Fasten your belt buckles and slap on your cattleman hat, the annual rodeo is set to begin this weekend in East County.
Returning for the first time since 2019, the 27th annual Elma Indoor Pro Rodeo will be commencing its three-day festivities at the Grays Harbor Fairgrounds.
The event, which will be held inside the Mark Murphy Pavilion and is sponsored by the Grays Harbor Mounted Posse in coordination with the Northwest Professional Rodeo Association (NPRA), will feature a multitude of competitions ranging from bull riding, horse bucking, steer wrestling, and calf roping among other things.
Marv Cole, who serves as the treasurer for the Grays Harbor Mounted Posse, expressed his excitement for the return of the annual rodeo after pandemic restrictions prevented the organization from hosting the event the last three years. He expects a massive crowd just like in previous years to fill up the arena.
“We typically see good attendance with this rodeo as it used to be one of the first ones of the year for the NPRA. The pavilion typically holds 1,500 to 2,000 people and we pretty much sell every Saturday ticket we have available,” Cole said. “It’s a fun event and once people found out we were putting it on again this year, they just went crazy buying tickets.”
According to Cole, more than 1,500 tickets have been sold for the rodeo, indicating that the majority of what remains are for the Friday night showing as well as for Sunday afternoon. While the Saturday night event typically sees the most ticket buyers given the live music appearances from local bands like Humptulips, as well as a dancing event and the implementation of a beer garden, Cole notes that Sunday is designated as Kid’s Day.
Kids of any age can participate in stick horse races and gunny sack races for a chance to win a bike as well as enjoy a plethora of activities such as horseshoe toss, face painting, gold mining and a bounce house. With the Grays Harbor Mounted Posse being a nonprofit organization, Cole was adamant to express that all funds raised go back into the community.
“Every dime that we make from this event goes to kid’s organizations across Grays Harbor County such as 4-H and high school equestrian teams as well as local food banks and other charities that we can partner up with,” Cole said.
Contact Reporter Allen Leister at 360-463-3572 or allen.leister@thedailyworld.com
If you want to go:
For people looking to attend the Elma Indoor Pro Rodeo this weekend at the Grays Harbor Fairgrounds, doors will open at 5 p.m. and the rodeo will start at 7 p.m. on Friday, March 24, and Saturday, March 25. On Sunday, March 26, the rodeo will commence at 2 p.m. with kid’s activities being held from 10:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m.
Tickets can only be bought from Les Schwab East Grays Harbor, Les Schwab West Grays Harbor, Les Schwab Elma, Elma Feed and Montesano Farm Supplies. Prices range from $15 to free depending on age and family pack tickets which consist of two adults and two children are $35. Guests are advised to arrive early for the best parking conditions.
