ProRodeo Sports News June 14th, 2019

SPECIAL SECTION

HEADWATERS PRCA RODEO Park Rapids, Minn. July 6 parkrapidsbullride.com Minnesota wasn’t considered a rodeo state. Randy Jokela has done his best to change that perception. More than 40 years ago, Jokela made it his mission to bring a slice of the Western lifestyle to his state. And he did exactly that. He’s been the staple of the Headwaters PRCA Rodeo in Park Rapids, Minn. This year will be the 41st edition of the rodeo and will take place at the Double J Rodeo Grounds on July 6. There’s an additional $10,000 in the rodeo this year. “This rodeo without a doubt is the largest event of the year in Park Rapids and in our whole region,” said Jokela, who runs Jokela ProWest Productions. “The community loves it. Our hotels and motels and all the resorts on the lakes are sold out. We’ve had crowds of 6,000 per night.” That attendance is impressive since Park Rapids is a town of about 4,000. “If you fly over the Park Rapids area, there’s actually more water than there is land,” he said. “There are dozens of lakes right where we are. I’ve been to a lot of rodeos in the Midwest, and we are trying to move the West a little more east. We call Park Rapids the edge of the West. We are trying to bring that true Western way of rodeo into Park Rapids, and we feel like we have succeeded, as this is our 41st year. We have the real deal here.” Park Rapids is about 80 miles east of Fargo, N.D., and lies square in the heart of northern Minnesota. The town has embraced the rodeo, and subsequently, the Western lifestyle. Preceding the rodeo, Park Rapids will host PRCA Division 2 Xtreme Bull riding July 4-5, which has $20,000 in added money. “We are going to have every branch of the military service represented in

The Headwaters PRCA Rodeo in Park Rapids, Minn., marks its 41st edition and will take place at the Double J Rodeo Grounds. Courtesy Headwaters PRCA Rodeo

the arena on July 4, and we are going to have a flyover,” Jokela said. Jokela is no stranger to the rodeo world. He spent a lot of time growing up in the rodeo-rich town of Red Lodge, Mont. At this year’s rodeo, there will be nightly dances featuring live music. There’s free parking and rustic, overnight camping available. “We have a huge log pavilion, it is about 100 feet long and the deck is about 100 feet long, as well,” Jokela said. “People can stand on the deck during the rodeo, and the dances are held underneath the deck after the shows. We are really looking forward to this year. It should be great.” The rodeo, which is during the PRCA’s lucrative Cowboy Christmas run, will have barrelman and rodeo clown Mark Swingler to entertain the crowd and a halftime show featuring Freestyle Moto X will perform during the Xtreme Bulls and the rodeo.

ProRodeo Sports News 6/14/2019

ProRodeo.com

31