Contestants interested in riding bucking horses – or riding them better – will have a chance to hone their skills during a bareback riding and saddle bronc riding school planned for Friday, Nov. 11-Sunday, Nov. 13, in Ponca City, Okla.
The brainchild of all-around rodeo hand Justin Rumford, the clinic will be instructed by saddle bronc riders Bobby Griswold and Jesse James Kirby and bareback riding world champion Mark Gomes and will take place at the 101 Wild West Rodeo grounds and inside a classroom location in Ponca City.
Gomes is an eight-time qualifier to the Wrangler National Finals Rodeo; Griswold has qualified for the NFR four times in his career and is a two-time circuit champion; and Kirby is a two-time qualifier to the Ram National Circuit Finals Rodeo. They bring years of experience to the classroom and to the traditional training ground, the rodeo arena.
The cost for the school is $300 for a full student, $100 for a ground student. Deposits ($150 for full; $50 for ground) are due by Oct. 22 to reserve a spot. There will be limited spaces available, which will ensure the best student-instructor ratio. Contact Justin Rumford at (580) 716-3239 or at jrumford@hotmail.com for information or to reserve a spot in the class.
The school will feature unlimited livestock, video playback and breakout classroom sessions with instruction. The educational opportunity is for everyone – from beginners to card-holders – who hope to improve their game. There will be livestock available to accommodate beginners and experts.
When people in rodeo talk about Bobby Griswold, they talk about class, whether it's about his elite status among the best saddle bronc riders in ProRodeo or his standing as a mentor or the way he handles his business in and out of the rodeo arena.
In 2008, he has qualified for the National Finals Rodeo, finishing the regular season among the top 15 in the Classic Event of ProRodeo. His four qualifications to ProRodeo's grandest stage reflect his tremendous athletic ability, but there's so much more to what makes Bobby Griswold. When he went through a stretch of injuries earlier this decade, he didn't get down. He used his time away from the rodeo arena to earn his equine dental certificate, which gives him another tremendous marketable skill. In fact, Bobby has used his dentistry skills to supplement his income as he travels the rodeo trail.
Bobby is also a family man, with his beautiful wife, Lynn, and their daughters in fold.
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