06/06/2024
Below was posted on Facebook by my friend, AB Cox. I salute him for his post, that I believe tells of the times that helped to continue the heritage of the Nebraska Sandhillers.
Please enjoy AB’s post below.
A while back you had asked for stories about Corrine Williams
This happened about 50 pounds ago when I was 16 or 17.
Nebraska only had six or eight high school rodeos a year,and that concluded with the big rodeo at Harrison Nebraska. There if you qualified in the top four you made the National High School Finals Rodeo.
They also had FFA rodeos and county kids rodeo that were jackpots of sorts . These had a cash entry fee and paid cash.
They had a couple of little britches rodeo’s. One of these was in North Platte Nebraska. It was produced by Hudsons out of Kansas.
Now back then some of the rodeos would have cow or steer riding , as bucking bulls were a little harder to come by.
Hudsons had a string of bulls. This pleased us.
The Thedford high school rodeo’s actually bucked Fred Johnson’s range bulls. Some of these were Hereford. Some were Angus. Some bucked, some didn’t.
Fred Johnson was a famous Sandhill Nebraska cowboy whose sons ,daughter , grandsons ,and great grandsons have dominated in Rodeo circles for decades.
Nordon, Circle C Days in Cody, Eddyville, Funk , and other Punkin Rollers would have cow ridings . These might constitute a Rodeo of sorts. They might ride a bunch of cows , rope a few calves, and have a Barrel horse race, maybe a hide race, whatever they could dream up.
These were pretty much open to the worlds affairs, and they might get 50 or 60 entries. Everybody entered whether you had a cowboy background or not , man, woman and child.
Some of the cow Ridings you actually had to mark them out, this helped the judges as the bulk of the cows bucked about the same. My buddy Ken Eby could really spur a cow. Some of them bucked pretty good.
Often times they didn’t even have bull ropes, maybe a halter rope with a Hondo or bowline tied into it, a soft cotton rope with an eye braided, and old fencing glove, hat, or no hat, spurs or slick heels. Short sleeve shirts, no shirt
“ Let’er Buck !”
But a Little Britches Rodeo was a full-fledged production , all standard events. Hudson had bulls , good stock and ran a tight show.
If you didn’t have much money or equipment, you could enter bulls and ba****ck riding.
Not from a rodeo family , I borrowed everything except boots and hat, even idea to enter I borrowed from Jerry Harms and Ken Eby. They actually gave me lots of ideas over the years… some of which I regret.
Ropes , spurs , gloves , borrowed. Well not the money to enter . I worked at a grocery store 20 hours a week during the school year at one dollar an hour.
Back then , you could still get a fairly good crowd, as they didn’t have near as many rodeos. In case you haven’t heard North Platte is a Rodeo town .This North Platte little britches show had a contract act , a woman by the name of Corrine Williams. Corrine did some trick riding AND bulldogged a steer.
Now, when it came time for her to bulldog this steer , believe you me, everyone was watching. You cannot fake a bulldogging run, even if it was a pup, which it really wasn’t. There is only one speed in bulldogging and that is full bore. You might be able to night latch and hobble your stirrups in the bronc riding to get an edge, but not bulldogging. She caught him quick, kept her feet and bull dogged him .
I had drawn a bull by the name of Juicy Fruit. My rough stock career lasted about 30 pounds , I was sticky for a few years…. could get my spurs out of the D’s into the mane once in a while . I won a handful of buckles, and one all-around. As I matured and grew into manhood, I could not ride the slivers off of a stick horse.
Oddly enough, I only remember the name of two bulls , Juicy Fruit and a bull by the name of Easy Money that I drew at an McComb amateur rodeo a few years later and placed, maybe the last time I placed in the bull riding.
When I went to find the bull,Corrine Williams was sitting on the front of the chute. If I could describe her in one word … Corrine was a tall pretty blonde . Soft blonde hair to her shoulders , tanned , no sleeves shirt , smelled like baby powder and Absorbine. She was absolutely the buffest , fit , muscular woman I had ever seen .
Jerry Dan dropped his rope down inside, and we pulled it up with a hook.
Juicy Fruit was a fair size Brahmer cross with a hump and muscles that ran on down his back. They were muscles right behind his neck and shoulders,that’s where we set the rope.
About this time Corrine spoke up and told us to move the rope further back behind the muscles in the back . It looked a little far back to me. Now I might’ve been a young wise ass, but I was wise enough to listen to someone who obviously knew what they were doing. After all I had seen her bulldog a steer earlier in the show.
She told me he would buck to the left in a big circle.
She went ahead , pulled my rope, gave me a little bubble. Slapped me on the back and said “Jump at your rope “
I won second.
