Lifetime Leaders of Rodeo & Ranching Rodeo Ranching Great Westerner Western Entertaiment & Arts Rodeo Producers & Livestock Special Achievement Cowboy Long Rider Legacy Award

Special Achievement

Home on the Range Champions' Ride Match
2000 Hall of Fame Special Achievement Inductee

  Since 1957, rodeo fans, families and the country's top cowboys have been making the trip to Western North Dakota for an afternoon of bronc riding action at the Champions' Ride Match at Home on the Range near Sentinel Butte. The rodeo benefits the boys and girls living at Home on the Range, where the rodeo is held. The ranch, established as a home for troubled children by Father Elwood Cassidy, observed its 50th anniversary in 2000.

 Nestled in the rolling hills of southwestern North Dakota, the Home on the Range arena boasts natural hillside seating--western, the way it used to be when the sport of rodeo was in its infancy. Cowboys who ride in splendid coliseums and state-of-the-art arenas savor the no-frills atmosphere of the Champions' Ride. The rodeo spirit seems more alive, and the world-class bucking stock performs best at Home on the Range.

 Two area ranchers and rodeo cowboys, Jim and Tom Tescher, proposed the idea of a saddle bronc match to Father William Fahnlander to raise money for the ranch. Future World Champion Saddle Bronc rider Alvin Nelson and Bill Martin, Harley Roth and Bill Law joined the effort. Former North Dakota Lieutenant Governor Ray Schnell and his sons, Raymond and Willard, managed the event. Cy Taillon served as announcer, reporting the scores made on stock provided by Harley Roth, Jim Madden, the Fettig Brothers and John Steen.
The Champions' Ride, one of the nation's few remaining saddle bronc matches, has been compared to baseball's all-star game--the best horses against the best cowboys. It's also viewed as a preview of the National Finals Rodeo because many of the same broncs and cowboys will go on to the NFR.

 A partial list of Champions' Ride Match Rodeo winners reads like a "who's who of rodeo"--Alvin Nelson, Duane Howard, Pete Fredericks, Jim and Tom Tescher, Brad Gjermundson, Robert Etbauer, Dan Mortensen and Ty Murray. When asked why they come to the Champions' Ride, the cowboys have two answers--the horses and the kids. They appreciate the opportunity to draw famous saddle broncs, but they're also aware that their participation benefits the residents of Home on the Range. Ultimately, it's the kids who win at this rodeo.