OUTLOOK - The weather may have been grey and rainy, but that didn't stop hundreds of people from attending the sixth annual Riverbank Rodeo in Outlook over Friday and Saturday night, August 8 & 9.
Hosted out at the event's new location by the ball diamonds located behind the Jim Kook Rec Plex, the rodeo seemed to be a hot ticket for many in the riverside community and surrounding area.
A special ribbon cutting utilizing the same pair of ceremonial scissors used to open the doors on Dynamic Autobody's new shop in May took place on the new rodeo grounds between the full rodeo committee, stock contractor William Macza, pickup men Dwight Dokken and Cliff Willick, and longtime sponsors of the event, including the Town of Outlook, comprised of Mayor Ryan Husband and members of town council, Dynamic Autobody, In Good Spirits, Rocky Mountain Equipment, PMC Sales, Primrose Livestock, Riverbend Co-op, and One Eyes Weedery. Before the event kicked off on Friday night, and besides the usual rodeo action, other events such as trick riding by the Harper Sisters kept people entertained at intermission, in addition to visiting with kids and giving out colouring books. Emergency responders joined in the fun, with local RCMP, EMT, and firefighters also there on-site to meet and interact with kids about what they do on the job.
In addition, even the youngest of rodeo hopefuls had a chance to participate with some mutton busting on Saturday afternoon, and Rodeo Queen hopefuls Emma Gubbe and Alorah Eyre were busy meeting people and giving out prizes all weekend, including selling tickets for a pair of muck boots with $1,500 stuffed inside, making for a prize that certainly provided something 'extra'.
What the people came out for though was hard-hitting rodeo action, and that's just what they got over the two night event.
Spectators witnessed some of the best in the events of junior barrel racing, ladies barrel racing, saddle bronc, novice saddle bronc, bareback, novice bareback, tie down roping, break away roping, junior steer riding, steer wrestling, team roping, and bull riding, including riders from the local area such as:
Ladies Barrel Racing
Charlee Kapeller of Beechy
Kelley Byrne of Beechy
Lora-Lee Wick of Strongfield
Junior Barrel Racing
Allee Kapeller of Beechy
Saddle Bronc
Cohen Larson of Macrorie
Break Away Roping
Allee Kapeller of Beechy
Charlee Kapeller of Beechy
Paige Mizu of Conquest
Junior Steer Riding
Emmett Hildebrand of Hanley
Bentley Ponto of Outlook
Kruz Roy of Harris
Steer Wrestling
TJ Loeppky of Central Butte
Team Roping
Travis Griffin of Elbow
Tucker Ayers of Loreburn
Several positive remarks could be heard from those in attendance about the size, scope and accessibility of the new rodeo grounds, pointing to the move being a smart one by the committee. A number of local organizations and community groups who volunteered their time and saw benefits from the rodeo included the Outlook Under-22 Ice Hawks, Outlook Amateur Sports, the Our Saviors Lutheran Church, Outlook Stock Car Association, Outlook & District Heritage Museum, and the Small Steps Early Learning Centre.
In addition, for anyone who couldn't make it out over the weekend, the rodeo action was recorded by camera technicians from Access Communications, so those with a cable TV package from them should keep an eye out for highlights from the 2025 Outlook Riverbank Rodeo on the Access NOW channels.
For a photo gallery of more images from this year's Riverbank Rodeo, CLICK HERE for photos from SaskToday's Derek Ruttle.
