PRORODEO Sports News - May 17, 2019

Cowboy competes and produces rodeos IN HIS WORDS JUSTIN THIGPEN

I had a good winter and spring. I got into some of the bigger rodeos and had some success at them. Being Top 15 gets me set up to come into the summer run. My wife (Laura) and I have been getting our house built and organized. Then I’m probably going to start going again at the Reno (Nev.) Rodeo. The house

of the different ones along the way. But I would think, over the Fourth run, the Greeley (Colo.) Stampede and all those rodeos would be pretty cool. Man, our circuit is really good. We have strong competitors and a really good circuit finals. There is some prestige to win it. I grew up around rodeos. I like all

Justin Thigpen has plenty to keep him busy. The 36-year-old from Waycross, Ga., not only tie-down ropes, steer wrestles and team ropes, but he also puts on rodeos. Thigpen is a stock contractor and puts on rodeos in the Southeast. The Southeastern Circuit is also where he mostly competes. He won the tie-down roping year-end title last season and is leading the circuit again this year. He’s also 15th in the PRCA | RAMWorld Standings in tie-down roping with $29,955. That kind of money might keep him on the rodeo trail longer this season than it has in past seasons.

is still in the process of being built, so I haven’t gone anywhere in about a month because I’ve been trying to get all this stuff done. On our home front, we have an arena and a barn, and now we’re getting to our house on this piece of property. We have 53 acres down here. Maybe everything will be completely done and set up in July. I don’t know how much I’m going to rodeo this season. We’ll see. I put on and produce rodeos down in the Southeast. I have a schedule I have to meet down here with obligations. I’m going to pick around a little and try to go to some of the better ones. We’ll see how it plays out. I’ve never gone out on the Fourth (of July) run. Oh, yeah, I’m thinking about it this year. There are a lot of rodeos I’m looking forward to. I don’t know which one I’ll like the most. I’ve watched them or seen pictures

aspects of it, from the bucking chutes to the roping end. I always wanted to be a stock contractor. About seven or eight years ago, I started producing some, and we’ve been building on that. We do about 10 or 12 rodeos a year. I like it. I have two young kids (Slade, 5, and Trent, 3), and they’re all about it. They call it their rodeos. I want to give back to the sport that has done so much for me. I hope I produce rodeos for years to come. Putting on a rodeo is a different aspect than competing in one. It’s not just showing up at the rodeo, it’s start prepping your committees three and four months out. In one sense, my committees are halfway lucky because I see rodeos of all natures – I see the big ones and the smaller ones. There is good in every one of them. So when you can pick and choose and kind of shoot the ideas, it helps them build and get stronger.

ProRodeo Sports News 5/17/2019

ProRodeo.com

6