Besides climbing as much as my body will allow and Wagon Wheel Co-opt, The Rock Rodeo seems to be filling my days!  I am Vice President of the Hueco Valley Foundation working with closely with the President Emilia Rafaela Brown and Mary Anter Bocchiccio.  Together we are attempting to make the 19^th Annual Rock Rodeo the best Rodeo and to achieve this goal yearly giving as much of the proceeds back to Hueco as possible.

In 1989 the Rodeo was started by the El Paso Climbers Club (EPCC) before the restrictions came into place.  In the early days the event was small and the after party was held at Pete’s.  The proceeds went to things like bolt replacement and the festivities.  Back then there were no cash prizes, it was just trophies and a bottle of tequila for the most injured competitor.

For six years the Rodeo continued to bring in up to 150 participants including Dale Goddard, Hans Florine and Matt Samet.  In 1992 due to lawsuits and vandalism the park was closed for two weeks and new rules were implemented.  In 1993 the Rodeo rules were reformatted as a result of access issues.  In ‘94 the Rodeo went on still hosted by the EPCC and Pete’s but after this it was suspended in 1995 due to ongoing problems between climbers and the park.  In 1996 the Rodeo goes on and is called the 7^th annual Rock Rodeo.   The 8^th and 9^th Rock Rodeo occur before the Public Use Plan (PCP) is put into place in 1998.  After this there is no Rodeo in 1999, 2000, 2001, 2002.

In 2003 Rob Rice appealed to the park and was able to put on the 10^th annual Rock Rodeo–the first Rodeo hosted by the Rock Ranch.  Since then the Rodeo has been in the hands of the Rock Ranch.  Rob Rice and Rick Oliver brought a lot of heart and spunk into the event.  Eventually people move on and management changes.  The 2010 Rock Rodeo was followed by some controversy.  Claims were made that all of the prize money advertised did not match the money handed out, casting a shadow on the event.  Late in 2010 a group of climbers came together and decided to take the rodeo over again—The Hueco Valley Foundation was started and we are gearing up for the 19^th Annual Rodeo March 2nd-4^th,  2012.  We have a lot of fun events this year and several awesome sponsors who are helping us bring the Rodeo to a new level.

 

I am honored to be part of this portion of Hueco’s history!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

http://blimpbouldering.blogspot.com/2010/02/rock-rodeo-2010.html