Buffalo Bill Rodeo kicks off with more than 500 cowboys and cowgirls

More than 500 professional cowboys and cowgirls will make North Platte one of their stops this weekend as they chase their dreams of a gold buckle and winnings.

They come from near and far; a few will pass through town, while others will live in Hawaii and Australia.

North Platte Cowgirl Stacey Hansen doesn’t have many miles to run barrels this weekend.

The 43-year-old grew up in Smolan, Kansas and moved to North Platte in 2007 when she married her husband, Trent Hansen.

This year will be her first time competing in the Buffalo Bill Rodeo, mainly because she has a horse with the skills needed to succeed at the professional level.

Rodeos have a different vibe than jackpot events: they can be loud, with lots of people around.

Slingshot’s personality is “a little bit vigilant,” she said. “He’s suspicious of things.” Hansen will drive him to the arena before the show starts, letting him look around so he feels more comfortable during barrel racing.

She and Trent have two daughters: Haidyn, fourteen, and Harper, eight. Haidyn races sprint cars while Harper enjoys equestrian activities. She and her husband “divide forces” on weekends; Trent takes Haidyn shopping, while Harper accompanies her mother.

The girls’ different interests require a lot of fuel as each parent takes them to their activities. “We need a fuel sponsor,” Hansen laughed.

Hansen teaches at Adams Middle School in North Platte. She will compete during the slack on Thursday June 13.

For Merriman, Neb. bareback rider Garrett Shadboltlast year did not go as planned.

After competing in the Wrangler National Finals the previous two years, he broke his leg in June 2023 while rafting down the Niobrara River, just a week before the Buffalo Bill Rodeo.

By the time he was healed, the heaviest part of the rodeo season was over and it would take him a long time to catch up with the top fifteen riders, so he stayed home.

Now he’s back. Shadbolt did well at winter rodeos, winning the National Western Rodeo in Denver and finishing as reserve champion at Rodeo Houston. It’s been a slow spring, but rodeo season is about to start in earnest.

“I’m committed pretty seriously to the Fourth of July,” he said. “I’ll just have to go and be gone for a while.”

It is increasingly difficult to leave the house for him who, with his wife Katie, has three children, a son and two daughters, aged under four.

Leaving the ranch, where he represents the fifth generation of Shadbolts, is difficult, but once he hits the road, it gets easier.

“Once I get going and stay out of the way (on the road), it’s easier than going back and forth.”

The 28-year-old has won the Buffalo Bill Rodeo twice (2021-22) and is ranked seventh in the world rankings.

Like barrel racer Hansen, Sam Daly will make its first competitive appearance at the Buffalo Bill Rodeo.

The nineteen-year-old cowboy grew up in Tabor, Iowa, with his mother, Elizabeth Shirley, but spent vacations and summers with his father, Mike Daly, on the family ranch near Tryon.

A steer wrestler, Daly competed in a high school rodeo in Iowa and qualified for the National High School Finals Rodeo all four years of high school.

Competing in the professional ranks is different than in high school and college, Daly said. On the one hand, the competition is tougher.

“It’s a jump from small-town guys to big (name) guys,” he said. But it’s also motivating.

“When you see a steer wrestler go out and play four (seconds) flat, you encourage him, but at the same time you want to go out and be a 3.9. You want to work that much harder to match him.

Daly is a student at Pratt (Kan.) Community College, rodeo and majors in animal science. He is the grandson of Art Daly, rancher, rodeo entertainer and musician who died in 2014.

The rodeo competition will begin on Wednesday, June 12 and continue each evening until June 15. Shows start at 8 p.m. Slack, the additional competition which does not fit into the evening performances, will take place on June 12 and 13 at 8 a.m. each day.

The rodeo takes place at the Wild West Arena in North Platte.

Ticket prices range from $11 to $24 and can be purchased online at NebraskalandDays.com, at the NebraskalandDays office and at the door.

For more information and a complete schedule of NebraskalandDays events, visit the website or call the office at 308.532.7939.