First Night of Allendale Rodeo Goes Well

The first night of the Allendale Rodeo opened Friday to clear skies and many contestants. Smiley Todd Pettigrew entertained the spectators, stumping around on one leg with the other in a boot. He joked that he had a 45th birthday and got seven different crutches and a walking boot. Jack Cottrell tried to convince Smiley that he was born in 1973, while Smiley had an early announcement during the bronc riding – there was a lady in the top of the west bleachers named Margaret Young who was 101 and sitting with her parents. The last was about as believable about the kid’s song about Billy Boy meeting his wife, who was 99 and who was a young thing who could not leave her mother.
Nick Jordan of Ames (IA) was the only contestant to successfully ride the bronc in the bareback or Saddle Bronc, getting a 73. Local favorite Aaron Benson, trying to ride with his arm in a cast, took an early tumble, as did five other contestants.

The Stick Horse Races have gotten more and more popular every year; this time, there were three heats for the first time. Smiley talked about the time he went to the Doctor because his ear was not working. “It was the best day of my life,” he lamented. “I couldn’t hear my wife.”

Cole Smith set an early pace in the breakaway roping with a time of 2.3 seconds, only for Brooke Gray, an experienced hand, to take the lead with 2.1 seconds. Nobody else could top that out of the 14 contestants who entered. Bridget Merrigan of Conception, sister of Jefferson basketball standouts Chelsea and Ashley Merrigan, got a 3.5. Bridget Lambright of Fort Dodge (IA) got a 2.5, while Brody Tunks of King City, a young contestant with a lot of promise, got 2.3. Several other contestants tried to beat the early pace set by Gray and whiffed. Meanwhile, Smiley insulted the people of Iowa by saying that it really meant, “Idiots Out Wandering Around.”

While everybody was setting up for the next event, Mike and John, two spectators, were recruited to play a baseball game. They put on blindfold goggles and had all the trouble in the world hitting or catching the whiffle ball. They finally got hits, weaved through the sticks, and had to kick a kickball through a hoop. Neither one could do it, meaning they had to jump through the hoop themselves, which John did with flying colors.

Two contestants, Thad Davis of Savannah and Trey Johnson of Humboldt (KS), tied for first in the Calf Roping with 10.1 seconds. Jackson Davis of Blueville (IA) got 10.7 seconds, while John Johnson of Humboldt (KS) got 11.1 seconds, which topped the Over 40 category. Bill Riley was second in the Over 40 with 12.1 seconds. Smiley talked about how he, his wife, and his mother-in-law went on vacation in Florida. He borrowed a quarter from his mother-in-law to put in a wishing well that they encountered and then the mother-in-law went to make a wish as well. But she tripped on the concrete and was killed.

Besides the bulls and the broncos, the event that the contestants had the most trouble with was the Team Roping, which only two of nine contestants successfully completed. Shawn and Shane Martin won with a time of 7.7 seconds, while Bobby Jeanes and Travis McGraw were second with 8.5 seconds, with five seconds added on because only one leg was caught.

Before the barrel racing, two more people were recruited to lead the crowd in sing-offs, followed by the whole crowd singing along to Garth Brooks’ “Low Places.” Taylor Dorbee of Powersville (MO) set a torrid pace with 14.076 seconds, and nobody else could catch up with her. Angela McGraw of Tonganoxie (KS) came in second with 14.391, and Lisa Luther of Fontanelle (IA) had 14.413.

The bulls were not in any mood to cooperate as only Jacob Hanks was able to tame his animal, getting 78 points. A few came close, with Wayne Miller and Lester Hilton coming one half second short of getting a qualified ride. LeRoy Miller stayed on for five seconds, while Daniel Stutzman and Jacob Larrington stayed on for four seconds.