A rodeo rush to Wyoming

South Dakotans find new program at Gillette College to liking

By Joe Kavanaugh, Journal correspondent | Saturday, September 06, 2008

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GILLETTE, Wyo. —More and more these days, South Dakota high school rodeo stars, cowboys and cowgirls alike, are saddling up and heading west — to Gillette, Wyo., that is.

The attraction? A new rodeo program, started in 2007, at Gillette College, a community college operated by the Northern Wyoming Community College District.

Last fall, the school decided to journey into the arena of big time intercollegiate athletics and the sport chosen for the initial ride was college rodeo, a unsurprising choice given the cowboy heritage of the state.

Will LaDuke, a Dickinson, N.D., native, was chosen as the team’s first head coach.

Fortunately for the school, and for South Dakota wranglers, LaDuke has a South Dakota background having taught agriculture at Belle Fourche High School and competed in circuit rodeos around the state. Those experiences convinced him that a good rodeo program could be made better by recruiting top hands from South Dakota.

“Having lived in Belle Fourche for quite a few years and taught over there and rodeoed on the Badlands Circuit, I knew a lot of the kids and their families,” he said. “I recruited a lot there because of those connections and because Gillette is nearby and the kids find it an attractive college alternative for them.”

They do, indeed.

Twelve members of this year’s Gillette College rodeo team is made up of South Dakotans, the most of any other state including Wyoming.

Names familiar to West River rodeo fans include Misty McPherson (Piedmont), Brandi Porch (Phillip), Echo Johnson (Buffalo), Chancy Miller (Faith), Chasen Floyd (Buffalo), Cole Elshere (Faith), Paul Palcheski (Buffalo), Tucker Brengle (Buffalo) and Tyson Donavon (Rapid City).

McPherson, a Piedmont native and 2008 Sturgis High School graduate, agrees with LaDuke’s assessment.

“I’ve always wanted to go over to Wyoming and compete, and I kind of wanted to test the water on my own away from home,” she said. “Gillette is far enough away that I could try that and still be close to home to see my family.”

The commitment made to the program by Gillette College has also attracted notice.

Cheyenne Seymour, of Mud Butte, heard about the program through friends who spoke highly of the program.

“They liked the program and said it was a good college to go to. Besides, it’s close to home for a lot of us, and coach LaDuke does a lot for the kids on his team.”

Seymour, who attended college in Powell, Wyo., before making the switch has only one regret.

“I wish I had gone there a couple of years ago,” she said.

When asked about the demise of the rodeo program at National American University and its impact upon his program, LaDuke sees both pros and cons.

“NAU had a really good program and a very successful coach in Glen Lammers who is now at BHSU,” he said. “Glen and I have been friends for a long time but I’m sure we will compete in recruiting and he’ll get some and I'll get some.”

LaDuke feels that the two colleges provide a little different path for kids who wish to attend college while participating in rodeo.

“We have really good technical programs that allow kids to get an associate degree and go get a good job,” LaDuke said.

He feels that South Dakota kids interested in a more traditional college experience will most likely stay in state and attend BHSU or join the rodeo program at SDSU.

“I think the Wyoming economy right now helps, too,” he said. “There are a lot of good jobs over here. The rodeo kids find that attractive.

“It also helps that Gillette College is really behind the rodeo program and provides a lot of scholarship opportunities and a lot of travel money,” LaDuke said. “We like to thing that for kids who find a community college opportunity more to their liking we have much to offer.”