Prescott's Frontier Days

Tom Mix, famous cowboy star of the silent screen and early talkies, was also a rodeo competitor. He was an above-average bronc rider and a top bulldogger, recollects Gail Gardner, "but he couldn't rope a post." Now 95, Gardner has seen a lot of cowboys and cowgirls come and go in "The World's Oldest Rodeo" in scenic, mile-high Prescott. Prescott's Frontier Days celebration, which observes its 100th anniversary this month, was only five years old when Gardner was born in the house on Mount Vernon Avenue where he still lives. No less the salty cowman for being confined to a wheelchair, Gardner clearly recalls many of the celebrities he came to know during his years as official rodeo announcer. One was Mix, who had been parade marshal clear back in 1913; another was Will Rogers, cowboy humorist, newspaper columnist, and actor.

Rogers came to Prescott many times, helping Frontier Days to acquire national prestige as the granddaddy of rodeos. An old rope-trick artist, he often posted a prize (usually $100) for a roping contest.

But it was John Wayne, motion picture prototype of the American cowboy, who apparently was held in higher esteem by the rodeo's management than any other Hollywood figure. He was honored in 1974 when a bronze trophy, showing him in full Western regalia, was created as a one-time-only All-Around Cowboy award.

ONE HUNDRED YEARS YOUNG: PRESCOTT'S FRONTIER DAYS 1888-1988

In 1980 the rodeo itself was dedicated to his memory: Wayne died about three weeks before that year's event.

Then there were the less-famous folk who added pages and even chapters to the colorful lore of the July extravaganza. Two veteran observers who vividly recall some of the episodes are author Danny Freeman, rodeo historian since 1940, who recently published a meticulously researched book on the Prescott celebration titled World's Oldest Rodeo; and Lester Ward (Budge) Ruffner, whose family has been associated with the annual event from its struggling infancy.

In the hard-drinking life-style of the old cattle country, many rodeo performers coexisted with John Barleycorn. But occasionally Old John would get the upper hand, as in the case of Harry Henderson, who once had such a monumental hangover from a sojourn on Whiskey Row he couldn't make it to the arena. His identical twin brother, Bill, took over, kept up a winning streak, and Harry returned the next day to go on to glory. A few people knew about the substitution, reports Freeman, but no one said anything.

Budge Ruffner tells about two cowboy buddies, Frank Polk and Dave Hill, who couldn't stand prosperity and would be off to Whiskey Row with their winnings after the rodeo's first day. Sheriff George Ruffner, Budge's uncle, solved their problem by locking them up each night and letting them out the next day to compete. By enforcing their sobriety, Ruffner enabled the two cowboys to come out top winners that year. Frank Polk later became a talented sculptor and a member of the Cowboy Artists of America. Incidentally, George Ruffner, who was an expert cowboy as well as a legendary sheriff, was the first Arizonan to be nominated to the Cowboy Hall of Fame.

Unlike the Hollywood stars and the funloving, devil-may-care early-day cowboys-men like Lawton Champie, a rancher and frequent prize-winner who enjoyed roping pretty girls along the parade route-today's contestants tend to be deadly serious professional performers. (You can get a fairly accurate portrayal of modern rodeo life from the 1972 motion picture Junior Bonner, which was filmed at the Prescott rodeo and starred the late Steve McQueen.) Besides Champie, dozens of other champions, including Arizona's own Everett Bowman, Chuck Sheppard, and J. C. Trujillo, have competed at Prescott through the years. Such rodeo clowns as the famed Pinky Gist of the 1930s and talented Arleigh Bonnaha of the 1980s not only have provided countless laughs but have put their skills to use and their necks at risk in diverting angry bulls that have thrown their erstwhile riders.

Now a standard stop on the Professional Rodeo Cowboys Association circuit, the Prescott event originated in 1888 as a contest of workaday skills, especially roping and riding, among local ranch hands. There had been rodeos beforeinformal get-togethers at ranches after semiannual roundups-but this time admission was charged, a prize (a $125 cowboy outfit) was offered, and the results were duly documented in the Arizona Journal-Miner newspaper.

During the first two decades of this century, the Prescott show began drawing people from as far away as New York State. By 1924 its promoters began an exchange program with other big rodeos in the United States and Canada so competition and titles could be standardized. But, points out Freeman, the regulations originated in Prescott. By 1928 most rodeos were operating under the Prescott rules. Now all do.

In the 1920s, there were four principal rodeos: Prescott; Cheyenne, Wyoming; Pendleton, Oregon; and Calgary, Alberta, Canada. Nowadays, says Ruffner, there is a rodeo somewhere in the United States or Canada almost every week: "In the last 20 years it's become one of the most popular spectator sports." An estimated 14 million people attend rodeos every year. Ruffner observes that rodeo is the only American sport to spin off from an industry, in this case cattle growing.

But back to the Prescott Frontier Days rodeo: although it's still a local institution reflecting a lot of community spirit, it's pretty much a closed shop as far as participants are concerned. Since 1948 all events have had to be sanctioned by the Professional Rodeo Cowboys Association. A local working cowboy can still compete, if he pays his entry fee. But the reality is that the fee might amount to a month's wages, and then he would be up against the best in the business. Despite the changeover to a professional emphasis, competition in the Prescott rodeo goes back as far as four generations in some families. For instance, the Carters settled at Walnut Grove, south of Prescott, in 1873; over the years, the family has produced six rodeo queens and attendants, and the Carter men and women have won countless awards in the arena. And there are the Ritters, the Stuarts, the Fanchers, the Fains, and the Clines, to mention a few other families who also were consistent winners down through the years and contributed in many other ways to the success of the rodeo.

Around the turn of the century, the The annual celebration transforms an ordinarily tranquil community of 25,000 into a boisterous Fourth of July playground with a temporary population of 75,000. Downtown storefronts wear red, white, and blue bunting. The Plaza overflows with square dancers and food booths. Two parades close the streets, and townspeople and visitors line the sidewalks for a traditional extravaganza of marching bands and floats. But the children's parade steals the show.

Carters and others used to come to Prescott on horseback or in horse-drawn vehicles, taking several days for the journey. Often they remained after the rodeo, settling into camp and visiting with other ranch families, making their stay into a vacation. Frequently they brought livestock with them for the competition, as was the custom then. (Today, stock contractors provide the steers, calves, bucking horses, and bulls.) The return trip also usually involved an overnight stop or two.

By contrast, most professional bull-doggers and bronc and bull riders now arrive by plane, take a cab to a motel, appear at the arena for a warm-up and for the show itself, and leave soon after the last day's final event. Ropers, of course, usually want their own horses, which they haul in trailers.

A veterinarian is in attendance in case of injury to the animals. Occasionally, if an injury is severe, the animal is humanely destroyed.

The human participants often sustain injuries, too. An ambulance crew is on hand at every performance. There have been three fatalities among contestants at Prescott in the past 100 years. Several star performers have had to stop competing because of serious injuries.

Stories still circulate about interesting old-timers. Epefinio (Yaqui) Ordunez, who came to Arizona from El Paso in 1900, was a favorite rodeo performer during the early part of this century. He always appeared as number 13 in any contest he entered. When he was too old to compete, Ordunez carried the American flag in the rodeo parades for many years. In 1966, when he died in the Arizona Pioneers Home in Prescott at 84, the staff found all of his "13" oilcloth contestant panels in a trunk. Instead of flowers, they put one of his number 13 panels on his casket when they buried him.

Then there was Bill Simon, an outstanding competitor in the rodeos just before World War I. Sent to France with the American Expeditionary Force, Simon organized and staged a "cowboy contest" in Paris on July 4, 1918, using Army horses. He won the saddle bronc riding himself. Back home in Prescott the next year, he was in the arena again and won the bulldogging competition.

That event, incidentally, got its name from Bill Pickett, a cowboy who was trying to wrestle a steer to the ground in a Texas rodeo. Pickett had the animal on the ground, but when he couldn't subdue him, Pickett began biting the steer's lip. The steer immediately stopped struggling, and Pickett was declared the winner. But his tactic, borrowed from bulldogs in bullbaiting contests in England, spawned the

term “bulldogging.” Now it is a standard rodeo event—but without the lip biting. Women, though for years mostly involved in decorative functions such as rodeo queen or attendant, had begun demonstrating cowpunching skills as early as 1917. The first was Little Joe Tyler, a bronc rider, whose previous credits included Madison Square Garden in New York City. Now, some 70 years later, female performers are a staple of rodeo programs, demonstrating speed and skill in (for example) barrel racing, where horses are maneuvered in a high-speed zigzag course. And women are increasingly successful in such dangerous events as bull riding.

Budge Ruffner began his association with the Prescott rodeo as a baby, riding on his father's horse in the parade. The late Lester L. Ruffner, a longtime Prescott funeral director and younger brother of Sheriff George Ruffner, for many years served in various capacities, including chairman of the rodeo committee, finance director, parade official, and arena director. Budge later followed in his father's footsteps.

“There's a lot of romance in rodeo. And a lot of broken hearts and busted dreams,” he says. “A lot of busted bones, too. It's hard on the body. A man of 40 who never has been in a rodeo may feel like he's about 20 years old. But a man of 40 who has been riding broncs for 20 years feels like he is 80.

“The bull riding nowadays, especially with these Brahmas, is 10 times more dangerous and life-threatening and causes more injuries than when they had those old range bulls,” Ruffner continues. “The broncs are better, rougher broncs. In other words, the horses are just as professional as the men. And the competition is so much keener, even in the girls' barrel racing, where kids turn in fantastic times, like 15 seconds or 15.2. Used to be 21.2 seconds would win. The ropers would be the same way. And they've got bulldogging down there to two and three seconds. “In order to make it on the rodeo circuit today, a performer's got to walk away with about $3,000 per rodeo. It's damned tough competition. It's just the same as some amateur theatrical actor going on to Broadway. It's just that tough.” The Prescott rodeo has had its ups and downs financially, and there were times when it almost was abandoned as a yearly event. In its worst year, 1966, the organization's resources were so low that it appeared Frontier Days was doomed. But the Prescott Jaycees came to the rescue and saved it from oblivion. Now it is administered by a board of directors and has become self-supporting. In fact, its popularity seems to be increasing each year, with traffic snarled for miles in all directions. Asked if he thought cowboys and rodeos would still be around in another hundred years, Budge Ruffner replied: “I would say the American cowboy is so deeply ingrained in our society as a folk hero that he will never disappear. The industrial part, cattle growing, may change, but the entertainment value to our culture will not.

“The long-haul truck driver will never replace the cowboy.”

WHEN YOU GO.... Prescott, the Mile High City

Frontier Days is a five-day celebration, which this year runs from June 30 through July 4. Its main component is the century-old rodeo. Performances (held at the Yavapai County Fairgrounds) are as follows: June 30, 7:30 P.M. only; July 13, 1:30 P.M. and 7:30 P.M.; July 4, 1:30 P.M. only. For ticket information, call (602) 445-3103.

Other Frontier Days events: July 1, Kiwanis Kiddie Parade, 9:30 A.M. at Cortez and Goodwin streets; old-fashioned games and contests, 11:00A.M. at the Plaza. July 2, pancake breakfast, 6:00-11:00 A.M. at Alarcon and Gurley streets; Frontier Days parade, 9:00 A.M., downtown; boot race, noon, on Whiskey Row; parade awards ceremony, 1:30 P.M. at the bandstand on the Plaza. July 3, hose cart races, 9:00 A.M. to noon, east side of the Plaza; carnival all day at Prescott Junior High School. July 4, fireworks, 8:00 P.M. at Prescott High School.

Additional events during rodeo week: Western art show at Cob Web Hall, 511 S. Montezuma St.; Western Classic softball tournament at all city parks.

Getting there: Prescott, in the north-central Arizona mountains, can be reached from Phoenix via Interstate Route 17 to Cordes Junction, then northwest on State Route 69. A more scenic route from Phoenix is U.S. 89 (Grand Avenue) northwest to Wickenburg, then northerly through Congress Junction to Prescott. Approaching from the north via I-40, turn south onto U.S. 89 at Ash Fork, then drive through Chino Valley. From the west via I-10 take U.S. Route 60 near Brenda, then continue northeast via State 71 east of Aguila and join U.S. 89 at Congress.

What to see and do in Prescott: This small city offers a wide range of recreational activities, including golf, tennis, racquetball, health clubs, shooting ranges, swimming, bicycling, outstanding hiking, camping, fishing, horseback riding, and scenic drives. In-town attractions include Sharlot Hall Museum, 415 W. Gurley St.; Smoki Museum, 130 N. Arizona Ave.; George Phippen Museum, U.S. 89 north of town; Prescott Fine Arts Association, Willis and Marina streets; Sunwest Gallery, 152 S. Montezuma St. Obtain hiking and camping maps from Prescott National Forest, 344 S. Cortez St., Prescott, AZ 86301; telephone (602) 445-1762.

Where to stay: Accommodations range from historic hotels to modern-day motels and bed and breakfast establishments (because of the popularity of the rodeo, make reservations as early as possible). There also are six Forest Service campgrounds in the vicinity of Prescott. Two campgrounds, Hilltop and Indian Creek, are specifically designed for trailers and recreational vehicles. For additional information on camping and facilities throughout the state, see Outdoors in Arizona: A Guide to Camping ($12.95), available from Arizona Highways, 2039 W. Lewis Ave., Phoenix, 85009; telephone (602) 258-1000 or, toll-free in Arizona, 1-800-543-5432.

Weather conditions: Prescott is a mile-high city, so summer nights can be chilly. There's also a good chance of summer thunderstorms. Sweaters and jackets are often welcome.

Additional reading: Travel Arizona ($8.95) and Outdoors in Arizona: a Guide to Hiking and Backpacking ($12.95), both published by Arizona Highways Books, are available by writing or telephoning as indicated above.

For further information: The Prescott Chamber of Commerce (Box 1147, Prescott 86301; telephone 445-2000 or, toll-free from Phoenix, 253-5988) is a good source of brochures on attractions, special events, accommodations, and restaurants.