Another sellout Silver Spurs Rodeo concludes
And the herd rode on.
As fast as it arrived, the 154th Silver Spurs Rodeo, part of the 81st Osceola County Fair and Livestock Show, gave rodeo fans from near and far its annual adrenaline shot of high-intensity rodeo action and entertainment for four packed nights, from Thursday night through Sunday afternoon.
With the Friday and weekend shows selling out, combined with the incredible community involvement the rodeo receives every year, the Silver Spurs lived up to its moniker as the “Biggest Rodeo East of the Mississippi (River).” Over $175,000 in prize money was paid out across the field of hundreds of the finest Professional Rodeo Cowboys Association (PRCA) cowboys who came from as far away as Montana and the Pacific Northwest to compete in eight traditional rodeo events.
In addition, the Silver Spurs Riding Club continued its generous support of area charities. At each of the four rodeo performances, the Spurs made $10,000 contributions to the Osceola County School District’s agriculture education initiative, Foster our Future, Kissimmee’s Beyond Pregnancy Care center and Give Kids the World Village.
“They’re the ones doing all the great work in the community, they deserve the highlights,” 154th Rodeo Big Boss Randy Booth said. “It’s the support of the fans that makes it possible to donate that money, and it all stays right here in the community.”
Booth, who also played the role of performer and rode in the rodeo Quadrille—then jumped off his horse to roam around the arena—said he saw things as the Big Boss in a different light than the rest of his days taking part.
“I got to see the ongoing commitment to the entire cause. There’s hundreds of volunteers, we all have to pitch in, and I’d do it all again next weekend,” Booth said.
It didn’t hurt that the riding club’s stock of bulls and bucking horses— the “animal athletes”—put on a great show.
“The Spurs stock was phenomenal, and our other vendors brought great stock,” Booth said.
As for the cowboys, Dylan Hancock, a 21-year-old tiedown and team roper from San Angelo, Texas, took home the All-Around Cowboy honors.
The event winners were: Bareback riding: 1. Waylon Bourgeois, Church Point, La., 85 points on Silver Spurs Club’s Nina, $4,970; Steer wrestling: 1. Will Lummus, Byhalia, Miss., 3.6 seconds, $3,176; Team roping: 1. Braxton Culpepper/Brad Culpepper, Sylvester, Ga., 4.8 seconds, $3,915 each; Saddle bronc riding: 1. Chase Brooks, Deer Lodge, Mont., 85.5 points on Brookman Rodeo’s Big Sky Belle, $4,738; Tie-down roping: 1. (tie) Cash Enderli (Liberty, Tex.) and Cory Solomon (Prairie View, Tex.), 7.4 seconds, $4,550 each; Barrel racing: 1. Keyla Costa, Tolar, Tex.,15.89 seconds, $5,675; Bull riding: 1. Clayton Sellars, Fruitland Park, Fla., 86 points on Silver Spurs Club’s Wild Bill, $5,076.
So what’s next? Well, the 155th rodeo of course! It takes place May 30-31 of this year, continuing a tradition that is unmatched in Osceola County and unique to the rest of Central Florida.
