PRORODEO Sports News - March 21, 2025

First Frontier Circuit Finals and how difficult it was to find a permanent home for the circuit’s culminating event. But said everything changed for the better when the event moved to Harrisburg over two decades ago. “We really thought the bottom was going to drop out and that somebody was pulling the wool over our eyes because it was way too good to be true,” Harris said. “The facility is great. They have a high school rodeo to start things off, and the culmination of the week is the PRCA rodeo.” Cowboys who win the year-end and average titles at the First Frontier Circuit Finals qualify for the NFR Open in July at Norris Penrose Events Center in Colorado Springs, Colo. For Crane, the circuit system allows him to pursue his rodeo dreams without sacrificing time with his family and running his business for large chunks of the year. “Without the circuit system, I would never have been able to rodeo with any longevity,” Crane said. “I run a business and break 200-300 horses a year… I would have rodeoed for a living, but I didn’t make as much money as I did at my other job. This gives me an opportunity. I love to compete. I love to ride. This was the way for me to partake in the sport that I like.” much about each other.” – Betsy Harris, former First Frontier Circuit president and Cowtown Rodeo owner “Our guys don’t travel West that much, and I’d say it’s more like a family unit. We pretty much know way too

Cowtown Rodeo has become a weekly event in the summer months and is slated to host 19 rodeos and two nights of Xtreme Bulls action from May 24 to Sept. 27. ( PRCA Photo by Andre Silva )

Grant and Betsy Harris took over the Cowtown Rodeo in Woodstown Pilesgrove, N.J., right after they married in 1978 when his father decided to sell the event. Since then, Cowtown has become a weekly event in the summer months and is slated to host 19 rodeos and two nights of Xtreme Bulls action from May 24 to Sept. 27. The 2024 PRCA Small Rodeo of the Year is a staple in the First Frontier Circuit, attracting contestants and fans from across the region. The Painted Pony Championship Rodeo in Lake Luzerne, N.Y., also hosts weekly events in the First Frontier Circuit. “We have a lot of rodeos now with Painted Pony and Cowtown, way more than we did when I was starting,” Harris said. “There’s accessibility for contestants and that’s why we see the same people pretty much all of the time.” Clovis Crane is no stranger to the weekly rodeos in Lake Luzerne and Woodstown Pilesgrove. The all-around cowboy from Lebanon, Penn., purchased his PRCA Card in 2005 and doesn’t plan on slowing down. “Consistency is what separates success from not having success,” he said. “You have to show up every week whether you like it or not. You

have Cowtown every Saturday and the Painted Pony for ten weeks with multiple rodeos per week. “In the First Frontier, consistency is key because there aren’t any big rodeos. There are a lot of $1,000- $2,000 rodeos, and you have to kill them with consistency.” Showing up every week and stringing together checks ultimately earns Northeastern cowboys a shot at bigger paydays and a championship at the First Frontier Circuit Finals Rodeo, held each January at New Holland Arena in Harrisburg, Penn. Crane is a staple in Harrisburg, winning 12 First Frontier year-end titles. He first qualified for the event in 2007 in three events: bareback, saddle bronc and bull riding. He’s one of seven cowboys to win year-end circuit titles in four events (all-around, bareback, saddle bronc and bull riding) and one of two cowboys to win four year-end titles in the same years (2008). “The interesting thing for me about my continued success is that the gap from October to January gives me time to heal up,” Crane said. “It gives me time to focus, get healthy and get strong. It’s a really good thing because I can come in fresh and ride well without being banged up.” Harris recalled the early years of the

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