PFRA Kicks Off Wrangler Tour

The Wrangler Million Dollar Tour is back in town. Tuesday night, the Pocatello Frontier Rodeo Association got things off the ground with the annual rodeo kickoff party.

The rodeo queens cut the ribbon, and it was official: The Western Frontier Pro Rodeo is here.

Miss Rodeo Idaho 2012 Caitlin Thornton said she is excited to be back for the Wrangler Tour’s second year.

“Well, I love this rodeo. I was able to come here last year and we had a blast. The fans are amazing and the more the fans get into it, the more the cowboys get into it,” Thornton said.

The rodeo queens are from all over the country, and they’re not just a bunch of pretty faces.

“(Rodeo organizers) want to make sure that no matter where we are in the country, we can get on just about any horse that’s thrown at us,” she said.

Bullfighter Cody Webster has to make sure he’s ready for any bull that gets thrown at him. He’s the guy who catches the angry bulls after a contestant ends a run.

“It’s not so much thinking, it’s more reaction, because the time you start thinking is when they got you. It’s all reaction time,” Webster said.

The Oklahoma native has to train heavily for this full-time job.

Rodeo clown Justin Rumford works full time, too, but said his position is a little less physical.

“I don’t have to run from the bulls, which is good because I’m kind of chubby. (I) can’t run real fast,” Rumford said, joking about himself.

Rumford’s dad competed in the rodeo in 1995 when Rumford was a teenager. He’s happy to spend his breakout year in the Gate City.

“I always thought, ‘Man it would be neat to be back here and work this rodeo some way or another.’ Finally, all these years later, I’m back here and getting to do it, so it’s kind of a big achievement,” he said.

Rumford also said he’s most excited for the Extreme Bulls. The event will have some of the best stock in the country, he said.

Extreme Bulls starts Wednesday night at 7 p.m. in Holt Arena.