George Taylor never really considered himself a cowboy, but that didn’t stop him from taking over as the Professional Rodeo Cowboys Association (PRCA) chief executive officer in January 2018.
The 58-year-old grew up in a small agricultural town in central Illinois and had been to two rodeos, but that’s where his cowboy background ended before moving over to the PRCA.
Taylor had previously been a company officer and vice president for Caterpillar, the construction and equipment company. But the PRCA was looking for more of a businessman, and Taylor fit the bill.
“I had just retired with Caterpillar, where I was the chief marketing officer, and I knew that I wanted to make a contribution to something meaningful going forward,” Taylor said.
“I was very interested because we love the West, we love the Western lifestyle and they said they wanted a business person — and I certainly fit that qualification. They said, ‘We have plenty of cowboys.’”
Taylor has taken the last year to really learn about the cowboys, committees and how to best serve the organization. Over the last year, he has attended several rodeos, but had never been to the Tucson Rodeo until Sunday.
But he almost didn’t make it.
The CEO was scheduled to arrive Friday night for the first performance Saturday, but his flight out of Colorado was canceled due to inclement weather. Taylor was finally able to fly into Tucson late Saturday.
“Everybody has just talked to me about the history of the (Tucson) rodeo and the number of fans that we have here in the rodeo and the tradition that’s represented, quite frankly, by the Tucson rodeo,” Taylor said.
“And the way the community supports it. I thought it was interesting, they said they actually let the kids out of school to come to the rodeo.”
Even though Taylor’s trip was cut short — his flight out was scheduled for Sunday night — he wanted to make sure to witness what he believes makes the Tucson rodeo so special: the way the rodeo is integrated into the community and has become a staple in town.
“So, that only means I have to come back next year,” Taylor said.
As far as his longevity with the PRCA, Taylor said he hopes to be at the helm for as long as they’ll have him.
Taylor said he hopes to help make sure the rodeo stays strong for decades to come and not become the next Kodak or Blockbuster Video — companies that struggled to keep up with the digital age and have collapsed.
“I’ve worked at these iconic organizations that have such huge history and legacy that have figured out how to balance, preserving that history and legacy, while still changing to meet the entertainment desires of the next generation,” Taylor said. “It’s a complicated formula.”
Notable
Connor Hamilton took the overall lead Sunday with an 89.00 ride in the bareback riding event. Three other cowboys posted 80-plus scores.
- Brady Buum came out the steer wrestling winner in the second performance with a time of 10.7 seconds.
- The duo of Justin Farber and Calgary Smith had the fastest time of 6.8 seconds in the team roping event, which is the best time after two days of performances.
- Spencer Wright, one of the nine Wright family members competing in the Tucson rodeo this year, went up against four of his family members in saddle bronc riding. After two other Wrights posted scores of 83 to tie for the lead, Spencer rode Nutrena’s Red Man and came out the leader with an 85.5 score.
“I think I just outdrew everybody today. That horse has been around forever and I’ve always wanted to draw him. He’s a great horse and I’m glad it worked out. Everybody else did good, too.”
- Colton Farquer posted the best time of Sunday’s tie-down roping event, 10.6 seconds.
- Seven contestants finished the women’s barrel racing within 32 hundredths of a second, but Cheyenne Wimberley was the fastest of them all with a time of 17.51 seconds.
- Tim Bingham was able to stay on Twizzler for eight seconds — and not a millisecond longer. But that’s all that’s needed in the bull riding event, and the tough ride served to Bingham’s favor. The Utah native scored an 84.50 to take over the leaderboard after two days.
