Rodeo in Upstate NY:

Cleveland, N.Y. – When Kendra Duggleby, 26, first dreamed of hosting a rodeo in her small hometown of Cleveland, N.Y., she wasn’t thinking small. She wanted to create something unforgettable. Something that would bring families together, draw riders from across the state, and give locals a chance to experience the magic of rodeo without traveling across the country.

Just two years in, the North Shore Rodeo has done exactly that.

The two-day event held at the Duggleby’s farm in June drew around 4,000 spectators. That’s more than five times the number of people who live in the tiny Oswego County village of Cleveland on the north shore of Oneida Lake.

Duggleby’s family purchased the property, called North Riding, in the late 1990s. They restored an early 20th Century barn and turned it into an elegant wedding and event space. The farm includes 176 acres of fields and woods overlooking Oneida Lake and offers boarding, lessons and a training facility.

Complete with vendors, food, music and full rodeo action, the rodeo has become a summertime destination. The competition is open to cowboys and cowgirls of all ages. The men typically showcase their skills in bull riding, calf roping, and saddle bronc riding events, while the women dominate the barrel racing and breakaway roping events.

Duggleby is among a rising group of women shaping the future of rodeo in New York State.

“I didn’t want it to be just a rodeo,” Duggleby said. “I wanted it to be something where the whole family could come and enjoy.”

Duggleby said her siblings, Kierstin and Kyle, have been instrumental in bringing the event to life, especially when it comes to manual labor and event prep.

While Duggleby and her siblings grew up riding horses – first in barrel racing and later in hunter-jumper competitions – rodeo wasn’t part of their world until recently.

Duggleby connected with several rodeo producers, but it was Shanna Graham who gave her the confidence to move forward with planning her own event.

Graham is a veteran of the rodeo circuit and co-owner of the Painted Pony Rodeo, one of the Northeast’s leading rodeo organizations based in Lake Luzerne, N.Y. She and her husband, Shawn, have been promoting rodeos across the East Coast since 2001. 

As part of their revitalization efforts they rebuilt the Longhorn Saloon, a Western-style bar and live entertainment venue on the rodeo grounds that had been destroyed by fire. The Grahams also expanded the Painted Pony into a traveling rodeo show, producing professional-level events across New York, Pennsylvania, New Jersey and surrounding states from spring through fall.

“Shanna (Graham) was the one who made me feel comfortable from the start,” Duggleby said. “She answered every single question I had, and I had a thousand questions.”

Graham, whose three children are all involved in rodeo, believes women have always played a central role in the sport — from the founding of the Women’s Professional Rodeo Association to today’s growing community of barrel racers and breakaway ropers.

“Don’t sit on the sidelines,” Graham said. “Find your way to the back and talk to the women who are already in it. They want to bring you in. They want it to survive and grow,” she added.

One of the rising stars of the next generation is Emma Gutchess, named Miss Rodeo New York 2023. Originally from Parish, N.Y., Gutchess didn’t grow up in rodeo. She discovered it during the COVID-19 pandemic and took a chance by entering the state pageant without knowing where it would lead. Now, she’s a familiar face in the rodeo scene and helps people like Duggleby and Graham find each other.

“I really took the fact that I didn’t grow up in rodeo and owned it,” Gutchess said. “I wasn’t afraid to admit I didn’t know everything. I just wanted to learn and help people the way others helped me.”

Her platform, “Find Your Frontier,” encourages young girls to pursue their dreams both in and out of the arena by promoting personal empowerment, mentorship and the belief that background should never limit potential. 

Drawing from her own experience entering the rodeo world without prior knowledge, Gutchess emphasizes that asking questions, breaking barriers and working hard can lead to success in any field. “It doesn’t matter where you come from, and it doesn’t matter how old you are, go ride a horse, go do whatever you want,” she said.

She’s quick to note that women’s events — particularly barrel racing and breakaway roping — are some of the biggest crowd favorites.

Barrel racing is a fast-paced event where riders race around three barrels in a cloverleaf pattern, while breakaway roping challenges competitors to rope a running calf in the shortest time possible.

“The crowd loves it. Women’s events are taking the world by storm,” she said. “Everywhere I go, I ask kids what their favorite event is, and it’s always 50/50 between bull riding and barrel racing.”

That sense of community runs deep. For 13-year-old Tiffany Shults, Lil’ Miss Rodeo New York, it’s her favorite part of rodeo life.

“We’re all a big family,” she said. “Everyone helps each other out.”

That same spirit was echoed by Kyler Langhorn, a pony ride assistant from Jordan, N.Y., who said the women bring an energy that lights up the arena.

“They bring a lot of fun, laughter, bright colors. I feel like the women just make it more fun,” she said.

Among the top competitors at this year’s event was 15-year-old Madalyn Wakeman, of Syracuse. She won the barrel racing event with a time of 14.832 seconds in her first-ever rodeo competition, which was .2 seconds faster than any of the other riders times. 

Meanwhile, 20-year-old trick rider Courtney Schum, who grew up near Buffalo and now studies at Murray State University in Kentucky, performed stunts on horseback that thrilled the crowd.

“I love engaging with the crowd and being a team with the horses,” Schum said.

The North Shore Rodeo may still be young, but it’s quickly becoming a symbol of what women can achieve in the rodeo world, from producers and performers to community mentors and future stars. Duggleby is already making plans for next year’s rodeo, with many spectators already taking to social media to ask, “Same time again next year?”