It’s all about the kids

Photo by Paul Robeson

NO BULL ABOUT IT: Casey Meroshnekoff, a young cowboy from Northern California, shows that he has the makings of a champion as he rides his first  bull of the weekend.

Photo by Paul Robeson

WATCH AND LEARN: West Valley High School Student, Kyle Taormino, 17, of Cottonwood teaches his fellow students Laramie Collins and Josh Scharer of Weed how to rosin a bull rope.

SWEET SUNDAY RIDE: Blake McCormick of Calistoga successfully rides his first saddle bronc of the day. Fellow students and instructors watch with excitement.

In 1999, the District 1 High School Rodeo Association asked Chuck Morris of Rocking M Rodeo to help put on a clinic to teach high school rodeo athletes how to ride bareback and saddle bronc.

“Rodeo is 95 percent mental and 5 percent athletic ability. The first few rides are the toughest. As cowboys, we need to give back to the kids and the sport we love,” said Morris. “At the rodeo school, it gives the kids a chance to live their dream and a possibility to take it further than that. There are some broncs for the beginners and more advanced ones that give the young rodeo athletes the chance to pick up the pace.”

At the first clinic, seven students were taught tricks of the rodeo trade by three professional cowboys. The clinic was held at Bobby Jones Arena in Cottonwood, Morris said.

Eight years later, the rough stock school is still being held for high school rodeo athletes from all over the state of California, he explained. The clinic is traditionally offered on the weekend immediately following Thanksgiving at the Rocking M Ranch in Red Bluff. The school teaches young cowboys riding techniques from the ground up.

The students also learn the proper use of safety equipment, how to set their rigging gear, how to use a “bucking board” for proper body positioning, techniques for marking out or properly positioning spurs and boots at the start of each ride, and practice rides on a manual bucking machine that simulates the action of what a horse might put a rider through when he gets on a saddle bronc or bareback horse for the first time. The bucking machine is operated by another cowboy, who helps with the training.

After training on the ground, it is time for the cowboys to experience the real deal, some for the first time, Morris said. This year, 12 professional cowboys from all over California taught approximately 17 young men how to set their rigging so that they would always be able to set their own.

“ I thought that the Rough Stock School was very helpful,. The help was great and the horses were awesome! I really appreciated the individual attention that was given to me. It was an all around great experience,” stated Blaine Davies of Gerber.

The main goals of the school are to help the young cowboys learn about safety while riding in their events, Morris explained. The professional cowboys show the students how to dismount without getting hurt, and impart the knowledge that rodeo can be a dangerous sport if you do not know what you are doing. It is the only free rough stock school known around the state, Morris said.

While on their broncs, professional cowboys give the students advice about how to keep their rigging pulled tight, chin tucked, one hand in the air and marking out their horse and to have faith in themselves. The young cowboys spent the rest of the weekend perfecting their newfound skills and getting on broncs time after time, only to get tossed off by the horse or pulled off by a pickup man, testing their new-found knowledge and previously-learned skills, some with knowledge from previous years of attendance. At the end of the first day, there was talk among the young cowboys about how sore they were, but they all came back to school the next day, ready to ride once again.

“The Rough Stock Clinic at the Rocking M was fun. I learned a lot and am looking forward to the next one. I am going to start riding Bare Back in addition to riding bulls like I have been. I appreciate Chuck for putting this on for us,” said Kyle Taormino of Cottonwood. Taormino is a student at West Valley High School in Cottonwood and is a member of the District 1 WVHS Rodeo Team.

Instructors at the school this year were Alex Meroshnekoff, Joe Ketter, Jake King, Hank Davies, Randy Jones, Chuck Morris and Big Chuck, all of Red Bluff.

Other instructors included Mark Broom of Clements; Casey Vollin of Salinas, Scott Sparrow of Quincy, Feather River College Rodeo Coach, Jessie Segera. Ricky Moffet and Nick Ludocuk, both of Oakdale.

Ledouck had attended the same school as a student when he was younger, successfully participated in the sport of rodeo while in college, and returned as an instructor to help mentor kids who were participating in the sport that he loves.

Monty Schaack of Red Bluff had also attended the Rodeo School a time or two. Currently, he is the 2007 California Year End Reserve and Finals Average Champion in the saddle bronc event as well as the Year End Champion in the bull riding event Schaack was also the All Around Year End Reserve Champion and the Finals Average Champion. These two young men are among those that stand out in the minds of the school’s founders.