A Rodeo to Remember The 100th anniversary of the Pendleton Round-Up means a full house, with slim-to-none vacancies.

T­­­he hotels have been sold out for months, with waiting lists not budging.

Motels within a radius of 50 miles are already set to flash their “no vacancy” signs.

And the only arena seats left are found in parts of South Grandstand and West Grandstand. (Who knows how long those seats will last?)

Come September, the town of Pendleton, Oregon, will be overflowing with writers, historians, politicians, celebrities, film crews and even 2,000 Oregon bikers, who will be camping outside of town. Though the day after the close of the rodeo is traditionally when people begin booking rooms for the next year’s event, the 2010 rodeo required more advance planning. That’s because 2010 marks the 100th anniversary of the Pendleton Round-Up, taking place on September 15-18.

In Pendleton, PRCA rodeo cowboys don’t have to worry about where to hang their hats (sorry, cowgirls, no ladies allowed). They usually stay at a little-known place called Hotel de Cowpunch, the barracks bedroom run by Severe Bros. Saddlery.

Doc Severinsen, famed band leader for Johnny Carson’s Tonight Show for more than 25 years, remembers it well. “Ah yes, those good old days at the Hotel de Cowpunch…. It reminds me of my great days as a young man celebrating at the Pendleton Round-Up…both as a spectator and a participant,” he says. “No matter why you’re there, the hotel is where it all starts and ends.”

In 1955, Duff and Bill Severe opened their saddle shop in the vacant two-story building at the Pendleton Airport. Since it had formerly provided housing to Army personnel during WWII, the upper level of the Severe Brothers’ shop became a Mecca for PRCA cowboys traveling through town. The rent was free, and the pot always poured out warm coffee. All a cowboy had to do was roll out his sleeping bag on one of the abandoned Army bunks. If he were lucky he might be privy to a late-night jam session that featured the likes of Johnny Denver and Bonnie Guitar. When rodeo legend Casey Tibbs returned from a trip to France in the 1950s, he was eager to try out his French with his South Dakota accent, so he officially dubbed the place “Hotel de Cowpunch.”

Standing within these walls brings back memories of old-time cowboys when they all traveled together, often by rail, and shared their meals, their luck, their money and their stories. In this select fraternity, competitors still willingly offer each other tips and cheer each other on, while the not so lucky get a good dose of support and hope for the next event.

When the cowboys leave these “hidden” quarters, they are thrown into a potpourri of events and entertainment. The Pendleton Round-Up not only features a world-class rodeo, but also a nightly Indian pageant and encampment, and an old-time—no motorized vehicles—parade. One-of-a-kind shopping experiences include Hamley & Co., famed throughout the world for its saddles; Montana Peaks Hat Co., relatively new to Pendleton but already established as the place to buy custom hats; and the Boots Leonard Gallery, where one can order custom-made buckskins.

This September’s rodeo will offer numerous centennial events. One hundred American flag-bearing horseback riders will lead the Westward Ho! parade on Friday morning. Each day of the four-day show will feature one heritage event, such as the Northwest bucking competition, in which broncs are saddled right in the arena and the cowboy has to mount without protection of a chute; the hide race, featuring competitors who ride a cowhide between two racing horses; and the serpentine, which, in the old days, marked the start of the show as all the competitors and Indians wound their way through the arena.

These old-time showstoppers will be intertwined with regular PRCA events. This rodeo attracts more than 700 competitors annually, and the purses are among the largest paid out. Even more, the Pendleton Round-Up is one of the last stops for contestants to secure points to determine their eligibility for the National Finals Rodeo held in Las Vegas, Nevada, every December. Winning the All-Around in Pendleton is akin to winning the Masters in golf.

Happy Canyon, the nighttime pageant that accompanies the festivities,
has been going since 1913 and showcases the Indian story of the West. Roles have been handed down from generation to generation; no exact script exists. The Indians know when to appear according to the music the orchestra is playing. The pageant closes with a trumped-up frontier town show (including a fire in the brothel) and a performance of the famed horseback quadrille. Guests are invited to join the fun afterwards for Western dances and gambling.

Since 1910, the year of the first Round-Up, when cowboys gathered to celebrate the end of the harvest and partake in some friendly competition, the event has been held every year, except for the WWII years of 1942-43. During the Great Depression years, Washington, D.C. wanted to buy the rodeo, but the citizens of Pendleton declined the offer; some things you just can’t put a price on.

One hundred years later, the show still goes on. For many of the rodeo cowboys competing in the Pendleton Round-Up, the Hotel de Cowpunch will still be where it all starts and ends. For the rest of us lucky ticket holders, let’s hope you already reserved your rooms.

 

 

NOW THROUGH SEPT. 25…

Pilesgrove, NJ, Cowtown Rodeo: 856-769-3200  CowtownRodeo.com

 

SEPTEMBER 2010

1-4…Socorro, NM, Socorro County Fair and Rodeo: 575-835-8927

3-5…Elk City, OK, Rodeo of Champions: 800-280-0207  ElkCityRodeoAndPBR.com

3-6…Ellensburg, WA, Ellensburg Rodeo: 800-637-2444 www.EllensburgRodeo.com

4-5…Amarillo, TX, Cal Farley’s Boys Ranch Rodeo: 800-687-3722 CalFarley.org

4-6…Hastings, NE, Oregon Trail Rodeo: 888-462-3247 AdamsCountyFairgrounds.com

15-18…Pendleton, OR, Pendleton Round-Up: 800-457-6336 PendletonRoundUp.com

23-26…Omaha, NE, Ak-Sar-Ben’s River City Rodeo & Stock Show: 402-554-9600  RiverCityRoundup.org

24-25…Medicine Lodge, KS, Kansas Championship Ranch Rodeo: 620-886-9815  PeaceTreaty.org

 

OCTOBER 2010

8-16…Waco, TX, Heart o’ Texas Fair & Rodeo: 254-776-1660 HotFair.com

11-16…Billings, MT, The Nile Stock Show, Pro Rodeo & Western Expo: 406-256-2495  TheNile.org

20-24…San Francisco, CA, Grand National Rodeo: 415-404-4100 CowPalace.com

 

NOVEMBER 2010

5-6…Guthrie, OK, Clem McSpadden National Finals Steer Roping: 800-595-7433  LazyE.com

11-14…Amarillo, TX, WRCA World Championship Ranch Rodeo: 806-374-9722  WRCA.org

 

DECEMBER 2010

2-11…Las Vegas, NV, National Finals Rodeo: 702-739-3267 NFRExperience.com

 

JANUARY 2011

8-23…Denver, CO, National Western Stock Show: 303-297-1166 NationalWestern.com

28-Feb. 6…Rapid City, SD, Black Hills Stock Show & Rodeo: 605-355-3861 BlackHillsStockShow.com

 

FEBRUARY 2011

19-27…Tucson, AZ, La Fiesta de los Vaqueros: 800-964-5662 TucsonRodeo.com

 

MARCH 2011

1-20…Houston, TX, Houston Livestock Show & Rodeo: 832-667-1000  RodeoHouston.com

4-6…Guthrie, OK, Wrangler Timed Event Championship: 800-595-7433  LazyE.com

 

APRIL 2011

6-9…Pocatello, ID, Dodge National Circuit Finals Rodeo: 208-233-1546  DNCFR.org

 

MAY 2011

6-8…Dublin, TX, Cowboy Culture Celebration: 254-592-1653 CowboyCultureCelebration.com

20-22…Miles City, MT, Miles City Bucking Horse Sale: 406-234-2890 BuckingHorseSale.com

 

JUNE 2011

1-Aug. 31…Cody, WY, Cody Nite Rodeo: 800-207-0744 CodyStampedeRodeo.com

10-12…Lexington, NE, Plum Creek Rodeo: 308-324-5504

16-25…Reno, NV, Reno Rodeo: 800-225-2277 RenoRodeo.com

22-26…Santa Fe, NM, Rodeo de Santa Fe: 505-471-4300  RodeoDeSantaFe.org

24-26…Prineville, OR, Crooked River Round-Up: 541-447-4479 CrookedRiverRoundup.com

29-July 4…Prescott, AZ, Frontier Days: 800-358-1888 WorldsOldestRodeo.com

TBA…Amarillo, TX, Amarillo Cowboy Roundup: CowboyRoundupUSA.org

TBA…West Yellowstone, MT, Wild West Yellowstone Rodeo: 406-560-6913 YellowstoneRodeo.com

TBA…Snowmass, CO, Snowmass Village Rodeo: 970-923-8898 SnowmassRodeo.org

TBA…Greeley, CO, Greeley Stampede: 970-356-7787  GreeleyStampede.org

TBA…Tooele, UT, Deseret Peak Stampede Days: 435-843-4020 DeseretPeakComplex.com

 

JULY 2011

1-4…St. Paul, OR, St. Paul Rodeo: 800-237-5920  StPaulRodeo.com

2-4…Belle Fourche, SD, Black Hills Roundup: 605-892-2676 BlackHillsRoundup.com

2-4…Mandan, ND, Mandan Rodeo Days: 701-751-2983 MandanRodeo.com

2-10…Laramie, WY, Laramie Jubilee Days: 800-445-5303 LaramieJubileeDays.com

8-17…Calgary, AB, Canada, Calgary Stampede: 800-661-1260 CalgaryStampede.com

13-16…Sheridan, WY, Sheridan Rodeo: 307-675-1931 SheridanWYORodeo.com

19-23…Nampa, ID, Snake River Stampede: 208-466-8497 SnakeRiverStampede.com

22-23…Bandera, TX, National Day of the American Cowboy Ranch Rodeo: 800-364-3833

22-31…Cheyenne, WY, Cheyenne Frontier Days: 800-227-6336 CFDRodeo.com

26-30…Deadwood, SD, Days of ’76 Rodeo: 888-838-2855 DaysOf76.com

28-30…Burwell, NE, Nebraska’s Big Rodeo: 308-346-5205 NebraskasBigRodeo.com

TBA…The Dalles, OR, Fort Dalles Days & Rodeo: 541-296-2231 TheFortDallesRodeo.com

TBA…Gunnison, CO, Cattlemen’s Days: 970-596-2514 CattlemensDays.com

TBA…Cody, WY, Xtreme Bulls Tour Stop: 800-207-0744  CodyStampedeRodeo.com

TBA…Sublimity, OR, Santiam Championship Stampede: 503-769-2799  SCSRodeo.org

TBA…Joseph, OR, Chief Joseph Days: 541-432-1015 ChiefJosephDays.com

TBA…Saratoga, WY, Platte River Rodeo: 307-777-7777

 

AUGUST 2011

13-20…Douglas, WY, Wyoming State Fair and Rodeo: 307-358-2398 WYStateFair.com

24-27…Vinita, OK, Will Rogers Memorial Rodeo: 918-256-7133 WillRogersMemorialRodeo.com

TBA…Payson, AZ, World’s Oldest Continuous Rodeo: 800-672-9766

TBA…Phillipsburg, KS, Kansas’s Biggest Rodeo: 785-543-2448 KansasBiggestRodeo.com