MIDALE - Twenty bull riders showcased their skills for a large crowd as part of the annual Bull Bash and Cabaret Friday night in Midale.
"We had a great turnout. It was a packed house with no seating left available," said Adam Carlson, president of the Midale Rodeo Committee. "There were lots of people standing, and we had a full entry of riders in the bull riding event and lots of really good stock, really good competitors from all over and they put on a great show."
Bull Riders Canada sanctioned the event, which attracted riders from Canada, the U.S., Brazil and Australia this year. A lot of talented athletes from Saskatchewan were entered, including Aaron Roy of Yellow Grass, who has competed at top bull-riding events in North America and came out the champion this time. Kaden Piper from Stoughton, the Ozirney brothers from Grenfell and Cole Troendle, formerly of Midale and now residing in Tisdale, also participated.
Roy finished first in the long round by staying on the bull for eight seconds and earning a score of 85.5. Cole Hartman of Lancer, Sask., was second at 84 and Alison Trindade of Ariquemes, Brazil, was third at 83.5. Jaden Ozirney of Grenfell (83), Trinity Bear of Whitewood (82), and Toby Adams of Mendooran, Australia, (81) also held on successfully.
Roy won $800 for finishing first.
Three riders also received points in the Bud Light Championship round, with Roy coming out first with a score of 88 and another $1,950 in prize money; and Trindade and Kahl Wasilow of Maple Creek finished second with a score of 82.5 and $1,275 in prize money each.
The bulls had a great showing on the weekend, too, Carlson noted.
Following the bull-riding event, the festivities continued with a cabaret featuring the band Crossroads.
The weekend's activities also included wild pony racing, a ranch rodeo with mutton busting, and a performance by the Truco Trick Riders, local superstars from the southeast corner of the province on Saturday.
"We had 30 kids participate in the mutton busting, and they all walked away with a bucket of toys and goodies, as well as a shirt saying they competed in the 2024 Bull Bash and Cabaret," Carson added.
In the ranch rodeo, the Wicked Cattle Company team (Jim Wickenheiser, James Mcdonal, and Kevin and Zane King) came in first; SSSS Ranches (Kaylee and Eric Buyer, Chad Carlson and Hayden Bigney) was second; and Coalfields Posse (Dom Sellick, Layne Smith, Clint Radke and Trevor Gordon) ended up being third.
Sunday also saw barrel racing and team roping events.
Carlson said the rodeo committee continues to make efforts to improve the rodeo grounds. They recently had a building sponsored that they are sharing with the local antique association, and continue to improve the facility.
"We're looking to expand our facilities, add more shaded seating … and possibly get a generator for power. … We accomplished some big projects this year, like putting up permanent lights around the arena," he said.
Events like Midale Bull Bash and Cabaret and grounds improvements wouldn't be possible without sponsors and local support, Carlson said.
"We're really grateful for all of our sponsors, because it definitely wouldn't be possible without that. We are also thankful for the support from the fan base, the surrounding communities for coming to our events," he added.
"And hopefully one day when we get everything pretty close to being finalized, we can start putting some money back into the surrounding communities that helped us."
There is a high school rodeo coming back on the first weekend of September, Carlson mentioned, and the association is also exploring the possibility of hosting more events throughout the year like barrel racing and additional rodeo events.
"Hopefully, one day our goal is to have a rodeo group in our schools so that it can be part of the educational system," Carlson said.
For more details on upcoming events, visit the Midale Rodeo Association's Facebook page.
