{"id":3082,"date":"2014-07-28T06:57:04","date_gmt":"2014-07-28T12:57:04","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/lastbestnews.com\/site\/?p=3082"},"modified":"2015-08-24T07:30:43","modified_gmt":"2015-08-24T13:30:43","slug":"rodeo-makes-for-a-big-day-in-little-brockway","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/montana-mint.com\/lastbestnews\/2014\/07\/rodeo-makes-for-a-big-day-in-little-brockway\/","title":{"rendered":"Rodeo makes for a big day in little Brockway"},"content":{"rendered":"\n\t\t\t<div id=\"slides-3082\" class=\"navis-slideshow\">\n\t\t\t<p class=\"slide-nav\">\n\n\t\t\t<a href=\"#\" class=\"prev\"><\/a>\n\t\t\t<a href=\"#\" class=\"next\"><\/a>\n\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\n\t\t\t<div class=\"slides_container\"><div id=\"3082-slide1\"><a href=\"https:\/\/montana-mint.com\/lastbestnews\/wp-content\/uploads\/Cowboy-Hats-copy.jpg\" target=\"_blank\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/montana-mint.com\/lastbestnews\/wp-content\/uploads\/Cowboy-Hats-copy.jpg\" \/><\/a><h6>All photos by John Warner <a href=\"#\" class=\"slide-permalink\">permalink<\/a><\/h6><p>White cowoby hats were a popular piece of apparel outside the Brockway Community Hall on the night of the Dairy Day Rodeo.<\/p><\/div><div id=\"3082-slide2\"><a href=\"https:\/\/montana-mint.com\/lastbestnews\/wp-content\/uploads\/Arena-Pan-copy.jpg\" target=\"_blank\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/montana-mint.com\/lastbestnews\/wp-content\/uploads\/Arena-Pan-copy.jpg\" \/><\/a><h6> <a href=\"#\" class=\"slide-permalink\">permalink<\/a><\/h6><p>The rodeo arena in Brockway.<\/p><\/div><div id=\"3082-slide3\" data-src=\"https:\/\/montana-mint.com\/lastbestnews\/wp-content\/uploads\/Barrel-copy.jpg*771*562\" data-href=\"https:\/\/montana-mint.com\/lastbestnews\/wp-content\/uploads\/Barrel-copy.jpg\" \/><h6> <a href=\"#\" class=\"slide-permalink\">permalink<\/a><\/h6><p>Barrel racing.<\/p><\/div><div id=\"3082-slide4\" data-src=\"https:\/\/montana-mint.com\/lastbestnews\/wp-content\/uploads\/BreakAway-copy.jpg*771*669\" data-href=\"https:\/\/montana-mint.com\/lastbestnews\/wp-content\/uploads\/BreakAway-copy.jpg\" \/><h6> <a href=\"#\" class=\"slide-permalink\">permalink<\/a><\/h6><p>Ladies breakaway.<\/p><\/div><div id=\"3082-slide5\" data-src=\"https:\/\/montana-mint.com\/lastbestnews\/wp-content\/uploads\/Coming-Through-copy.jpg*771*591\" data-href=\"https:\/\/montana-mint.com\/lastbestnews\/wp-content\/uploads\/Coming-Through-copy.jpg\" \/><h6> <a href=\"#\" class=\"slide-permalink\">permalink<\/a><\/h6><p>The aptly named wild horse race.<\/p><\/div><div id=\"3082-slide6\" data-src=\"https:\/\/montana-mint.com\/lastbestnews\/wp-content\/uploads\/DSC_1507.jpg*771*513\" data-href=\"https:\/\/montana-mint.com\/lastbestnews\/wp-content\/uploads\/DSC_1507.jpg\" \/><h6> <a href=\"#\" class=\"slide-permalink\">permalink<\/a><\/h6><p>It gets pretty lonely out there.<\/p><\/div><div id=\"3082-slide7\" data-src=\"https:\/\/montana-mint.com\/lastbestnews\/wp-content\/uploads\/DSC_1549.jpg*771*513\" data-href=\"https:\/\/montana-mint.com\/lastbestnews\/wp-content\/uploads\/DSC_1549.jpg\" \/><h6> <a href=\"#\" class=\"slide-permalink\">permalink<\/a><\/h6><p>Bring on the rough stock.<\/p><\/div><div id=\"3082-slide8\" data-src=\"https:\/\/montana-mint.com\/lastbestnews\/wp-content\/uploads\/MugShot3-copy.jpg*771*1113\" data-href=\"https:\/\/montana-mint.com\/lastbestnews\/wp-content\/uploads\/MugShot3-copy.jpg\" \/><h6> <a href=\"#\" class=\"slide-permalink\">permalink<\/a><\/h6><p>Undersheriff Lonny Jensen said the rodeo was pretty calm. The biggest problem, such as it is, is usually under-age drinkers.<\/p><\/div><div id=\"3082-slide9\" data-src=\"https:\/\/montana-mint.com\/lastbestnews\/wp-content\/uploads\/DSC_1556.jpg*771*513\" data-href=\"https:\/\/montana-mint.com\/lastbestnews\/wp-content\/uploads\/DSC_1556.jpg\" \/><h6> <a href=\"#\" class=\"slide-permalink\">permalink<\/a><\/h6><p>Getting ready to ride.<\/p><\/div><div id=\"3082-slide10\" data-src=\"https:\/\/montana-mint.com\/lastbestnews\/wp-content\/uploads\/DSC_1564.jpg*771*458\" data-href=\"https:\/\/montana-mint.com\/lastbestnews\/wp-content\/uploads\/DSC_1564.jpg\" \/><h6> <a href=\"#\" class=\"slide-permalink\">permalink<\/a><\/h6><p>Team roping.<\/p><\/div><div id=\"3082-slide11\" data-src=\"https:\/\/montana-mint.com\/lastbestnews\/wp-content\/uploads\/DSC_1575.jpg*771*371\" data-href=\"https:\/\/montana-mint.com\/lastbestnews\/wp-content\/uploads\/DSC_1575.jpg\" \/><h6> <a href=\"#\" class=\"slide-permalink\">permalink<\/a><\/h6><p>Spectators belly up the railing at the beer stand.<\/p><\/div><div id=\"3082-slide12\" data-src=\"https:\/\/montana-mint.com\/lastbestnews\/wp-content\/uploads\/DSC_1584.jpg*771*513\" data-href=\"https:\/\/montana-mint.com\/lastbestnews\/wp-content\/uploads\/DSC_1584.jpg\" \/><h6> <a href=\"#\" class=\"slide-permalink\">permalink<\/a><\/h6><p>Young rodeo fan.<\/p><\/div><div id=\"3082-slide13\" data-src=\"https:\/\/montana-mint.com\/lastbestnews\/wp-content\/uploads\/DSC_1592.jpg*771*1098\" data-href=\"https:\/\/montana-mint.com\/lastbestnews\/wp-content\/uploads\/DSC_1592.jpg\" \/><h6> <a href=\"#\" class=\"slide-permalink\">permalink<\/a><\/h6><p>They earned those buckles.<\/p><\/div><div id=\"3082-slide14\" data-src=\"https:\/\/montana-mint.com\/lastbestnews\/wp-content\/uploads\/DSC_1675.jpg*771*513\" data-href=\"https:\/\/montana-mint.com\/lastbestnews\/wp-content\/uploads\/DSC_1675.jpg\" \/><h6> <a href=\"#\" class=\"slide-permalink\">permalink<\/a><\/h6><p>If you're new to the rodeo, these are horses.<\/p><\/div><div id=\"3082-slide15\" data-src=\"https:\/\/montana-mint.com\/lastbestnews\/wp-content\/uploads\/DSC_1801.jpg*771*441\" data-href=\"https:\/\/montana-mint.com\/lastbestnews\/wp-content\/uploads\/DSC_1801.jpg\" \/><h6> <a href=\"#\" class=\"slide-permalink\">permalink<\/a><\/h6><p>The wild horse race features some interesting gymnastic moves.<\/p><\/div><div id=\"3082-slide16\" data-src=\"https:\/\/montana-mint.com\/lastbestnews\/wp-content\/uploads\/DSC_1970.jpg*771*397\" data-href=\"https:\/\/montana-mint.com\/lastbestnews\/wp-content\/uploads\/DSC_1970.jpg\" \/><h6> <a href=\"#\" class=\"slide-permalink\">permalink<\/a><\/h6><p>Team roping again.<\/p><\/div><div id=\"3082-slide17\" data-src=\"https:\/\/montana-mint.com\/lastbestnews\/wp-content\/uploads\/DSC_7988.jpg*771*505\" data-href=\"https:\/\/montana-mint.com\/lastbestnews\/wp-content\/uploads\/DSC_7988.jpg\" \/><h6> <a href=\"#\" class=\"slide-permalink\">permalink<\/a><\/h6><p>A steer wrestler goes a for takedown.<\/p><\/div><div id=\"3082-slide18\" data-src=\"https:\/\/montana-mint.com\/lastbestnews\/wp-content\/uploads\/DSC_9648.jpg*771*1087\" data-href=\"https:\/\/montana-mint.com\/lastbestnews\/wp-content\/uploads\/DSC_9648.jpg\" \/><h6> <a href=\"#\" class=\"slide-permalink\">permalink<\/a><\/h6><p>Grady Richardson, a 9-year-old from Circle, nutures rodeo dreams.<\/p><\/div><div id=\"3082-slide19\" data-src=\"https:\/\/montana-mint.com\/lastbestnews\/wp-content\/uploads\/DSC_8012.jpg*771*290\" data-href=\"https:\/\/montana-mint.com\/lastbestnews\/wp-content\/uploads\/DSC_8012.jpg\" \/><h6> <a href=\"#\" class=\"slide-permalink\">permalink<\/a><\/h6><p>Hard landing ahead.<\/p><\/div><div id=\"3082-slide20\" data-src=\"https:\/\/montana-mint.com\/lastbestnews\/wp-content\/uploads\/DSC_8256.jpg*771*236\" data-href=\"https:\/\/montana-mint.com\/lastbestnews\/wp-content\/uploads\/DSC_8256.jpg\" \/><h6> <a href=\"#\" class=\"slide-permalink\">permalink<\/a><\/h6><p>Brought up short.<\/p><\/div><div id=\"3082-slide21\" data-src=\"https:\/\/montana-mint.com\/lastbestnews\/wp-content\/uploads\/DSC_8300.jpg*771*466\" data-href=\"https:\/\/montana-mint.com\/lastbestnews\/wp-content\/uploads\/DSC_8300.jpg\" \/><h6> <a href=\"#\" class=\"slide-permalink\">permalink<\/a><\/h6><p>A calf roper dismounts.<\/p><\/div><div id=\"3082-slide22\" data-src=\"https:\/\/montana-mint.com\/lastbestnews\/wp-content\/uploads\/DSC_8438.jpg*771*761\" data-href=\"https:\/\/montana-mint.com\/lastbestnews\/wp-content\/uploads\/DSC_8438.jpg\" \/><h6> <a href=\"#\" class=\"slide-permalink\">permalink<\/a><\/h6><p>Quick stop.<\/p><\/div><div id=\"3082-slide23\" data-src=\"https:\/\/montana-mint.com\/lastbestnews\/wp-content\/uploads\/DSC_8451.jpg*771*991\" data-href=\"https:\/\/montana-mint.com\/lastbestnews\/wp-content\/uploads\/DSC_8451.jpg\" \/><h6> <a href=\"#\" class=\"slide-permalink\">permalink<\/a><\/h6><p>Ladies breakaway, at a full gallop.<\/p><\/div><div id=\"3082-slide24\" data-src=\"https:\/\/montana-mint.com\/lastbestnews\/wp-content\/uploads\/DSC_8621.jpg*771*554\" data-href=\"https:\/\/montana-mint.com\/lastbestnews\/wp-content\/uploads\/DSC_8621.jpg\" \/><h6> <a href=\"#\" class=\"slide-permalink\">permalink<\/a><\/h6><p>Did it catch?<\/p><\/div><div id=\"3082-slide25\" data-src=\"https:\/\/montana-mint.com\/lastbestnews\/wp-content\/uploads\/DSC_8655.jpg*771*672\" data-href=\"https:\/\/montana-mint.com\/lastbestnews\/wp-content\/uploads\/DSC_8655.jpg\" \/><h6> <a href=\"#\" class=\"slide-permalink\">permalink<\/a><\/h6><p>Hang on there, pard.<\/p><\/div><div id=\"3082-slide26\" data-src=\"https:\/\/montana-mint.com\/lastbestnews\/wp-content\/uploads\/DSC_8691.jpg*771*633\" data-href=\"https:\/\/montana-mint.com\/lastbestnews\/wp-content\/uploads\/DSC_8691.jpg\" \/><h6> <a href=\"#\" class=\"slide-permalink\">permalink<\/a><\/h6><p>Good form.<\/p><\/div><div id=\"3082-slide27\" data-src=\"https:\/\/montana-mint.com\/lastbestnews\/wp-content\/uploads\/DSC_8712.jpg*771*475\" data-href=\"https:\/\/montana-mint.com\/lastbestnews\/wp-content\/uploads\/DSC_8712.jpg\" \/><h6> <a href=\"#\" class=\"slide-permalink\">permalink<\/a><\/h6><p>Still on, for now.<\/p><\/div><div id=\"3082-slide28\" data-src=\"https:\/\/montana-mint.com\/lastbestnews\/wp-content\/uploads\/DSC_9630.jpg*771*1078\" data-href=\"https:\/\/montana-mint.com\/lastbestnews\/wp-content\/uploads\/DSC_9630.jpg\" \/><h6> <a href=\"#\" class=\"slide-permalink\">permalink<\/a><\/h6><p>A team roper at the ready.<\/p><\/div><div id=\"3082-slide29\" data-src=\"https:\/\/montana-mint.com\/lastbestnews\/wp-content\/uploads\/DSC_8800.jpg*771*527\" data-href=\"https:\/\/montana-mint.com\/lastbestnews\/wp-content\/uploads\/DSC_8800.jpg\" \/><h6> <a href=\"#\" class=\"slide-permalink\">permalink<\/a><\/h6><p>The bullfighters work to distract the bull while the rider hustles away.<\/p><\/div><div id=\"3082-slide30\" data-src=\"https:\/\/montana-mint.com\/lastbestnews\/wp-content\/uploads\/DSC_8879.jpg*771*542\" data-href=\"https:\/\/montana-mint.com\/lastbestnews\/wp-content\/uploads\/DSC_8879.jpg\" \/><h6> <a href=\"#\" class=\"slide-permalink\">permalink<\/a><\/h6><p>Airborne bull.<\/p><\/div><div id=\"3082-slide31\" data-src=\"https:\/\/montana-mint.com\/lastbestnews\/wp-content\/uploads\/DSC_8940.jpg*771*565\" data-href=\"https:\/\/montana-mint.com\/lastbestnews\/wp-content\/uploads\/DSC_8940.jpg\" \/><h6> <a href=\"#\" class=\"slide-permalink\">permalink<\/a><\/h6><p>A bullfighter, aka rodeo clown, takes one for the team.<\/p><\/div><div id=\"3082-slide32\" data-src=\"https:\/\/montana-mint.com\/lastbestnews\/wp-content\/uploads\/DSC_8966.jpg*771*591\" data-href=\"https:\/\/montana-mint.com\/lastbestnews\/wp-content\/uploads\/DSC_8966.jpg\" \/><h6> <a href=\"#\" class=\"slide-permalink\">permalink<\/a><\/h6><p>There's more than one way to throw a rider.<\/p><\/div><div id=\"3082-slide33\" data-src=\"https:\/\/montana-mint.com\/lastbestnews\/wp-content\/uploads\/DSC_9055.jpg*771*610\" data-href=\"https:\/\/montana-mint.com\/lastbestnews\/wp-content\/uploads\/DSC_9055.jpg\" \/><h6> <a href=\"#\" class=\"slide-permalink\">permalink<\/a><\/h6><p>I'll just be getting off now, thanks.<\/p><\/div><div id=\"3082-slide34\" data-src=\"https:\/\/montana-mint.com\/lastbestnews\/wp-content\/uploads\/DSC_9167.jpg*771*987\" data-href=\"https:\/\/montana-mint.com\/lastbestnews\/wp-content\/uploads\/DSC_9167.jpg\" \/><h6> <a href=\"#\" class=\"slide-permalink\">permalink<\/a><\/h6><p>It's just eight seconds, it's just eight seconds....<\/p><\/div><div id=\"3082-slide35\" data-src=\"https:\/\/montana-mint.com\/lastbestnews\/wp-content\/uploads\/DSC_9412.jpg*771*513\" data-href=\"https:\/\/montana-mint.com\/lastbestnews\/wp-content\/uploads\/DSC_9412.jpg\" \/><h6> <a href=\"#\" class=\"slide-permalink\">permalink<\/a><\/h6><p>A barrel race stirs things up.<\/p><\/div><div id=\"3082-slide36\" data-src=\"https:\/\/montana-mint.com\/lastbestnews\/wp-content\/uploads\/DSC_9203.jpg*771*684\" data-href=\"https:\/\/montana-mint.com\/lastbestnews\/wp-content\/uploads\/DSC_9203.jpg\" \/><h6> <a href=\"#\" class=\"slide-permalink\">permalink<\/a><\/h6><p>One thrown rider, six close observers.<\/p><\/div><div id=\"3082-slide37\" data-src=\"https:\/\/montana-mint.com\/lastbestnews\/wp-content\/uploads\/DSC_9522.jpg*771*502\" data-href=\"https:\/\/montana-mint.com\/lastbestnews\/wp-content\/uploads\/DSC_9522.jpg\" \/><h6> <a href=\"#\" class=\"slide-permalink\">permalink<\/a><\/h6><p>Wild horse race. Pure pandemonium.<\/p><\/div><div id=\"3082-slide38\" data-src=\"https:\/\/montana-mint.com\/lastbestnews\/wp-content\/uploads\/DSC_9627.jpg*771*571\" data-href=\"https:\/\/montana-mint.com\/lastbestnews\/wp-content\/uploads\/DSC_9627.jpg\" \/><h6> <a href=\"#\" class=\"slide-permalink\">permalink<\/a><\/h6><p>Yeah, he's happy to ride.<\/p><\/div><div id=\"3082-slide39\" data-src=\"https:\/\/montana-mint.com\/lastbestnews\/wp-content\/uploads\/Gate-copy.jpg*771*503\" data-href=\"https:\/\/montana-mint.com\/lastbestnews\/wp-content\/uploads\/Gate-copy.jpg\" \/><h6> <a href=\"#\" class=\"slide-permalink\">permalink<\/a><\/h6><p>Yeehaw!<\/p><\/div><div id=\"3082-slide40\" data-src=\"https:\/\/montana-mint.com\/lastbestnews\/wp-content\/uploads\/MugShot2-copy.jpg*771*1279\" data-href=\"https:\/\/montana-mint.com\/lastbestnews\/wp-content\/uploads\/MugShot2-copy.jpg\" \/><h6> <a href=\"#\" class=\"slide-permalink\">permalink<\/a><\/h6><p>Colin Murnion. He earned that buckle, too.<\/p><\/div><div id=\"3082-slide41\" data-src=\"https:\/\/montana-mint.com\/lastbestnews\/wp-content\/uploads\/Girl-copy.jpg*771*1017\" data-href=\"https:\/\/montana-mint.com\/lastbestnews\/wp-content\/uploads\/Girl-copy.jpg\" \/><h6> <a href=\"#\" class=\"slide-permalink\">permalink<\/a><\/h6><p>Working the spurs.<\/p><\/div><div id=\"3082-slide42\" data-src=\"https:\/\/montana-mint.com\/lastbestnews\/wp-content\/uploads\/Rainie1-copy.jpg*771*503\" data-href=\"https:\/\/montana-mint.com\/lastbestnews\/wp-content\/uploads\/Rainie1-copy.jpg\" \/><h6> <a href=\"#\" class=\"slide-permalink\">permalink<\/a><\/h6><p>Team ropers in action.<\/p><\/div><div id=\"3082-slide43\" data-src=\"https:\/\/montana-mint.com\/lastbestnews\/wp-content\/uploads\/DSC_2324.jpg*771*498\" data-href=\"https:\/\/montana-mint.com\/lastbestnews\/wp-content\/uploads\/DSC_2324.jpg\" \/><h6> <a href=\"#\" class=\"slide-permalink\">permalink<\/a><\/h6><p>Swinging your partner in the community hall.<\/p><\/div><div id=\"3082-slide44\" data-src=\"https:\/\/montana-mint.com\/lastbestnews\/wp-content\/uploads\/DSC_2528.jpg*771*538\" data-href=\"https:\/\/montana-mint.com\/lastbestnews\/wp-content\/uploads\/DSC_2528.jpg\" \/><h6> <a href=\"#\" class=\"slide-permalink\">permalink<\/a><\/h6><p>Happy together.<\/p><\/div><div id=\"3082-slide45\" data-src=\"https:\/\/montana-mint.com\/lastbestnews\/wp-content\/uploads\/DSC_2360.jpg*771*527\" data-href=\"https:\/\/montana-mint.com\/lastbestnews\/wp-content\/uploads\/DSC_2360.jpg\" \/><h6> <a href=\"#\" class=\"slide-permalink\">permalink<\/a><\/h6><p>Time for dancing and conversation.<\/p><\/div><div id=\"3082-slide46\" data-src=\"https:\/\/montana-mint.com\/lastbestnews\/wp-content\/uploads\/DSC_2351.jpg*771*412\" data-href=\"https:\/\/montana-mint.com\/lastbestnews\/wp-content\/uploads\/DSC_2351.jpg\" \/><h6> <a href=\"#\" class=\"slide-permalink\">permalink<\/a><\/h6><p>Let's run through those steps again.<\/p><\/div><div id=\"3082-slide47\" data-src=\"https:\/\/montana-mint.com\/lastbestnews\/wp-content\/uploads\/DSC_2599.jpg*771*445\" data-href=\"https:\/\/montana-mint.com\/lastbestnews\/wp-content\/uploads\/DSC_2599.jpg\" \/><h6> <a href=\"#\" class=\"slide-permalink\">permalink<\/a><\/h6><p>Dancing to Trouble Expected,a country band out of Jordan.<\/p><\/div><div id=\"3082-slide48\"><a href=\"https:\/\/montana-mint.com\/lastbestnews\/wp-content\/uploads\/DSC_2618.jpg\" target=\"_blank\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/montana-mint.com\/lastbestnews\/wp-content\/uploads\/DSC_2618.jpg\" \/><\/a><h6> <a href=\"#\" class=\"slide-permalink\">permalink<\/a><\/h6><p>Friendly wrestling outside the community hall.<\/p><\/div><\/div><\/div><script>jQuery( document ).ready( function() { loadSlideshow( 3082, 'https:\/\/montana-mint.com\/lastbestnews\/2014\/07\/rodeo-makes-for-a-big-day-in-little-brockway\/', 48 ) } );<\/script>\n<p>BROCKWAY \u2014 Charlie Moline will tell you that Brockway is famous for four things.<\/p>\n<p>In 1934 it shipped more livestock by rail than any other town in the United States.<\/p>\n<p>It used to be the smallest town in the world with a drive-in theater.<!--more--><\/p>\n<p>Curley Fletcher was working at a ranch near Brockway in 1915 when he wrote \u201cThe Strawberry Roan,\u201d a cowboy poem that became an enduring country-western song.<\/p>\n<p>And it is home to the Brockway Dairy Day Rodeo, one of the oldest rodeos in Montana and by far the biggest day of the year for Brockway, population somewhere between 15 and 20. This year\u2019s rodeo was held on Saturday, July 19.<\/p>\n<p>Moline, whose grandfather homesteaded in Brockway in 1910, has been working the rodeo for 51 years. He said there aren\u2019t many like it left in Montana.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThere\u2019s nothing fancy here,\u201d he said. \u201cIt\u2019s kinda like the rodeos were 50 or 60 years ago.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Brockway is 13 miles west of Circle on Highway 200. Moline said if you draw a straight line from Billings to Plentywood and another from Malta to Ekalaka, the lines intersect near Brockway, making it the geographical center of Eastern Montana.<\/p>\n<p>The lines actually cross about midway between Brockway and Jordan, 50 miles to the west, but close enough. Brockway is deep in Eastern Montana, where settlements are few and cows are plentiful.<\/p>\n<div id=\"attachment_3139\"  class=\"wp-caption module image alignleft\" style=\"max-width: 771px;\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"addboard wp-image-3139 size-full\" src=\"http:\/\/lastbestnews.com\/site\/wp-content\/uploads\/SaddleBronc-copy-21.jpg\" alt=\"All right\" width=\"771\" height=\"623\" srcset=\"https:\/\/montana-mint.com\/lastbestnews\/wp-content\/uploads\/SaddleBronc-copy-21.jpg 771w, https:\/\/montana-mint.com\/lastbestnews\/wp-content\/uploads\/SaddleBronc-copy-21-336x271.jpg 336w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 771px) 100vw, 771px\" \/><\/a><p class=\"wp-media-credit\">John Warner<\/p><p class=\"wp-caption-text\">Saddle bronc rider Shane Wheeler, of Ashland, took a hard fall, then was stomped on by the horse. He was banged up but doing all right a couple of days later.<\/p><\/div>\n<p>That\u2019s partly why the Dairy Day Rodeo, in the words of announcer Ray Granmoe, is a \u201cworking-ranch-cowboy type rodeo.\u201d It also helps that it\u2019s an open rodeo, meaning you don\u2019t have to be certified with any professional rodeo outfit to compete.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cIt\u2019s a good place for kids to start out, you know?\u201d Colin Murnion said. \u201cThey can get a little taste of it.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Murnion, of Jordan, got his start here and went on to finish third in bareback riding at the National Finals Rodeo. He and 13 other cowboys and cowgirls are listed on a sign \u2014 \u201cNFR Contestants with Dairy Day Beginnings\u201d \u2014 at the entrance to the rodeo.<\/p>\n<p>The rodeo\u2019s importance, though, goes beyond considerations of competition and purses. It is mostly a big social affair, an all-school reunion and a gathering of families rolled into one.<\/p>\n<div id=\"attachment_3133\"  class=\"wp-caption module image alignleft\" style=\"max-width: 140px;\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"addboard wp-image-3133 size-thumbnail\" src=\"http:\/\/lastbestnews.com\/site\/wp-content\/uploads\/Charlie-Mug-copy-140x140.jpg\" alt=\"Charlie Moline\" width=\"140\" height=\"140\" srcset=\"https:\/\/montana-mint.com\/lastbestnews\/wp-content\/uploads\/Charlie-Mug-copy-140x140.jpg 140w, https:\/\/montana-mint.com\/lastbestnews\/wp-content\/uploads\/Charlie-Mug-copy-60x60.jpg 60w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 140px) 100vw, 140px\" \/><\/a><p class=\"wp-caption-text\">Charlie Moline<\/p><\/div>\n<p>Lynn Glick was there from Pennsylvania, as was her sister, Cheryl Breitbach, from Georgia. The sisters, originally Pawlowskis, grew up in Circle and have come back for the Dairy Day Rodeo every year for the past 20 years. They usually stay a week and see all their old friends at the rodeo.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWe\u2019ve been doing it since we were little,\u201d Glick said. \u201cThis is where people went.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Moline said the rodeo has always been important to families, and because of its informal nature it\u2019s more kid-friendly than most rodeos. Young children routinely sit on the arena fences, ride horses around the grounds and stand on the platforms right over the chutes containing tons of twitching bull and horse flesh.<\/p>\n<p>Grady Richardson, a 9-year-old from Circle, spent half the day on the fences and the other half on his friend\u2019s horse. Dressed in a cowboy hat and a Wrangler shirt, Grady said he hoped to compete some day, \u201cprobably steer ridin\u2019.\u201d Asked how long he\u2019d been coming to the Dairy Day Rodeo, he answered, \u201cI almost come here all the time.\u201d<\/p>\n<div id=\"attachment_3134\"  class=\"wp-caption module image alignleft\" style=\"max-width: 771px;\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"addboard wp-image-3134 size-full\" src=\"http:\/\/lastbestnews.com\/site\/wp-content\/uploads\/DSC_1666.jpg\" alt=\"Bowl\" width=\"771\" height=\"441\" srcset=\"https:\/\/montana-mint.com\/lastbestnews\/wp-content\/uploads\/DSC_1666.jpg 771w, https:\/\/montana-mint.com\/lastbestnews\/wp-content\/uploads\/DSC_1666-336x192.jpg 336w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 771px) 100vw, 771px\" \/><\/a><p class=\"wp-media-credit\">John Warner<\/p><p class=\"wp-caption-text\">Spectators watch from the bleachers while kids entertain themselves on the grassy bowl.<\/p><\/div>\n<p>The rodeo began in 1918 to celebrate the arrival of a herd of dairy cows in Brockway. It was canceled during the worst years of the Dirty \u201930s, as that decade was known in Montana, and for a few years during World War II, but it was revived in 1946 and has been held continuously since then.<\/p>\n<p>In its heyday, Brockway had 20 businesses, a branch railroad line and a high school. Now, it looks more like a used-implement lot than a town, with just a few occupied houses scattered among a collection of rusting tractors, trucks and heavy equipment, grain bins, RVs, cars and abandoned houses, trailers and buildings.<div class=\"well\"><div class=\"dfad dfad_pos_1 dfad_first\" id=\"_ad_652\"><a target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/goo.gl\/mjhWkW\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/lastbestnews.com\/site\/wp-content\/uploads\/201703_capeair_variable.jpg\" alt=\"CapreAir_Variable\" width=\"510\" height=\"180\" class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-18069\" \/><\/a><\/div><\/div><\/p>\n<p>All that\u2019s left downtown is a post office and a community hall, built in the 1930s in the Sheep Mountains south of Brockway and moved into town in 1961. It is where the dance is held after the rodeo, where hundreds of cowboys and cowgirls gather to drink, dance, carouse and let off clouds of steam.<\/p>\n<p>The rodeo is west of town, just over Highway 253, which takes you 50 miles south to Terry.<\/p>\n<div id=\"attachment_3135\"  class=\"wp-caption module image alignright\" style=\"max-width: 140px;\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"addboard wp-image-3135 size-thumbnail\" src=\"http:\/\/lastbestnews.com\/site\/wp-content\/uploads\/MugShot1-copy-140x140.jpg\" alt=\"Dale\" width=\"140\" height=\"140\" srcset=\"https:\/\/montana-mint.com\/lastbestnews\/wp-content\/uploads\/MugShot1-copy-140x140.jpg 140w, https:\/\/montana-mint.com\/lastbestnews\/wp-content\/uploads\/MugShot1-copy-60x60.jpg 60w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 140px) 100vw, 140px\" \/><\/a><p class=\"wp-caption-text\">Dale Hubing<\/p><\/div>\n<p>This year\u2019s rodeo, the 84th, fell on a nearly perfect July day. It can get hot \u2014 one year it hit 108 \u2014 but on this Saturday, smoke from distant wildfires kept the sun off and the heat down, and a steady, pleasant breeze kept the mosquitoes away.<\/p>\n<p>The arena sits at the base of grassy bowl. Most of the spectators are up on the hill, sitting on shaded bleachers, clustered around the beer and food booths or perched on folding chairs under portable awnings.<\/p>\n<p>Sitting with a dozen or more family members and friends under one awning was Dale Hubing, who was born in 1928 and grew up on a remote ranch nearly 20 miles southeast of Brockway, on the divide between there and Lindsay.<\/p>\n<p>Hubing and his brother use to trail horses into town from the ranch and ride them in the races that were then part of the rodeo. They\u2019d go to the dance in the evening, sleep for a few hours on their bedrolls and ride back home. Hubing said he\u2019s missed only one rodeo since 1946.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI\u2019ve been ill a few days after, but I\u2019ve always been well enough on the day of,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n<div id=\"attachment_3147\"  class=\"wp-caption module image alignleft\" style=\"max-width: 771px;\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"addboard wp-image-3147 size-full\" src=\"http:\/\/lastbestnews.com\/site\/wp-content\/uploads\/Clown-copy1.jpg\" alt=\"Bull\" width=\"771\" height=\"426\" srcset=\"https:\/\/montana-mint.com\/lastbestnews\/wp-content\/uploads\/Clown-copy1.jpg 771w, https:\/\/montana-mint.com\/lastbestnews\/wp-content\/uploads\/Clown-copy1-336x185.jpg 336w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 771px) 100vw, 771px\" \/><\/a><p class=\"wp-caption-text\">A bull surveys his work after dispatching a rider and then sending bullfighter Steve Graham skyward with the snap of its head.<\/p><\/div>\n<p>Like other old-timers at the rodeo, Hubing \u2014 whose father used to put on kids\u2019 races with chariots drawn by Shetland ponies \u2014 couldn\u2019t help reflecting on how much bigger it used to be.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThey used to sell 250 cases of beer in that beer tent right over there,\u201d he said. \u201cGreat Falls Select. And the whole hillside used to be covered in bottles, come evenin\u2019.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Nevertheless, the crowd was respectable this year, estimated at 200 to 300 spectators, and beer sales didn\u2019t appear to be hurting.<\/p>\n<p>Roger Eissinger has been working the beer stand for going on 35 years. His son, Ty, is the president of the Brockway Commercial Club, which sponsors the rodeo, and his wife, Connie, is a McCone County commissioner. Up on the hill is where Roger Eissinger likes to be.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI\u2019ve been with the beer stand,\u201d he said. \u201cI stay away from the arena.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>The rodeo also attracted more than 100 competitors. They came from all over Eastern Montana, with a few from Helena, Wyoming and Washington state. The program was thick with cowboy-sounding names, including Tanner, Chase, Clay, Garrett, Laredo, Colt, Lawson, Parker, Wyatt and Wylee, as well as Kaycee, Madison and Riata.<\/p>\n<p>Early on in this year\u2019s rodeo, Shane Wheeler of Ashland took a hard fall in the saddle bronc event. He was thrown, but his right foot got hung up in the stirrup and he fell headfirst under his horse, which reared up and came down hard with a hoof on Wheeler\u2019s left shoulder blade.<\/p>\n<div id=\"attachment_3140\"  class=\"wp-caption module image alignleft\" style=\"max-width: 771px;\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"addboard wp-image-3140 size-full\" src=\"http:\/\/lastbestnews.com\/site\/wp-content\/uploads\/Dance-copy.jpg\" alt=\"Dance\" width=\"771\" height=\"491\" srcset=\"https:\/\/montana-mint.com\/lastbestnews\/wp-content\/uploads\/Dance-copy.jpg 771w, https:\/\/montana-mint.com\/lastbestnews\/wp-content\/uploads\/Dance-copy-336x213.jpg 336w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 771px) 100vw, 771px\" \/><\/a><p class=\"wp-media-credit\">John Warner<\/p><p class=\"wp-caption-text\">Allysse Charlesworth of Glendive and Taylor Richter of Sidney dance to live music inside the community hall.<\/p><\/div>\n<p>Paramedics in an ambulance \u2014 ambulance sponsors included the Corner Bar \u2014 took Wheeler to the hospital in Circle. He looked to be in a lot of pain, but the regulars weren\u2019t too worried.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cIf it missed his head, he\u2019ll be all right,\u201d said Judd Twitchell, a Jordan rancher who competed in the Dairy Day Rodeo from 1961 to 1991.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cAbout once every three years they haul somebody off,\u201d Moline said. \u201cNow we got to wait for the ambulance to come back before we can do any more rough stock.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Sure enough, two days after the rodeo, Wheeler\u2019s mother, Audrey, said her son was doing well. He was pretty sore, with a couple of cracked ribs and a cracked shoulder blade, she said, but \u201che\u2019s gonna be fine.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>There was plenty of other excitement at this year\u2019s rodeo. Steve Graham, one of the bullfighters \u2014 a rodeo clown without the comic routine \u2014 got thrown for a back flip while trying to distract a rampaging bull. Graham emerged with a sizable cut on the back of his head, but he went back to work after tying a bandanna around the wound.<\/p>\n<p>Allison Wittkopp, a 20-year-old cowgirl from Circle, was competing in the ladies breakaway, barrel racing and, her favorite, goat tying. Why was that her favorite?<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI guess because I\u2019m best at it,\u201d she said. She\u2019s been competing in Brockway since she was 5 and enters professional rodeos all over Eastern Montana and the Dakotas.<\/p>\n<p>Of the Dairy Day Rodeo, she said, \u201cThey\u2019ve put on a good rodeo for a lot of years. \u2026 They probably get the whole community out to support it. As long as they keep that going, I guess it\u2019ll continue.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>The rodeo started at 1 p.m. and ended about 4:30, after a short but crazy wild horse race and some team roping. Everybody started gathering again about 6 outside the community hall, where there was a big barbecue.<\/p>\n<div id=\"attachment_3137\"  class=\"wp-caption module image alignleft\" style=\"max-width: 771px;\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"addboard wp-image-3137 size-full\" src=\"http:\/\/lastbestnews.com\/site\/wp-content\/uploads\/Brockway-Panoramic-15mg-copy.jpg\" alt=\"Year\" width=\"771\" height=\"217\" srcset=\"https:\/\/montana-mint.com\/lastbestnews\/wp-content\/uploads\/Brockway-Panoramic-15mg-copy.jpg 771w, https:\/\/montana-mint.com\/lastbestnews\/wp-content\/uploads\/Brockway-Panoramic-15mg-copy-336x94.jpg 336w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 771px) 100vw, 771px\" \/><\/a><p class=\"wp-media-credit\">John Warner<\/p><p class=\"wp-caption-text\">Crowds gather at the community hall in Brockway after the rodeo. Sleepy little Brockway looks pretty busy one night a year.<\/p><\/div>\n<p>A blood-red sun was sinking in the smoke-filled sky as adults crowded around the outside bar and dozens of kids thronged the playground next door to the hall. Other people sat on benches in the park \u2014 actually, 90-foot-long iron bridge girders that the commercial club bought at auction years ago.<\/p>\n<p>The dancing started a little after 9 p.m. inside the hall. The band was Trouble Expected, a three-piece group out of Jordan playing mostly classic country and a few rock numbers. The wooden dance floor attracted lots of children, who danced with each other or older siblings and parents, older couples and no end of cowboys and cowgirls, some of them curiously imbalanced but still lively.<\/p>\n<p>The real crowds were outside, though, hundreds of people in jeans and cowboy hats and cowboy boots, talking, laughing, whooping and drinking as the 84th Dairy Day wound to a close. As Saturday bled into Sunday, the crowd thinned, but not much.<\/p>\n<p>By Sunday morning, with another Dairy Day in the books and the sun climbing into a now-smokeless sky, the grounds around the community hall were littered with cups, bottles and paper plates. On the grass in front of the hall were the last of the revelers, two men and a woman, recumbent but still awake, still clutching beers, their drowsy conversation punctuated by fits of laughter.<\/p>\n<p>And that was it for 2014. But in another year, the quiet burg of Brockway will boom again.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Editor&#8217;s note<\/strong>: <em>If you&#8217;re wondering why we&#8217;re running this story today, nine days after the rodeo, it&#8217;s because this story ran yesterday, Sunday, in the Great Falls Tribune, and we agreed to wait a day to publish it here.<\/em><\/p>\n<p><em>Also, please note that the photo on top of this story is part of a large gallery of spectacular John Warner photos. You won&#8217;t want to miss them. Just click on the arrow in the upper right corner.<\/em><\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>BROCKWAY \u2014 Charlie Moline will tell you that Brockway is famous for four things. In 1934 it shipped more livestock by rail than any other town in the United States. It used to be the smallest town in the world with a drive-in theater.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":3083,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[16],"tags":[1026,1077,960,1078,1076,1079,323],"class_list":["post-3082","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-montana","tag-brockway","tag-charlie-moline","tag-circle","tag-colin-murnion","tag-dairy-day-rodeo","tag-dale-hubing","tag-national-finals-rodeo","prominence-footer-featured","prominence-top-story"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/montana-mint.com\/lastbestnews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3082","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/montana-mint.com\/lastbestnews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/montana-mint.com\/lastbestnews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/montana-mint.com\/lastbestnews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/montana-mint.com\/lastbestnews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=3082"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/montana-mint.com\/lastbestnews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3082\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/montana-mint.com\/lastbestnews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/3083"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/montana-mint.com\/lastbestnews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=3082"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/montana-mint.com\/lastbestnews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=3082"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/montana-mint.com\/lastbestnews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=3082"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}