JOSEPH — The Chief Joseph Days Rodeo will hold its volunteer-appreciation dinner, the introduction of the 2023 court and its annual Christmas party on Dec. 18, Board President Terry Jones announced Wednesday, Oct. 12.

The combined events will take place at 2 p.m. at the Thunder Room of the rodeo grounds, 668 N. First St. in Enterprise.

The Wednesday announcement comes on the heels of good news for the rodeo: It’s been named Rodeo of the Year for medium-sized rodeos by the Columbia River Circuit of the Professional Rodeo Cowboys Association, according to an Oct. 6 press release.

“It’s great. It’s always great to be recognized,” Jones said. “It makes you feel like everyone’s efforts were recognized. … We have a lot of people who put in a lot of time and energy for zero pay.”

Jones said more than 300 volunteers work to put on the event.

“It reflects on all of us,” he said.

Rodeo representatives will receive official recognition in Redmond at the 2022 finals at the Deschutes County Fairgrounds in Redmond, from Oct. 20-22.

The competition in the medium category, which includes Chief Joseph Days, can be stiff: Jones said it includes more than 60 rodeos out of about 60 overall in the Columbia River Circuit.

“We feel really good about putting on a good show,” he said.

Some of the other events, such as the introduction of the 2023 court and the volunteer-appreciation dinner, were delayed until December because the rodeo grounds served as the fire camp for the recent Double Creek Fire and Eagle Cap Wilderness fires. But firefighters and officials have concluded their work and vacated the rodeo grounds.

After tallying votes from the Columbia River Circuit Board of Directors, event representatives and active PRCA members in the circuit, three winning rodeos in their respective categories were named.

The Columbia River Circuit is comprised of PRCA rodeos and members who call Oregon, Washington and Northern Idaho home. It is comprised of 42 PRCA Rodeos, nine Xtreme events and eight co-approved rodeos with other circuits.

Chief Joseph Days won in the Medium category for rodeos that have a purse of $3,001-$9,999 per event.

The rodeo was started in 1946 by Harley Tucker, a prominent stock contractor from the area. Tucker’s descendants are still involved with the production of the rodeo.

The event is named after Nez Perce Chief Joseph, who lived in the Wallowa Lake area, then made a trek across four states in an unsuccessful attempt to escape to Canada in 1877.

Iconic buckles are given to the winners of each event. Chief Joseph Days is the fourth and final leg of the Harley Tucker Memorial Award — the winner gets a buckle and a $3,000 bonus. 

The second-place rodeo in the category was the Omak Stampede at Omak, Washington, and the third-place rodeo was the Crooked River Round Up at Prineville.

Other winners

Other Northeast Oregon rodeos rounded out the winners of the other categories.

The 2022 Small Rodeo of the Year is the Eastern Oregon Livestock Show and Rodeo in Union. The Small Rodeo Category is for rodeos that add $3,000 or less per event.

This show started in 1908 and is the oldest show in the Northwest. The rodeo includes a 4-H/FFA livestock show and horse racing.

The Eastern Oregon Livestock Show and Rodeo is the first leg of the Harley Tucker Memorial Award — contestants earn points for entering and winning money at Union; St. Paul, Elgin and Joseph. 

In 2022, the Eastern Oregon Livestock Show enjoyed record ticket sales and had large crowds at each performance.

In 2010, EOLS added a PRCA Xtreme Bulls event to honor Ed Miller, a former EOLS president. The winner of the Ed Miller Memorial Xtreme Bulls receives a buckle and an engraved rifle. The second-place rodeo was the Newport Rodeo in Newport, Washington. Third place went to the Spokane Interstate Rodeo in Spokane, Washington.

The Pendleton Round Up won in the Large Category for rodeos that have a purse of $10,000 or more.

The Round Up started in 1910 and was followed in 1916 by the Happy Canyon Pageant. The Pendleton Round Up is an eight-time winner of the PRCA Large Outdoor Rodeo of the Year, and has won Large Circuit Rodeo of the Year three previous times, most recently in 2016. This is the home of the Green Mile — the 29-second barrel pattern.

The Round Up is the fourth and final leg of the Big 4 Rodeos series, which also includes the Horse Heaven Round Up (Kennewick, Washington), Walla Walla Frontier Days and the Lewiston Round Up.

The second-place rodeo in the large category was the Ellensburg Rodeo in Ellensburg, Washington, and the third-place rodeo was the Horse Heaven Round Up in Kennewick, Washington.

Tickets for the 2022 PRCA Columbia River Circuit Finals at Redmond are only available online at https://www.columbiarivercircuit.com/.