Rodeo returns to Safford

By Lindsey Stockton, staff writer
Published on Thursday, May 27, 2004 10:49 AM MST

Dust rose from the thundering hooves of bulls and horses for the first time since 2001 during the Saturday Night Stampede at the Graham County Fairgrounds.

The rodeo, presented by McDaniel's/M Rodeos, actually began about 7:30 on Saturday morning with the slack riders. Slack is the term used for those riders who did not qualify for the performance round.

"I'd like to thank our sponsors and the town of Safford," Scott McDaniel of McDaniel/M Rodeos said. "We could not have done it without our gold sponsors of Phelps Dodge, Budweiser and Willcox Livestock Auction, and we plan to return to Safford and rebuild the rodeo here."

Cowboys and cowgirls competed in eight events: bareback riding, calf roping, breakaway roping, saddle bronc riding, steer wrestling, barrel racing, team roping and bull riding.

The evening events started with bareback riding, which was sponsored by Kempton Chevrolet. The bareback riders are on horses with no saddles and must stay on the horses until the whistle blows, after which the judges give the riders a score. Jay Christenson of Phoenix won the bareback riding with a score of 82.

Calf roping, sponsored by England and Sons Welding, was the next event. A cowboy must rope a calf from atop his horse, dismount, tie three legs of the calf, which then must stay tied. The person who does this the fastest wins. A 10-second penalty is enforced if the cowboy leaves his gate too soon after the calf is released. If the rider fails to rope the calf, he is given a score of "no time." Willard Moody of Buckeye won the event with a time of 11.52 seconds.

Breakaway roping, sponsored by Frontier Veterinary Service, was the first women's event of the night. Cowgirls had to rope a calf, which, if done correctly, would break a rubber band tied to both the rope and the saddle. Tammy Tenney of Willcox won this event with a time of 2.96 seconds.

Saddle bronc riding, sponsored by Southwest Ambulance Service, is the original event that caused rodeo to become the popular entertainment it is today. In this event, a cowboy must ride a bronc with a saddle until the whistle blows, after which the rider is given a score by the judges. Only two of the five riders in this event qualified (by staying on the horse until the whistle), and Gene Forest of Douglas won it with a score of 77.

Steer wrestling, sponsored by Pepsi, was the next event. It is timed like the roping events. The winner of this event was Bo Bleil of Casa Grande. His time was 7.71 seconds.

Barrel racing, sponsored by Haralson Tires, was the next women's event. The best time in this event was 18.23 seconds by Teri Foley of Tucson.

Team roping, sponsored by Pollock's Western Outfitters, was the next event and had both men and women participants. Rye Hart and Arcel Alsup, both of Tucson, won the event with a time of 8.88 seconds.

The final and most popular event was the bull riding, sponsored by Safford Feed and Vet Supply. Of the 13 riders in the two rounds, only one qualified. Bo Vocu of Phoenix, with a score of 72, was the automatic winner after staying on the bull Prowler for eight seconds.

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Comments

10 comment(s)

Rev wrote on Mar 18, 2010 11:24 AM:

" I worked here when he first opened the makeshift "camp". Immediately I was appalled by what was going on there. I was the only staff member at that time with any military training/background. I was also the only one who had any experience working with children. I called the local news and law enforcement repeatedly warning them of the dangers. I stayed with the campers as long as I could until I realized I had to get out of there. The owner has a criminal record for felony animal abuse. "

CJ BELL wrote on Oct 23, 2009 8:36 PM:

" if you want to know the truth just ask me. yes i went to R.R.M.C. in 2007. i am 16 now and i remember every detail that happened there. yes i am sure that some of your claims are true no doubt but the thing is that i had the best month of my life at that camp and i would not trade it for anything. if anything this camp trained me to be mentally and physicaly prepared for my future life and i greatly thank Jeremy for that. PLEASE contact me if you have any questions about camp! "

shawn wrote on Oct 5, 2008 2:49 PM:

" trust me if you want your kid to be scared for life send him or if you dont love him denton is a lying sicopatick crazy guy who the military screwed up "

marley wrote on Sep 9, 2008 9:11 AM:

" WHAT ARE U GUYS TALKING ABOUT WERE TALKIN ABOUT MORENCI MINE COMPANY AND U GUYS ARE TALKING ABOUT SOME CAMP YOU SENT UR KIDS TO OR WENT TO? "

concerned parent wrote on Aug 29, 2008 9:28 PM:

" If you really want to get mad about Denton's dishonesty, take a look at his website touting his honesty:
http://www.jeremynegotiates.com/contact.php and how he cuts down other real estate agents in the "shame" page. Maybe complaints to AZ Dept Real Estate would help. "

Louis Womack wrote on Jun 26, 2008 12:21 PM:

" Same here. Our son was to attend on June 21, 2008. Camp cancelled and we are out $2900.00. If you have any info or suggestions pleae contact us. Mr. Denton is employed at Signature Realy Group in Tempe. I did make contact with him there. No luck or even a promise of when we would see a refund. This was a planned rip-off. IMHO "

shawn wrote on Jun 10, 2008 8:48 PM:

" I actually went to this camp and I can tell you one thing most of the counselors were Indians plus we had one that was crazy and got kicked out of the army we also had a guy who shot a kid with a paintball gun without a mask in the head and they all did drugs at night you could smell it and it wasn't the legal kind and everything they promise was a lie hey a kid almost drowned with the storm and another almost bitten by a rattle snake. if you want to know more shawn-007@hotmail.com "

Steve Harrop wrote on Jun 10, 2008 12:26 PM:

" My son was signed up to attend the Aug. 2007 session and one week before camp it was washed out. In Sept. 07 we were told by J. Denton we would get a refund of $3800 within 90 days. No contact since then. As we live in Washington state we don't have any means of getting our money returned. How many other families are in this situation? Is there anything else we can do?

Steve Harrop
Winthrop, WA "

Robyn Pomonis wrote on May 7, 2008 10:31 AM:

" I too am still waiting for a refund of $3800.00. After months of not hearing from them via phone or email, Jeremy Denton called me in November and promised me a refund "by the end of the year". I haven't heard a word from them since, nor have they responded to certified letters nor contact by the BBB. "

Elissa S. Stewart wrote on Nov 28, 2007 2:38 PM:

" My son was supposed to attend the cancelled Operation Noble Eagle on July 29, 2007. I am still waiting for a refund of the $3800 I paid in tuition on November 28, 2007. Jeremy Denton will not commit to a refund date, although he originally assured me I would have one within 90 days. I can provide copies of the emails I have sent and received trying to obtain a refund, and proof of the $3800 I paid ($500 on my credit card for a deposit, and $3300 in the form of a check). "

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