Dance With Your Spurs On

“Go west young man…” the advice given by a New York newspaper editor in 1854 to a young man seeking a promising future in a land still untamed in many parts.

Sage advice 170 years ago, and if you have a father whose heroes have always been cowboys, it can still resonate today. Particularly this weekend, particularly Father’s Day.

Kaycee is a small Wyoming town…with a huge reputation. One of the last unspoiled places in the American west, where the rolling great plains meet the towering Bighorn Mountains. It’s Outlaw Country. Standing on the middle fork of the Powder River, in the heart of cattle-rearing territory, it was the epicentre of the infamous Johnson County range war of the 1890’s. It’s also the gateway to ‘Red Wall Country’, where outlaws Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid spent time with their Hole in the Wall gang, those characters we all remember from that classic movie, including Flat Nose Currie, Tom O’Day, and the notorious Harvey Logan.

‘Western Skies’, the life-sized sculpture depicting World Champion bareback bronc rider, Chris LeDoux, in Kaycee, Wyoming. Picture: Chris Lawson

But more up-to-date, Kaycee is renowned as home to Chris LeDoux, the 1976 world bareback riding champion who made a hugely successful career change to an award-winning and influential country music star. LeDoux’s life was tragically cut short by cancer, but his legacy lives on. A life-size sculpture in LeDoux Park depicts this local hero in classic rodeo action while the title, ‘Western Skies’, recalls one of his most memorable country hits.

The LeDoux legacy continues each year over Father’s Day weekend. Organised largely by the LeDoux family, most of whom remain a huge part of the local community, it is Father’s Day when they come together to celebrate their father and the life he chose.

The annual Chris LeDoux Days rodeo and street concert attracts not just the top bronc riders on the national rodeo circuit, but thousands of country fans who rock up to keep alive LeDoux’s country sound.

Kids barrel racing during the Chris LeDoux Days rodeo. Picture: Chris Lawson

The weekend starts on Friday evening with local riders plying their skills in the rodeo arena. Saturday steps up a gear with top riders contesting bareback and saddle bronc riding, break-away roping, and kids barrel racing…and these kids are fast!

Rodeo is a sport born from the cowboy way of life…long the symbol of the American spirit.

Evoking images of rugged individuals, hard work, and an enduring sense of adventure, the rodeo still embodies the spirit of the old West. The main players of this wild and unpredictable sport retain a connection to ranching and the skills and talents required to work with livestock. In a bland digital age, these rodeo heroes draw a huge crowd wherever they go, a testament that cowboys still exist. Far from being a fringe culture, they are part of the fabric of an American West that is alive and still kicking.

Devan Reilly, shows what it takes to win the bronc riding. Picture: Chris Lawson

Up close, theirs is a world of camaraderie and fierce competition. Competing against themselves as much as each other, they often pray together before psyching themselves up for the next ride. Information is shared on how to cope with cantankerous broncs, and the first to rush in when danger rears will be a fellow competitor. Theirs is an intimate world of shared dangers, experiences, and often injuries. A unique fraternity. In short…you could say they’re nuts!

The British Horseracing Authority would never let a jockey ride with injuries like this! Picture: Chris Lawson

As the sun sets the only road through town is shut and the stage is set. Ned LeDoux, one of five LeDoux siblings and the headline act, bounces on stage, launching into a stirring rendition of ‘Cowboy Life’, his signature hit with lyrics perfectly evoking the rodeo rider’s raison d’etre……

Remember how it felt, throwing caution to the wind
Hanging on the ragged edge, now it’s coming back again
Feel the cold sweat trickle down
Hot blood in your veins
A little past your prime, the rush is still the same

Ned LeDoux urges the crowds to dance with their spurs on at the Chris LeDoux Days annual rodeo and concert. Picture: Chris Lawson

It’s a celebration of not just one man’s life and legacy, but a way of life, and the people who still live it. So, if you’re looking for a unique way of celebrating Father’s Day with the most important man in your life, take a trip to Kaycee, Wyoming, where for at least one weekend each year, you can celebrate the spirit of the American West…and dance with your spurs on!

The 13th Annual Chris LeDoux Days will be held in Kaycee, Wyoming, June 14-15, 2024. More info: https://chrisledoux.com/