Kamsack rodeo scheduling conflict resolved at CCA convention

            For the first time in 18 years Kamsack district rodeo enthusiasts will be able to cheer contestants in the afternoon.

            Each year since its inception, the Kamsack Indoor Rodeo has been held in the Broda Sportsplex on Friday and Saturday evenings. This year’s rodeo will be held on a Friday night, and on Saturday afternoon, instead of Saturday night.

            Dave Matechuk, president of the Kamsack Indoor Rodeo Association, and Carol Belley, a director, attended the annual Canadian Cowboys Association (CCA) convention in Regina on February 6 when a potential conflict between the Kamsack rodeo and an annual event being held in Bowsman, Man. was discussed.

            The scheduling dilemma developed because of the decision to switch the CCA finals from Regina during Agribition in late November to Swift Current in mid-October, Matechuk explained. The Kamsack rodeo has traditionally been held the last weekend in September, but because of the way the days fall this year, it ends up conflicting with the Bowsman Rough Stock event.

             “We did not want to advance the dates of our rodeo because of harvest operations in our area, and we could not hold it later because of the advanced CCA finals,” he said.

            At the convention Matechuk discussed the situation with Albert Outhwaite, chair of the Bowsman event, and Jim Lawrence, owner of Prime Time Rodeos of Kennedy, which provides the animals for both events.

            “At our last Kamsack rodeo committee meeting, we decided that for the first time, we’ll try an afternoon rodeo,” Matechuk said, explaining that after competing in Kamsack on Saturday afternoon, the cowboys in the rough stock events of saddle bronc, bareback and bull riding will have the ability to travel on to Bowsman to compete there.

            “But, the rodeo in Kamsack will still be held on Friday night as usual, it is only Saturday’s rodeo that will be held in the afternoon rather than in the evening.”

            The 18^th annual Kamsack Indoor Rodeo will be held the night of September 30 to begin as usual at 7:30 p.m., and on the afternoon of October 1, tentatively scheduled to begin at 1 p.m.

            “We agreed to make it a great day for both, the Kamsack and Bowsman events,” he said, adding that other attractions to the Kamsack rodeo are still being discussed and developed.