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Show " w "TTT.yjti: - r-i . . - . . ' 4 i v vt .J , - ' ' - ' i HOLEY SOX is ridden by Austin Beebe during cow cutting action in 1961. Holey Sox was owned own-ed by Woodey B. Searle of Vernal and the horse was a well known cutting and racing horse all over the nation. . - . ; ' 4 J' V . i r - "'v.: - . I A - - . . r , -. - ROOSEVELT'S CLAIR WINTERTON keeps his animals under control. Local cowboys from all over the Uintah Basin competed in rodeos in the Vernal area in past years. Local cowboys will once again invade the Uintah County Fairground for the Dinosaur Roundup Rodeo on July 3, 4 and 5. V. r... :-r-: , . . - : - " '7 " r::; - , 7 . . - ' ,i t ALL PACKED AND READY to continue their trip to Oregon, after a two-day stay in Naples are Kansas ranchers Randy Brooks, Robin Hall and Roger Dunn. Many Uinflcih Bcisiri cowboys' have competed! in Vernal j The Dinosaur Roundup Rodeo has had such stars as Torn Ferguson, PRCA all-around cowboy; Roy Cooper, national calf roping champ; Joe Marvel, Joe Alexander, national bronc riding champs; Don Gay, national bull riding champion and many other famous out of state performers, but the Dinosaur Roundup Rodeo and many other rodeos in the Vernal area have had many outstanding local cowboys. "Doc" Jenkins, Orlin Cook, former county commissioner; Matt Foley, Mark UDerhansly, Jack and Dee Allred, Lee Goodrich, Merlyn, Howard 'Hap' and Sylvan 'Tillie' Reynolds, Erv and Vaughn Wilkins, Woodey and Jay Searle, Aaron Wilkins, Leland McNeill, Bud Massey, Julius Massey, Lee Wilkins, Aurbin Wilkerson, Austin Beebe, Ray Brown, Reed and Floyd Lyons, Chalmers Walsh, Julius Towhy, Long John, Connors Chapoose, Jim, Joe and Clyde Frost were outstanding rodeo cowboys ui the 1940's, 1950's and 10's. Austin Beebe was a great horse trainer. He would rope without a bridle on his horse to show how well trained his horse was," stated Matt Foley, Vernal. Foley began competing in rodeo in about 1940 and also served as a pick up man for a number of years. Bud Massey was a saddle bronc rider and Lee Wilkins was a bronc rider. Erv Wilkins, Jay Searle, Woodey B. Searle and Leland McNeill were team ropers. Woodey B. Searle, Leland McNeill and Aaron Wilkins were calf ropers. Erv Wilkins, Woodey B. Searle and Leland McNeill still compete in team roping. Floyd and Reed Lyons were team ropers and Floyd Lyons was also a calf roper. The results of the Vernal Amateur Rodeo follows as it was printed in the Vernal Express on July 10, 1952. "The riding, roping and special events winners were as follows: Calf roping, Friday, Aaron Wilkins, first; Sylvan Reynolds, second; Merlyn Reynolds, third; Elmer Caldwell, fourth. Saturday, J.W. Finicum, first; Woodey Searle, second; Milton Searle, third and Matt Foley, fourth. Saddle broncs, Friday, Dean Chew, first; Shorty Hatch, second; Carl Twitchell, third and Phil Van, fourth. Saturday, Lee Wilkins, first; Don Tuell, second; Dean Chew, third and Bob Hatch, fourth. Brahma bulls, Friday, Shorty Hatch, first. Saturday, Joe Murray and Curley Clark, tied for first. Bareback riding, Friday, Shorty Hatch, first; Willis Akland, second; Al Fackerell, third and Joe Price, fourth. Saturday, Curley Clark, first; Bud Massey, second and Lee Wilkins, third. . Ribbon retrieving event, Jay Searle and Woodey Searle, first; Max R. Searle and Milt Searle tied with Harry ' Brown and Gilbert Brown for second; and fourth place went to Aaron Wilkins and Akyne Wilkins. Wild horse racing, Jay Alexander, first and Bob Hatch, second. Team roping, Jay Searle and Woodey Searly, first; Marcus Jensen and Leland McNeill, second; Oits Weeks and Wright Dickensen, third and fourth place went to Jay Buckley and team roping, Ralph Hall and partner, first; Woodey and Jay Searle, second and Milton Searle and Max Rasmussen, third." One event that isn't seen in rodeos much any more is wild horse racing, but the event was quite popular in the 1950's. "There would be a three man team. Two men would be on the ground and they would help the third man get the saddle on a horse, which hadn't been ridden before or broken. The guy would have to ride the horse all the way down the arena and they were usually bucking and throwing the rider off. About seven would start all at once. Sometime you would have to pick a ribbon off on the way back or just cross the finish line. The last time I saw the event was in Cheyenne in 1956," remarked Matt Foley. Sylvan "Tillie" Reynolds of Roosevelt has quite a collection of photographs of many of the Uintah Basin rodeo stars in the late 1940's, 1950's and 1960's in his barber shop. "Austin 'Ott' Beebe of Altonah was one of the best quarter horse trainers around. He was a real good cutting horse trainer in the 1950's, 1960's and 1970's. Clair Winterton was a good rodeo hand as well as Doc Jenkins. Wayne Jennings, who lived in the Uintah Basin, and is now in Phoenix, Ariz., raised some of the best horses for bull dogging. Floyd Lyons was one of the best in calf roping." Reynolds added, "We got together in 1947 and got us a roping club. Everyone started buying and breeding good horses. You could win calf roping in 1947 with a time of 25 seconds. In the 1950's and 1960's you could win first place in calf roping with a time of 10, 11 or 12 seconds. Now you have to have a time of 9 or 10 seconds to win. The good horses really changed rodeo." Some of the local people, who have done well in recent Dinosaur Roundup Rodeos in the 1970's are: D.J. Terry, a former Vernal resident, third, saddle bronc, 1976; Earl Reary-Don DeMille, fourth, team roping, 1977; Joe Frost, first, saddle bronc, fourth bareback, 1972; Sherwood Cuch, second, bareback bronc riding, 1976; Rex and Erv Wilkins, second, team roping, 1976; Mac Jessen, second, calf roping, 1972; Dick Morre, fourth, steer wrestling, 1976; Jim Allen, first, calf roping, 1979, and second, 1977; Brenda and Verrdon Durfee, former Vernal residents, fourth, team roping. 1978; Bryce Moore and Charles Jenkins, first, tear roping, 1974, fourth, 1979; Hal Mediant first, calf roping, 1973; Lynn CuCr first, saddle bronc, 1979; Rhett Searli Buzz Holmes, Wayne Gardiner, Bu Tomlinson, Bryce Barker, Don Holme J Gary Warren, Charles Welch, Terr; Dalhberg, Bob Kissling, Phil and Terr' Brotherson, Cory and Leland McNeil! Other outstanding cowboys have bee1 Wane Workman and Gary Goodrich There were many other cowboys wh, turned in good performances in th' 1940's, 1950's, 1960's and 1970's in rodeo in the Uintah Basin. , ":'. - - f i ' f I v , . : if';- -!-; i I . ' -I V ' i ' ; - '. ' t l 11 ' ! " . -a , " 'j .. - - j MATT FOLEY, Vernal, rides his horse. Foley was one of many 3 local cowboys who competed in Rodeos in the Uintah Basin in the 1940's, 1950's and 1960's. 1 , s . - . ;.- f ( V-H '-". - : . ' - ' s: HOWARD "Hap" Reynolds, Roosevelt, sits on his horse during .: action just after a rodeo in 1955. The Reynold's brothers, ? Sylvan "Tillie", Merlyn and Howard "Hap", were frequent con- , testants in the Dinosaur Roundup Rodeo. a : i .j |