Annual bull ride Saturday

The Ridge Riders have pulled out all the stops for this year’s 3rd Annual Cleatis Lacy Memorial Bull Riding event, this Saturday May 24, at the rodeo grounds.

Bull riders will be facing the longest eight seconds in sports (riders must stay on the bull eight seconds for a successful ride), and the new attraction, the Wild Horse Race, will provide some extra thrills for rodeo fans.

Adults will pay $10, and students over 10 years of age $8. Those under 10 get in free.

The Lacy bull riding event honors the late Cleatis Lacy, a longtime rodeo participant and volunteer from Grand Coulee, who was known as “Mr. Rodeo.”

Action begins Saturday afternoon at 4 p.m. The food booth will be functioning and the Ridge Riders will have their annual beer garden going.

Ridge Rider President George Kohout said the timing of the Lacy event and Wild Horse Race was set up so cowboys and fans could attend both the Grand Coulee event and the rodeo at Coulee City the same day.

Kohout also pointed out that the bull riding and Wild Horse Race will be interspersed throughout the afternoon.

Sev Carden, a professional bull rider, has been working registrants in that event and will ride in both the Lacy and Coulee City events.

Shane Marchand has been helping in the Wild Horse Race. Cowboy teams will be racing against the clock and each other to catch a wild horse (a young horses not yet broke for riding), harness it, saddle it, and ride it through strategically placed barrels.

Officials were hoping to put together 12 teams of three cowboys each. It’s the first time the event has been put on at the Ridge Riders Rodeo Grounds.

Carden and Marchand said they had 11 wild horse teams and expected more. If they get 12 teams, they plan two go-rounds with the top two from each go-round competing in the final for the $500 purse. Steve Palmer is supplying the wild horses.

Carden said that by Monday they only had 12 bull riders signed up but that a lot more were expected to register. “Registration for bull riding will continue until about 2 p.m. Saturday,” Carden noted.

Mel Layton is supplying the bulls again this year.

Those interested in developing a wild horse team or participating in bull riding can call Carden at 634-6559, or Marchand at 631-4156.