny Hansen is the world champion saddle bronc rider and I think money that make you king of the cowboys really just I'm the luckiest one of the bunch I guess.

I don't believe that you're how old 23 where you from the ski Texas right outside of Dallas. Would you do in your childhood was raised around horses or anything. Farce or sad I was about eight years ago. My dad's a Dallas policeman and I just kind of got interested in rodeo through going to the Miss Skeat rodeo every Friday and Saturday night. And I started out when I was about 10 and chasms stairs and just graduated on up to Bronx finally. Well what does it mean to. You to be the champion when one of the goodies you get. Oh of well mostly just satisfaction you know. But you get one fifty three thousand dollars last year gold belt buckle. That's really about all that I demand a lot from me. I mean no ma'am. So you just travel from rodeo to rodeo and how do you travel. Bobby Brown and I bought an airplane in May and we've been flying it all summer long. Broke my leg June the first time was out for six weeks so he was doing all the flying going by himself then I had to stay at home.

Tired to tell you that I was going to ride a bronk. What characteristics would I have to have to get I'm an animal. Start slow get on something that doesn't bug very much the first time humps kind of take it easy because you can just start right and it's just like driving a race car you live very well the first time you drove one of them that I was on it some you had to really get used to. Well well what characteristics would be the ones that I would need besides patience. Or you have to have a lot of try. And not let it get you down when you did. If you know you gotta keep your mental attitude good. Yet some important things you have to have the stirrups exactly the right length I mean within an eighth of an age so in and nobody knows how to tell you that you have to just figure it out for yourself. Kind of a mindset do you get into. Well I have a lot of times you get tired you know I haven't been that way because I've been flying a bunch but when you're driving you get to a road and you haven't slept in two days you know and anybody can pump themselves up for 10 seconds you know so I just can't wait to get on and get a big

house natural high and go. You have to know how to fall and they say well I've been on probably one hundred seventy five Bronx this year knock on wood they have bought me off so maybe I'll be alright. How do you think you get a say in or nother 10 20 years rodeos will have changed to see major league rodeo start you know within the next few years of war and be like football team will be a town like the Dallas Cowboys mom literally be the rodeo cowboys like 20 on a team competing with Kansas City and with Phoenix and San Francisco and places like that I think that might be where it ends up going. What's your goal. When the ship of the world more times than anybody else has won it six so I've got to win five more times. Me have seven Any going to quit. No ma'am not as long as I can win money I'm not going to quit if I can't win the national I'll do something else. But I wouldn't trade my life with anybody in the world. What's so good about it. I don't have to answer to anybody. I

don't have to go to any certain amount of rodeos I just get to go the ones I want to when I'm home I don't have to do anything but lay around and do stuff and you know around the house but I just like to. Put it. We. Just keep kicking order priority. The contestants are first they get the money the animals that they ride are second and the clowns are third Like most rodeo participants. They lead a solitary life and they play a role that is not often understood by rodeo fans. While they may laugh and cry and entertain clowns like Chuck Henson are there to protect the cowboy. Awesome Dad gets a little bit serious after a special dinner you know. Basically the clowns main business is protecting the Cowboys and a bull riding but that all

their rodeo as they have a little time with fans wanting to remember the feeling of. Time up which adds a little comedy in there. My clout my first rodeo. When I was more than one thousand forty nine. And then I started professionally when I was in college university very long like 57 after I came back to Korea. My mom and dad were rodeo people. My mother was a champion lady saddle bronc rider back competition for women. And my dad was a rough rider spear wrestler and. All of a family beat up Lance Nelson everybody right. All of them are pretty tricky in life specially if they get caught part of. Why. I haven't ever killed a the Mexican But I've paid quite a few of my keep some of the fresh ones that they've brought right off the range onto the passes and I've bought some that they haul down the road and work rodeo after rodeo and let me tell you these Mexican builders they've been fought watched Washington keep they are bad loser you get smart treacherous sometimes if they if a cowboy gets bucked off and

running slap him or get on the horn or just run close enough to get their attention but if the ball ever gets going down you get either jump on in here you know to get in danger because they're usually pretty single minded What's a good line on something they write in and like hell you're not afraid of a back up plan has my question again. I've been. Here before. Coming. Back I broke my foot this spring. Long legged low until about a month later I. Was 11 months out of his reach there. When Dan had it x rayed finally this gone pretty good now. One 73 I got my leg broken real bad burn in Texas and I was laid up was that he cares for 9 months. Let's just. Put it.

Here. Rodeo is a part of American life that is steeped in tradition a tradition that has. Centuries of competition and fierce independence. All of us are part of that tradition are in Rodeo because they love it. The excitement the roar of the crowd and the sheer thrill of actually be in the arena in a way they are a group. It is their only home. Right. Lol I.

Would just. Say. That about wraps it up for the folks down here would say. If you boys will be

in another. In another rodeo in Fort Madison and get back to normal until next year when after Labor Day 30. First Annual Fort Madison tri state rodeo temporarily. The ferry. And heavy rail. The.