I know it has been a while since my last blog post. My apologies.
Summer rodeo season is right around the corner and that means the award winning Elizabeth Stampede Rodeo is coming up quick. Not content to rest on their laurels and sold-out performances, the good folks responsible for the Elizabeth, Colorado rodeo are hoping to make a splash in 2023 with a Friday Night Chute Out featuring Bulls and Bronc riding, versus the traditional (and popular) bull riding only that has been a staple for over a decade. You can read my interview with the Elizabeth Stampede Vice President and Production Committee Chair, Ron Howard, on the website of the Fence Post magazine. https://www.thefencepost.com/news/nothing-less-than-the-best/
The Elizabeth Stampede Rodeo is adding bronc riding to its popular Friday night bull riding lineup, which will help the award winning rodeo continue to attract high-profile bronc riding contestants like 2022 PRCA bareback world champ Jess Pope (pictured competing at the 2022 Elizabeth Stampede – Image copyright Lincoln Rogers).
On top of all the new action, the Elizabeth Stampede is also going to be available via streaming service and television this year. Their new title sponsor – Maverix Broadband – is playing a large role in helping that happen.
Lord willing, I will have plenty of photos and articles from this year’s rodeo to post in the near future!
A buddy of mine visited the Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo several weeks ago and brought me back a very cool, retro National Western Stock Show (NWSS) poster that he found while he was there. I have never seen one like this in all the years of going to the stock show here in Denver. I had to get a great NWSS poster from someone who purchased it down at the Houston Livestock Show!
I was able to purchase an inexpensive frame for it at a local craft store and now it is up on my office wall. I like it! Still can’t believe it had to make its way to my wall from Houston…
My photo spread from the last weekend of the 2023 National Western Stock Show (NWSS) has been published on the website of The Fence Post magazine. More than 100,000 people visited the NWSS during its final weekend (January 21-22, 2023) https://www.thefencepost.com/news/2023-nwss-ends-strong/
A placard full of 2023 NWSS pins on sale in the merchandise booth at the NWSS. Image by Lincoln Rogers, 2023 – All rights reserved.
I had a great time covering the 2023 NWSS for publication. I hope my articles and photography from there have been enjoyable to see and read.
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.
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!
Lincoln's Thinkin's 