Princess Elizabeth Clark, left, and Queen Jadyn Mitchell and will appear at the 2021 Methow Valley Rodeo on Memorial Day Weekend.
It’s been more than a year and a half since the last Methow Valley Rodeo, on Labor Day weekend in 2019. The broncs and bulls will return to action this Memorial Day weekend with two days of action, including “junior rodeo” events for kids.
As in the past, the rodeo will be staged on Saturday and Sunday (May 29-30) of Memorial Day weekend.
Both the Memorial Day and Labor Day Methow Valley Rodeos were canceled last year because of COVID protocols – the first time since the annual event was launched in 1971 that there were no rodeos staged. Dennis Gardner, president of the sponsoring Methow Valley Horsemen (MVH) board of directors, said earlier that he anticipates that the Labor Day Rodeo will also return.
Gardner also said earlier that rodeo will likely have extra hand-washing stations, and that attendees will be encouraged to maintain appropriate social distancing. He said rodeo organizers would not require attendees to wear masks. Under the state’s existing Phase 3 guidelines, outdoor sporting events are limited to 400 people.
Last year’s rodeo royalty – Queen Jadyn Mitchell and Princess Elizabeth Clark, both juniors at Liberty Bell High School – were not able to take part in or promote the events. Both will be back this year.
In 2015, the Labor Day Rodeo was called off because of poor air quality conditions in the valley resulting from wildland fires, the only cancelation previous to 2020.
The rodeo starts at 1 p.m. each day. Tickets are $10 for adults, $5 for kids ages 7-12, and free for kids 6 and younger. The Rodeo grounds are on Brengman Road off of Twin Lakes Road, between Winthrop and Twisp. For more information, visit www.methowvalleyrodeo.com.
