Little Britches: Where Kids Get Their Rodeo Start

Little Britches: Where Kids Get Their Rodeo Start LIVESTOCK Exotic Animals 25-2-22 Just like any other sport, rodeo attracts participants of all ages. Besides the adult cowboys and girls, and the promising high school rodeo competitors, there is an especially entertaining, but perhaps less known groupà the "Little Britches Rodeo Association." This organization starts literally from the ground up, with members being anywhere from pre-school age to 14 years. This "farm league" of the rodeo circuit is where many of the daring and courageous adult cowboys got their start. It's a really kid-friendly environment and it teaches them about rodeo in a slow and safe way," says Sandy Chevallier of Peachland, B.C. who has seven and eight-year old daughters in Little Britches. "We find it's a great family activity and it's good preparation if the kids later decide to be involved in high school rodeo where they can be eligible for full scholarships." Chevallier herself has been involved in rodeo for 20 years and her boyfriend's a farrier and horse trainer, so she admits it fits well with their lifestyle, but believes the group is a good one for anyone. "It teaches the kids responsibility and how to care for their animals and it encourages them to stay focussed and motivated in a positive direction," she says. "Some people say it's too expensive, but the way I look at it, it's a lot cheaper than down the road, paying lawyer bills to get your kids out of jail." There are 16 events altogether in the junior (nine years old and younger) and senior (10 to 14 years old) girls' and boys' divisions of the B.C. Little Britches Association. Events are the following: barrels, pole bending, goat tail tying, stake race, steer riding, break-away roping, calf tying, steer daubing, steer undecorating and cow riding. American associations such as the Ohio Little Britches operate somewhat differently than the Canadian ones. For example, they have a third age division (pee wees) and a few different events such as sheep riding (mutton busting), chute doggin', two-person team roping, dummy calf roping and calf roping. All events are a race against time, and while they mimic adult rodeos, the kids are much safer because they work only with sheep, calves, goats, cows, and of course, their own well trained horses. There are no snorting bulls here. The B.C. association has 135 members and holds 11 Little Britches rodeos from May until September. There are an average of 88 competitors at each one. The kids win prizes such as belt buckles, breast collars, picture frames, fly masks and buckets. Prize money is not the norm. Twelve-year-old Clay Thibeault has been rodeoing in Little Britches since he was eight and says he likes it because it gives him something to do. "I grew up on Canada's largest ranch (the Douglas Lake Ranch, where he still lives) and I ride quite a bit," Thibeault said on his way home from a two-day rodeo where he earned the distinction of "best all-round cowboy." The youngster says his best memory of Little Britches so far is when he won the high point saddle at a two-day rodeo at Chilliwack earlier this year. He sees himself continuing on with rodeo as he gets older and enters adulthood. There will always be the opportunity to challenge himself. Contact: FARM SHOW Follow-up, B.C. Little Britches Rodeo Association, Box 232, Merritt, British Columbia, Canada, V1K 1B8, (ph 250-378-6827), Website: www.rodeobc.com

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