Northern Navajo Fair rodeo expected to draw more contestants

Posted by Quentin Jodie | Oct 3, 2024 | Sports |

WINDOW ROCK – For the second year in a row the annual Northern Navajo Fair will be paying back its contestants 100 percent of what it collects in entry money.

Second-year rodeo coordinator Kim R. Jim introduced that idea last year as a way to draw in more contestants. Jim pegged last year’s figures at 600-plus entries with roughly $50,000 being paid out in prize money. She’s anticipating those numbers to go up this year.

“I tried to bring back what I did last year,” Jim said of the upcoming 111th Northern Navajo Fair, which starts this week. “The cowboys really enjoy getting that 100 percent payback. I also put in a new ground for our rodeo. We also had our hospitality tent go up, too. Coming from a professional level, you see that at other prorodeos, and I want our contestants to experience that.”

Since taking over as rodeo coordinator, Jim has worked closely with her committee and she’s excited about the new improvements they’ve made for this year’s fair. The committee installed new handicap ramps, as well as new electric poles.

“I’m trying to take care of the spectators, too,” Jim said. “We put in the new ramp, and I saw it being used and that put a smile to my face.”

As for the new electric poles, the rodeo coordinator says this year they get to pull the switch to turn on the lights. In year’s past they used a generator, which failed last year.

“We got NTUA involved, and we got NECA involved,” Jim said. “It’s the camaraderie of who you rodeo with. We have cowboys that work at NECA, we have cowboys that work at NTUA, and they are willing to help improve the rodeo grounds.

Jim says the rodeo grounds is ready to go as the Northern Navajo Fair will start this week’s festivities with the Women’s and Master’s Rodeo on Thursday at the Shiprock rodeo grounds.

The rodeo will start at 6 p.m. with events ranging from barrel racing, breakaway roping, chute dogging, tie-down roping, team roping and ribbon roping in the Master’s Rodeo.

In the Women’s Rodeo, the rodeo will feature barrel racing, breakaway roping, steer dabbing and team roping.

On Friday, the fair will welcome the youth with the Open Junior Rodeo, which starts at 8 a.m. On that day, the grazing officials from Northern Agency will sponsor a fruit scramble. Beclabito Chapter will be feeding the youth free pizza for the rodeo contestants.

The fair’s featured event, the Open Rodeo, will have three performances on Friday night, Saturday night and Sunday afternoon as well as Sunday slack. The night performances are slated for 6:30 p.m. while Sunday’s slack will start at 8 a.m. and Sunday’s performance at 1 p.m.

“It’s open to the world, meaning anybody can get entered,” Jim said. “This rodeo is a community rodeo, and we hope to draw people from all backgrounds from our Native contestants to our non-Native contestants.”

Jim says the rodeo personnel will be 100 percent Native with the Willie’s Cattle Company, Joe Farland Buckers and the Running B5 Rodeo taking care of the stock. The emcees of the event include two of the area’s best in Roman McCabe and Harland Thompson.

Thanks to CKP Insurance the rodeo committee has increased the added money to $1,000 for the eight standard events and $500 to the minor events.

According to Jim, CKP Insurance donated $40,000 to the rodeo committee. Other sponsors include NECA, APS, Northern Edge Casino, Navajo Gaming and Capital.

“It puts the ease of doing this job as rodeo coordinator,” Jim said of the sponsorships. “We were able to purchase all of the awards. It’s nice when you go to a rodeo knowing that you’re going to get an award.”

Buckles will be awarded to the event winners from Red Bluff Buckles. The all-around cowboy and cowgirl will also receive a buckles.

“I’m just hoping people will come to our rodeo and enjoy it,” Jim said. “I’m trying to take care of everything, cover every ground as the rodeo coordinator.”