Kids' Events

Dodge Mutton Bustin’
12:30 p.m.

Boys and girls ages 4-6 gear up with protective vests and helmets and test their riding skills on sheep. The key to success is to hang on!

Entries are limited. Applications to enter Mutton Bustin’ are available at the Tucson Rodeo Committee office, 4823 S. 6th Ave. Call (520) 294-8896 for more information.

Justin Junior Rodeo 1 p.m.

Meet the next generation of rodeo champions! Boys and girls ages 5-12 compete in roping events, steer riding and barrel racing.

REACh Program

A Free Education Program for School Groups
Held at the Tucson Rodeo Grounds

Program information and schedule

Rodeo Education and Children (REACh) is a fun, educational program that celebrates the historic sport of rodeo and the spirit of the American West. This popular program has been offered to Tucson-area elementary schools since1995. There is no charge for the program.

REACh introduces K-6 grade students to all aspects of the exciting sport of rodeo while increasing their awareness of Western heritage and the working cowboy. The instructor uses student participation to demonstrate actual rodeo equipment and rodeo events. Important components of the REACh presentation are its positive and unique substance abuse and gang prevention messages. Students learn to “cowboy up” when faced with difficult choices.

Each program lasts approximately 45 minutes. Penny Conway, the founder of REACh, has presented the program to more than a million children in over 22 states during the past 15 years. She is an Arizona native, as well as a former teacher and rodeo contestant. All of her assistant instructors are also certified elementary educators.

For detailed information about REACh, visit www.reachkids.com.

Students are welcome to bring sack lunches, snacks and beverages. Concession stands will also be open.

All programs are at Tucson Rodeo Grounds, 4823 S. 6th Ave., on the southeast corner of S.6th Ave. and Irvington Road. Free parking for busses and cars.

Attendance is by reservation only

For reservations, contact the Tucson Rodeo office at 741-2233. Or, email your reservation to info@tucsonrodeo.com. Indicate a desired date and time slot, school name, grade, and how many students will be attending, including teachers and parent chaperones. Also include a contact phone number and/or email address.

NOTE: Before or after the program, teachers and students are invited to watch qualifying rounds in the rodeo arena. Events on Monday and Tuesday begin at 8 a.m. and include barrel racing, steer wrestling, tie-down and team roping. Seating is open.

Are cowboys Tough Enough to Wear Pink?

You bet! Cowboys, cowgirls and fans wear pink on Sunday, Feb. 22 to support breast cancer awareness. And, the Tucson Rodeo Committee pledges $10,000 of the day’s proceeds to the Southern Arizona Susan G. Komen Foundation.

Visit the Komen Foundation booth at the Tucson Rodeo Grounds to meet cancer survivors and learn about breast cancer prevention and treatment programs.

Tough Enough to Wear Pink Day at the Tucson Rodeo
Sunday, Feb. 22 – Tucson Rodeo Grounds

Gates open at 11 a.m., rodeo activities begin at 12:30 p.m. Wear your pink shirts, hats…pink anything and everything…and join us!

By convincing rodeo cowboys and cowgirls to sport the color pink during competition, this creative and unlikely breast cancer awareness campaign has raised over $2 million. The Tough Enough To Wear Pink?™ campaign – created by entrepreneur and breast cancer survivor Terry Wheatley – has rodeo competitors and fans alike are wearing pink to rodeos and western events across America.

Learn more about the national Tough Enough to Wear Pink campaign and the activities of the Southern Arizona Susan G. Komen Foundation.

Mike Cervi Jr. Memorial Team Roping

Event Honors Memory of Marana, Ariz. Roper

Wednesday, Feb. 25, 11 a.m.
Tucson Rodeo Grounds
$10 admission at the gate

In February 2008, one hundred teams started the day which ended with Trevor Brazile and Patrick Smith each taking home $17,320 and the Justin Cowboy Crisis Fund receiving over $10,000. The five-head progressive team roping, held in honor of the late roper Mike Cervi Jr. of Marana, Ariz,. is an annual get together of the sport’s super loopers. Admission proceeds benefit the Justin Cowboy Crisis Fund.

The rodeo community suffered a great loss in September 2001 when 30-year old pro roper Mike Cervi Jr. perished in a private plane crash in Marshfield, Wis. Cervi’s wife Sherry, with the help of her father Mel Potter and Tucson roper George Aros, created the Mike Cervi Jr. Memorial Team Roping. Sherry Cervi is a two-time world champion barrel racer and Potter is an agricultural businessman and former professional cowboy. Cervi Jr. had relocated to Marana, Ariz., home of his wife Sherry and her family.

The annual jackpot team roping has been held during rodeo week since the early 80s. The event was previously named the Aros Roping Classic and the Tubac Championship Roping. Aros quickly agreed to change the event name when Sherry Cervi expressed her intent to establish an event in her husband’s honor.

Mike Cervi’s rodeo roots began at birth. Mike Cervi Sr. is a prominent rodeo producer and stock contractor based in Colorado. The Professional Rodeo Cowboys Association (PRCA) named Cervi Sr. stock contractor of the year in 2002.

Cervi grew up in California with his mother DeAnne Garibaldi and spent summers at his father’s ranches in Colorado. He attended college at Sacramento State University on a football scholarship. He played quarterback. But Cervi opted for a cowboy career and earned his PRCA membership in 1994.

Cervi’s best year as a pro was in 1999 when he just missed the top-15 cut for the National Finals Rodeo, finishing number 16 on the money list. At the time of his death, Cervi was leading the heading standings in the Great Lakes Circuit. In addition to rodeo, Cervi was also active learning the ins and outs of the business world from his father-in-law, Mel Potter.