My article and photos of the first annual Stockyards Beef Festival at the 2023 National Western Stock Show in Denver, CO seems to have gained some traction after it was published online by The Fence Post magazine on 01/20/2023. There were a lot of social media shares and interactions, which is a good thing for a great event like that one. You can still find it on The Fence Post’s website.
You can also go straight to Hereford America’s magazine archives and look at the issue there or you can read it right here. It is a good industry magazine and (again) my article starts on Page 51.
I always think it is cool to see any images of mine published, whether in magazine articles or online. It is always nice to see my images used well in advertising, too.
This image of world champion breakaway roper Martha Angelone was used by Mahindra and ROXOR Off Road, who is one of her sponsors. I captured this moment at the big NFR Open in Colorado Springs in 2022.
My article and photos on the championship round of rodeo at the National Western Stock Show in Denver, CO have been published on The Fence Post’s website, and should be in their upcoming print edition. It was a great, high-energy championship round with good story lines. I hope you enjoy the story and photos — https://www.thefencepost.com/news/roping-riding-and-roughstock/
Texas barrel racer Jimmie Smith and 10-year-old “A Valiant Nicky” spun a lightning quick first barrel on their way to a 14.83-second time in the January 22nd championship round to win the 2023 NWSS rodeo. – Image by Lincoln Rogers, 2023
I’m still working on a few more stories from the NWSS and will post them when they are published!
23-year-old Utah cowboy Stetson Wright has taken the rodeo world by storm after getting his feet wet in his 2018 rookie year. All he has done since those rookie days is earn a total of 7 PRCA world titles (4 All Around Titles, 2 Bull Riding Titles, and 1 Saddle Bronc Title) from 2019-2022. While piling up wins throughout those years, Wright had yet to win a buckle at the historic National Western Stock Show in Denver, CO.
Utah cowboy Stetson Wright was introduced to the 2023 National Western Stock Show crowd before the start of championship round rodeo action at the historic Denver, CO event. (January 22, 2023) Image by Lincoln Rogers – All rights reserved.
Taking care of that oversight, Wright added a coveted NWSS buckle in 2023 when he won the saddle bronc title and almost picked up a two-fer when he came just one-point shy of the bull riding title after posting an impressive 90 points on a bull named Centerfold (Cervi Championship Rodeo Company).
It has been a treat to watch Stetson compete over the last several years – and take some cool photos of his rides – and he did not disappoint this year in the championship round of rodeo at the NWSS.
I’ll be working on some NWSS articles and photos from the championship round for publication in the near future!
My latest article with photos about the inaugural Stockyards Beef Festival at the 2023 National Western Stock Show has been published on The Fence Post magazine’s website and will be in the upcoming print edition this coming Monday. You can go to the article here – https://www.thefencepost.com/news/nwss-stockyards-beef-festival-is-crazy-good-idea/
There was great beef, good wine, excellent cattle on the hoof, a large ticket-buying crowd, and a smooth band playing country music at the NWSS’ inaugural Stockyards Beef Festival held in the Stow L. Witwer Memorial Show Arena on Thursday evening, January 12, 2023. Unsure what to expect in its first year, organizers were thrilled with the enthusiastic response.
I had a great time meeting the people who organized the event and those who participated in it, as well. Judging by the enthusiasm of the crowd packed into the Witwer Memorial Show Arena, it looks like this event should turn into a stock show mainstay. That would be a good thing.
Back in November, 2022, my LLC’s business email was sent an email (from my own email address) stating my website and email systems have been hacked and if I don’t pay thousands in Bitcoins to a provided link they would “systematically go through a series of steps to totally damage your reputation.“
Retro-grained image of using a computer mouse – Image by Lincoln Rogers, 2023
Well, I am old school, so I figured there was at least a decent chance they were bluffing my I-don’t-use-the-latest-tech-for-anything freelance business. When I did not comply and instead reported the email to the federal Cybersecurity & Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA), I didn’t hear anything further from the so-called “hackers.” Side question – does CISA even do anything for the average American citizen or is it just another bloated bureaucracy only in existence to advance a bloated bureaucracy?But I digress…
Fast forward a couple of months and now there is a NEW “hack” attempt sending my I-don’t-use-the-latest-tech-for-anything business LLC an email and demanding payment in Bitcoins or they will expose all this salacious behavior (that I have not done) that took place on all my internet devices (of which I only have 1), and that they recorded through my internet devices’ cameras (which I shut down and block when I purchase any new devices), to all my social media accounts (of which I have virtually none). Remember me typing a couple of times that I-don’t-use-the-latest-tech-for-anything? Yeah, well… their extortion attempt depends upon someone using the latest tech online for e-v-e-r-y-t-h-i-n-g.
In other words, these “hackers” send boilerplate hack threats out like mass mailings in the hopes their generic email threats might apply to someone and then that someone will send Bitcoins to prevent themselves from being exposed by “hackers” who don’t actually have anything to expose. I waded through the source code of the email they sent — which they spoofed into looking like my own email so that it would appear they actually did hack into my business accounts — and discovered the IP address led back to some person named Maxwell Mendes Oliveira who lives in Brazil. Is it that even a real person? Unsure, but I dug up and found an email for this alleged “Maxwell” in Brazil and replied with a firm no, along with encouraging him (her/they/it) with these words…
“Do better. Live your life with purpose and not just to take advantage of others. There is a God and He cares about your life. Search for Him and you will find Him. John 3:16 – ‘For God so loved the world, that He gave His only Son, so that everyone who believes in Him will not perish, but have eternal life.'”
Will those words make any difference? I don’t know, but God does know and He promised in Isaiah 55:11 “So shall my word be that goes out from my mouth; it shall not return to me empty, but it shall accomplish that which I purpose, and shall succeed in the thing for which I sent it.”
Hope you all are doing well and have avoided the headaches of any so-called hackers.
My new article with photos is now published online by The Fence Post magazine and will be in their upcoming print edition (January 23, 2023). It is about the high-profile freestyle reining competition at the National Western Stock Show (NWSS) in Denver, CO. This year’s competition displayed great riding and creativity, but it also paid tribute to one of the event’s founders (Guy Vernon) who unexpectedly passed away in 2022. You can find the article online – https://www.thefencepost.com/news/not-just-another-guy/
Always looking to entertain the crowd and get them involved, Guy Vernon acknowledged their roaring applause with his trademark “raise the roof” gesture after completing a first place routine in 2013’s NWSS RAM Invitational Freestyle Reining competition. Image by Lincoln Rogers, 2013 – All rights reserved.
If you are in the Colorado area in January during the timeframe of the National Western Stock Show, the freestyle reining competition is one of the hottest and best tickets of the entire 16-day stock show. It sells out in advance each year, so get those tickets early. You won’t regret it.
Okay, let me get this out the way first. I like other people to enjoy good products as much as I do. It makes me happy to share great personal experiences so others can experience the same. I am not a spokesperson or paid representative and I do not receive compensation in any fashion for these kinds of posts. With that being said, I had the opportunity at an event held during the 2023 National Western Stock Show (NWSS) in Denver, CO to taste some 45-day, dry aged, bone-in ribeye steak from Connealy Angus Meat Market — the private label, farm to table arm of one of the top producers of registered purebred angus beef genetics in the world, Connealy Angus out of Whitman, Nebraska.
Chef Adam Siegfried, who runs the culinary portion of Coppermill Steakhouses in Nebraska, holds up a 45-day dry-aged, bone-in angus ribeye from Connealy Angus that were being sampled out during the NWSS’ first annual Stockyards Beef Festival on January 12, 2023. Siegfried uses Connealy beef at his steakhouses, so came with them to chef it up at the event. Image by Lincoln Rogers, 2023
Now, I am not a “top chef” or a “food expert,” but I am an avid griller and love putting good steak on the outdoor grill with the wood chips smoking, so I think I have tasted a lot of good beef. But I was absolutely blown away by how tender and full of flavor the Connealy Angus Meat Market ribeye tasted at the event. So much so, that I approached them at the event’s conclusion and purchased several ribeyes at full price for myself. I discovered the Connealy family are incredible, down-to-earth people who are passionate about their beef and are willing to answer any and all questions asked. How much nicer is that than buying pre-packaged beef at the grocery store from whoever-they-are-from-who-knows-where? The Connealy Angus Meat Market steak was packaged and frozen when I took it home, but it looked amazing even in that state and I was hoping it would be as good as what I tasted at the stock show. The following image is what it looked like, still frozen in the package, on my countertop at home. It is a 1.0-pound package.
14-day dry aged registered purebred angus ribeye steak from Connealy Angus Meat Market in Whitman, Nebraska. Image by Lincoln Rogers – 2023
A few days later it was 50+ degrees in Colorado, so I thawed the ribeye out, seasoned it with just some salt and pepper, and fired it up on the grill until it was medium rare. I have to say, it was the most flavorful and tender steak I have ever grilled, and over the years I have grilled a lot of ribeye, NY strip, flatiron, and tenderloin. This Connealy angus ribeye was flat out superb. Is it inexpensive? No, but they are also not gouging you for what is a premium product of *14-day, dry aged, prime-level, registered 100% angus steak. That is very close to the level of steak you are served at a high-end steakhouse.
As Jerry Connealy said to me while I spoke with him at the NWSS event, “I like to think what makes us maybe a little bit different is that we have really honed in on marbling and quality and we are very particular genetically as to what cattle we pull out that goes into our system. We never want anyone to have a bad eating experience. Ever.”
In my opinion, if you are looking for an amazing, at-home steak experience with high-quality beef where you can KNOW the people who raised it and exactly where and how it was raised, then you need look no further than Connealy Angus Meat Market. Great steak from great people. That is my story and I am sticking to it!
I still can’t believe how good that ribeye is. Now I have made myself hungry and need to order more…
*Edited to note the private label beef from Connealy Angus Meat Market is 14-day dry aged, while the bone-in ribeye from them served at the event by Chef Adam Siegfried was 45-day dry aged. I can sincerely say the 14-day dry aged that I grilled up at home was just as amazing as what was served at the event!
I love covering the RAM Invitational Freestyle Reining competition that takes place at Denver’s National Western Stock Show. Freestyle reining allows the contestants to choose their outfits/costumes, their music and their routines in the arena. Tons of creativity and oftentimes great lighting for dramatic photographs. The contestants consistently call this freestyle competition the best in the country, with a number of them over the years calling it the best in the world.
This routine by Sharee Schwartzenberger aboard her horse “Game Day Surprise” was one of my favorites this year. Very nice. There will be an upcoming story with photos published soon.
In a beautiful display of costume and horseback choreography set to stirring music, back-to-back NWSS freestyle reining winner and defending champion Sharee Schwartzenberger used fog, spotlights, and the audience members’ camera phones to create an atmosphere of clouds and stars as she paid tribute to the important people in our lives, those “stars” that surround us and that we should never take for granted. Schwartzenberger’s bridleless routine on “Game Day Surprise” scored 222 points, which was good enough for 3rd place in the prestigious event. Image by Lincoln Rogers – all rights reserved.
My new photo spread of the high-profile Colorado vs The World Rodeo at the 2023 National Western Stock Show is out now on the website for the Fence Post magazine. It will hit the print edition for the week starting January 17, 2023. I hope you enjoy the photos! https://www.thefencepost.com/news/nwss-colorado-vs-the-world-rodeo-packs-the-house/
Hayden, CO bareback rider Keenan Hayes showed again why he is one of the most talented young contestants in the sport as he advanced into the head-to-head round and then earned the title with this explosive 90-point ride aboard Vold Rodeo Company’s “Copycat Valley” to win the title and $10,000 at the sold out Colorado vs the World Rodeo on Saturday January 07, 2023.Image by Lincoln Rogers, 2023 – All rights reserved.
Lincoln's Thinkin's 