OSU rodeo team to hold benefit

Friday, April 15, 2005

The National Champion OSU Rodeo Team will hold a benefit bull riding and barrel race on April 16. All proceeds will assist the team with facility, travel, and competition expenses, allowing it to compete at nationals in June.

The rodeo team’s booster club sponsors the annual event, named Beauty and the Beast, at the OSU Rodeo Arena at the corner of Lakeview and Western roads in Stillwater. There will be a performance at 1 p.m. and another at 8 p.m.

Many prominent appearances by top rodeo and Oklahoma personalities will be made at the benefit. Such appearances include Miss Rodeo Oklahoma Queens and Miss Rodeo Oklahoma Princess, PBR legend Terry Don West and former Pistol Pete Wendell Hicks.

In the last four years, the women’s rodeo team has won two national championships, an All-Around Individual National Championship, a National Barrel Racing Championship and two Central Plains Regional Championships. The team is a club sport, so no athletic money is provided.

The team is responsible for paying for travel, entry fees, feed, stock, arena maintenance, supplies, electricity for the arena, vet bills, and membership fees, yet the Student Government Association only provided $1,440 in 2005. The total approximate cost for the team to stay competitive is $20,000 annually, leaving the members responsible for the remaining balance.   

Tickets are available per performance for $5 in advance and $8 at the gate. They are available for purchase at Stillwater Milling, The Territory in Stillwater, Langston’s in Yukon, National Saddlery in OKC Stockyards, or from any OSU Rodeo Association member.

For more information, contact Lee Ann Alsbaugh LeSueur at 405-742-8012.