Bucking for the big time at the junior rodeo

ROY, Pierce County — Ringed by RVs camped for a weekend of rodeo, the Roy arena enjoyed a moment of quiet before the steer-riding event. Grown-ups strolled. Kids chased each other. Horses tied to trailers lowered their glossy heads for chunks of grass. Then — yee-haw! — the peace broke with a riff of rock 'n' roll.

On that cue from a loudspeaker, an arena gate banged open, expelling steer and rider. Jesse Thronson hung on for dear life, attached to the animal's arching backbone by a rope looped around one hand. The steer kicked and thrashed, landing stiff-legged. With a violent snap, off flew the cowboy hat as if by sniper shot.

For breathless seconds, the two turned and churned together — a wild Cuisinart-inspired dance until, finally, the animal shook him off. Jesse fell hard, sickeningly close to stomping hooves. That's when a professional "bullfighter" moved in, distracting the steer and untangling the rider, who popped up from the dust, pumping one fist in the air. He nailed it — staying on for the required six seconds.

Not bad for an eighth-grader.

Jesse, 14, a state champion and member of the Northwest Junior Rodeo Association (NJRA), is casual but respectful toward animals that outweigh him by many hundreds of pounds. "Riding a bucking horse or bull is a total adrenaline rush. You do your best, they do their best, and you never know who'll win," said the Key Peninsula Middle School student, who lives in Gig Harbor.

His sport is an exciting skill tested through junior rodeos held around the Puget Sound area April through October. But there are milder contests for younger children. Kids between 6 and 8 ("peewee") try dummy roping — lassoing a hay bale mounted with a plastic bull's head, horns and all. Even "little buckaroos" compete (5 and under); kids barely out of their Pampers expertly pull ribbons off goat tails.

More experienced riders are the juniors (9-14) and seniors (15-18), of both genders. "We're required to have the same number of events for boys and girls," said Ray Grahn, president of the NJRA.

Winning in rodeo goes by points, collected over an entire season of competition. So every month, families load up horses and kids, traveling to junior rodeos throughout Western Washington, from near the Canadian border at Sumas, to the east in Enumclaw.

Competition and camaraderie

At the recent junior rodeo in tiny Roy, on a lonely stretch of Highway 507 southeast of Fort Lewis, families arrived before the start of Saturday events, setting up a temporary village of trailers and animals. Barbecue smoke mingled with the musk of well-groomed horses. Among the humans, camaraderie was spiced by competition.

Looking around, you couldn't help but feel that city kids were missing something, humped over their Xboxes on such a fine day. Rodeo youth seemed different from their urban counterparts — especially the teenagers. Confidently straddling enormous horses, looking good in tight Wranglers and cowboy hats, they were unfailingly polite with adults and genuinely nice to each other.

"It's true, the kids help each other a lot," said Chris Cammock of Mount Vernon, who brings his 8-year-old daughter to junior rodeo. "They want to win, but they always help the others, loaning gear, encouraging each other. It's remarkable."

And it's thrilling to watch them take off at an all-out gallop in an early event — steer-daubing. It works like this: A steer is released ahead of two riders. On the side of the steer is a spray-painted circle. The first rider bolts out carrying a 30-inch stick topped with a tennis ball dipped in mustard (used because it's visible, nontoxic and easily washed off). Meanwhile, a second rider, the "hazer," keeps the steer running in a straight line. It's the first rider's job to catch up with the steer, lean out from the horse and plant a daub of mustard in the circle. And to do that in a matter of seconds.

Other rodeo events might be more familiar — roping calves, barrel- and pole-racing, all accomplished at a high-spirited, whooping run.

Hair-raising as the competitions appeared, the riders seemed utterly at ease. "I wouldn't say I'm fearless," said Jesse Thronson, "but I'm not afraid either. I get nervous. If you're not nervous, you're gonna get hurt. You have to have mental toughness."

With thick black hair and a wide, boyish grin, he comes from a long line of cowboys, and looks it. "I'm third generation. My grandpa did it. He rode bareback in pro rodeos in Omak. And my dad was semi-pro in bull riding."

Jerry Thronson, clearly proud of his son, at first discouraged the boy's ambitions. "I tried to talk him out of it. This kind of riding is hard on the body, and in the past there hasn't been much money in it, although that's changing since rodeo has gone mainstream," he said. "Jesse says it's in his blood. He wants a full scholarship to a college with rodeo, then turn pro."

Rodeo family values

Another rodeo devotee is Madison Grahn, 10, from Poulsbo, daughter of Ray and Valerie Grahn. She wore black jeans, a red silk shirt and her winning belt-buckle from a 2003 barrel-racing event, her favorite. "It's fun because it's fast," she said. "Steer daubing is the hardest because of the long reach."

As much as she likes to ride, Madison knows the rule in her family: "My parents say school comes first."

School first, solid life lessons — that's what junior rodeo is all about. "They learn to be responsible, caring for the animals," said Ray Grahn, whose 7-year-old son, Wyatt, takes part in peewee events.

Junior rodeo also strengthens family ties. "When we're here, we're talking," he explained. "It gives us something in common, and then the kids have to sit in the same pickup truck with us. On rodeo weekends, you know where your kids are and what they're up to."

Wendy and Roy Garland of Port Orchard (he's a district representative for junior rodeo) have three children active in rodeo. "Quentin is 9, and his first word was 'horse,' " Wendy said, watching her son show his champion buckle, won in 2004 for goat-tying. Rylee, 4, wears red cowboy boots everywhere. "She's full-blown rodeo," her mother said. "At home, she practices roping a stuffed toy-goat." Then there's 7-year-old J.T., partial to spurs. He's perfected a walk that requires a little heel click to get just the right jingle-jangle.

Big animals, real danger

For all the fun and games, there are real dangers in rodeo. During the Roy gathering, there was a spectacular spill during team roping, an event open to juniors and seniors. As two teenage girls came galloping down the stretch, the first rider roped the steer's head. Suddenly, the steer stopped and turned sideways. Following close behind, the second horse and rider had no time to react; the horse tripped over the steer, and both animals went down. A gasp rose from the crowd as the rider's hot-pink cowboy boots disappeared in the tangle then emerged again as the girl flung herself away. Staggering back, she cried out, "Oh my God!" and collapsed.

An ambulance and EMTs, required on-site at all times, quickly responded, and the animals walked away unhurt. The girl suffered only minor injuries and competed the next day wearing a knee brace.

"This is serious stuff, no question," acknowledged NJRA president Ray Grahn. "It can be intense." The organization works hard on safety issues, he said, and most families feel benefits outweigh risks. Valerie Grahn, who does not ride, finds that balance. "The kids love it and they want to do it, so I'll do what I can to support them. But sometimes it's hard."

Final events in the Roy rodeo included senior bull riding on full-grown, ornery-looking Brahmans, juxtaposed by adorable little kids riding out to tie ribbons around goat tails.

As the sun slowly sank in the west, as little dogies got along, the rodeo announcer offered words you don't hear every day but might want to sometime this summer: "Well, folks," he said, "that's going to wrap it up for us here in peewee goats."

Happy trails.

Connie McDougall is a Seattle-based freelancer and a regular contributor to Northwest Weekend.