I have been working on getting a rodeo team started at UT this past year along with three other ambitious students that I met over the summer. After starting a facebook page and spreading the word in every way we could think of, the club actually grew to about ten members. I was the only member who was able to compete in actual college rodeos last year though. I ran my horse, Vegas, in the barrel racing competition, and we ended up 5th out of about 100 barrel racers at the end of the year. I am expecting at least 4 to 6 more people to start competing with me next year from UT. The more students we can get from UT to compete, the closer we will be to having a school recognized college rodeo team. UT is one of the few large schools that does not have a college rodeo team (Tech, A&M, OSU, etc..) Back in the 1950s, UT had a large team that competed against other schools and even put on their own rodeo for the University right here in Austin.
The word is spreading slowly. Nevertheless, thanks to Longhorn Network, who filmed a special on our club, and the Austin Statesman, who wrote an article about us in the sports section of the newspaper, the UT rodeo team has been positively publicized. Although we have existed for one year, the potential and necessity for a UT rodeo team is inevitable, considering UT's rich western traditions and heritage.
ZL,
Janie Johnson PC '12
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