SANTA MARIA, Calif. - The 82nd Annual Santa Maria Rodeo and Parade continues on Thursday night with a second day of exciting rodeo action set to take place inside the Elks Event Center.
On Wednesday, the Elks officially opened its first-ever five-day long rodeo with a performance that featured Professional Rodeo Cowboys Association (PRCA) Xtreme Bulls.
The bull riding only show was the first of its kind in Santa Maria, and according to Elks Recreation, the non-profit organization that operates the rodeo, the night was a big success.
"We had a great show," said Peter Sterling, Elks Recreation President. "I think it was one of the best. It was brand new for us to have this additional event. And we are very pleased with how it came out."
With the show taking place on a cool Wednesday night, Sterling added the Elks weren't sure how the evening would turn out, but those questions were quickly answered when a near-capacity crowd filled the grandstands and surrounding tent areas.
"It was a great way to kick off our rodeo for this year," said Sterling. "We seem to really have some really good momentum last night, and everything just seemed to click together. The bull riders were excellent. I know the bulls always seem to win, but you know, we had a great time and we are really excited about what what lies in front of us again because if we get the support we got from last night, we're going to be great. It was awesome. We really appreciate everybody that came out and everybody seemed to have a really good time."
While the bulls had their way most of the evening, a handful of cowboys were successful in handing for the required eight seconds to earn a score.
Coming out on top was none than Wacey Schalla, the 19-year-old Oklahoma native who is currently the world's top ranked bull rider.
Schalla was the last rider of the night and just hung on long enough to score 89.5 points to capture first place and a cash prize of about $7,000.
With one night down, four more days remain, including the second night on Thursday, which will feature this year's debut of the traditional rodeo format the Elks have held for decades.
"We're going to have bull riding as part of that," said Sterling. "We're also going to have our calf roping and rough stock bareback, saddle bronc riding and the whole the whole rodeo and the whole package, so it should be a really great rodeo."
The entire show on Thursday through Sunday will feature the always popular mutton bustin’, plus six PRCA events, including team roping, bull rding, bronc riding, bareback riding, tie down roping, steer wrestling, and Women's Professional Rodeo Association (WPRA) barrel racing and breakaway roping.
The rodeo will also include several specialty acts, the Flying Cowboys motorcycle stunt team, junior breakaway roping, Elks team roping and more.
For more information about the 82nd Annual Santa Maria Elks Rodeo and Parade, click here to visit the official website.
Santa Maria Elks Rodeo Continues on Second Day with First Full Performance News Channel 3-12.
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