Sugar Boom, Black Belt, and Joe Joe - they’re just three of the top bucking bulls riders will be hoping to draw out of a cowboy hat to ride at the Hawke’s Bay Country Round Up this weekend.
The rodeo is set to take place at the Tōmoana Showgrounds
Hawke’s Bay Country Round Up: Bulls and broncs to delight at Hastings Showgrounds
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“Our goal is to make it a bit more than just a rodeo, and build up every year and have a bit of entertainment, something that no other rodeo in New Zealand does, and really create a good experience for the crowd.”
Whitelock said competitors would tackle bull riding, saddle bronc, bareback, roping, barrel racing and steer wrestling.
He said horses came to the event from Wairoa and the Waikato, and Jonny Ward of Central Hawke’s Bay supplied the bulls.
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Whitelock, who will compete in the open saddle bronc, said the horses were “the best animal athletes”, which still gave him a slight adrenaline rush after a decade of competitions.
“In the paddock, they are your mates, they will come up for a pat, and they’re friendly.
“We give them another life and look after them, and all they have to do is come out and buck a couple times of year, and the rest of the year they are up in the hills eating nice fresh grass and living their best life.”
He said the club hoped to capitalise on the recent rise in popularity of cowboy culture.
“The whole world has gone country, with the help of [TV show]Yellowstone and things like that, the country music scene is building, and everyone is wearing boots and jeans... it’s really good for rodeo and really good to see.”
Whitelock said there was always the chance that the rodeo’s arrival would stir controversy in the community.
“At the end of the day, there is always that crowd that doesn’t agree with what we do, but we just try to ignore them.
“They are a minority, you look at the 10 people standing outside with signs compared to the 7000 people inside enjoying themselves, it’s just something you have to deal with and we don’t go about it in a mean way.”
He said there had been a few changes to the event that came with a few first-year teething problems, and this year organisers had changed seating, layout, and parking.
“There will be a lot more parking, which seemed to be a bit of a problem; we unfortunately had to shut the gates last year due to the parking numbers, but we have organised and secured extra parking.”
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Whitelock said there would also be food trucks, club merchandise, stalls and a bar on site.
Tickets can be purchased online to guarantee entry until 12pm from the official Hawke’s Bay Rodeo Club Facebook page.
Michaela Gower joined Hawke’s Bay Today in 2023 and is based out of the Hastings newsroom. She covers Dannevirke and Hawke’s Bay news and loves sharing stories about farming and rural communities.