The “Big Hats” are off to a month of Rodeo Fun

Les Sassano welcoming rodeo fans during the Clovis Rodeo. (Photo courtesy of Sassano’s Mens Wear)

Attendees of the 2022 Clovis Rodeo applaud for team roping competition. (Adam Ricardo Solis/Clovis Roundup)

April 11, 2024 – Big Hat Days was just the beginning of Clovis’s April fun. Everyone in town is gearing up for the Last Weekend in April, the Clovis rodeo!

If you don’t have your boots, jeans, and hat yet, there are great local businesses to buy your gear right in Old Town Clovis. Sassano’s Men’s Wear has a great selection of quality goods year-round, and has been keeping cowboy hats on heads for the last 80 years.

For less serious western wear, many local boutiques offer stylish selections as well, and even the B.O.O.T. office on Pollasky Avenue has t-shirts and hats for you to show off your Clovis pride.

The Clovis Rodeo Grand Marshalls for 2024 were announced: Jim and Carole Linenbach. The pair are Clovis lifers who have been married for 50 years.

They support the Clovis high Cougar Foundation, Clovis Rodeo Association,  Big Dry Creek-Clovis Historical Society, and much more. They were both inducted into the Clovis hall of Fame in 2009.

The Linenbachs have deep roots in Clovis, and you’ll see them honored together in the Clovis Rodeo Parade on the morning of Saturday, April 27th.

If you want to skip the parking and ensure that you get to and from the show safely, there will be a shuttle running from the parking lot behind K1 racing at the Sierra Vista Mall to the corner of Veterans Parkway and 4th street.

Wednesday through Friday, the shuttle will run from 4PM to 11:30PM, and on the weekend, from 12PM to 6:30PM.

The main event itself has a lot in store for attendees this year: three concerts on the weeknights, the dance on Saturday, and plenty of PBR and PRCA roping and riding.

Wednesday, April 24th–  Starting off hot with PRCA Xtreme Bull Riding and a concert by Bryan Martin, who made his Grand ole Oprey debut in August 2023, best known for his song “We Ride”. The 2024 Clovis Rodeo Queen will be crowned during the intermission of the show on Wednesday.

Thursday, April 25th– All PRCA events to look forward to: roping, wrestling, saddle and bareback bronc riding, and bulls at the end of the night. For the lady competitors, there’s breakaway roping and barrel racing. Michael Ray is performing after the show.

Friday, April 26th– All PRCA rodeo events again, and Matt Stell to end the Clovis Rodeo concert nights

Saturday, April 27th– The Clovis Rodeo APrade begging at 9AM, and you’ll see the Grand Marshalls, the 2024 Clovis Rodeo Queen, and many great floats and performances, including our local marching bands, color guards, cheer teams, 4-H and FFA clubs, and so many more people from our community. After all the PRCA events, there’s the Clovis Rodeo Dance in the hall, with live music provided by Chris Curtice and the Wild horses.

Sunday, April 28th– The last day of rodeo is Tough Enough to Wear Pink Day, a great time to show off your support for breast cancer awareness, and  there will be a special display for the Clovis Rodeo Association’s Salute to First Responders. All the PRCA events will go on in their final rodeo performance.

Samantha Golden:
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