Beyond the Chutes
by Doug Simcox
Welcome to Beyond the Chutes, a Rodeo podcast where hosts Doug Simcox and Sam Swearingen dive deep into the heart of the Western and Rodeo culture. Join us as we explore the full spectrum of rodeo life, from the adrenaline-pumping action at the bucking chutes to the precision and skill of the timed event chute. Our conversations extend to those who make the rodeo world turn: competitors, committee members, stock contractors, judges, secretaries, and the vibrant personalities of contract acts, entertainers, and announcers. Together, we uncover their unique stories, experiences, and the unforgettable places their rodeo journeys have taken them.
Episodes
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“You Don’t Pay My Bills” — Rob Smets on Three Broken Necks, Faith & Family
Five-time world champion bullfighter Rob Smets joins Doug and Sam to talk about Carla’s unwavering support, surviving three broken necks, and the faith that changed the direction of his life. The gold buckles tell part of Rob Smets’ story. The people who stood beside him tell another. Recorded in...
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Steve Ratchford: What Judges See In 8 Seconds
Eight seconds. A rider, an animal, and a score that can change a contestant’s day. What does a rodeo judge see in that moment? Doug Simcox and Sam Swearingen sit down with Steve Ratchford at the International Finals Youth Rodeo in Shawnee, Oklahoma. With more than 50 years of judging experience,...
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6666 Ranch, Sissy Smith & Butch Stewart | A Rodeo Road Trip
Doug and Sam wrap up their Oklahoma and Texas travels with stories from the Four Sixes, visits with Sissy Smith and Butch Stewart, and reflections on the people and conversations that make life on the road worthwhile. Episode description Good horses. Great stories. A road trip worth remembering....
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The Road Brought Them Back | Mountain Cove Rodeo Reunion 2026
Most of the people in this episode aren’t famous. You probably won’t find their names in the record books. That’s exactly why Beyond the Chutes went to Mountain Cove. We went. We listened. We recorded. In McLemore Cove near Chickamauga, Georgia, rodeo history runs deep. Records show rodeos being...
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#200 The Voices of St-Tite | Stephan Mesquita & Stéphan Daoust
What makes Festival Western de St-Tite feel different from almost any other rodeo? It isn’t just the livestock, the contestants, or the crowd. It’s the way the entire show moves. In Episode #200 of Beyond the Chutes, Doug Simcox and Sam Swearingen wrap up their three-part St-Tite series with two…
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#199 — How St-Tite Pulls It Off | BJ Prince
How do you bring roughly three-quarters of a million people into a town of about 5,000 and make it all look like it just happens? That’s where BJ Prince comes in. In Episode #199 of Beyond the Chutes, Doug Simcox and Sam Swearingen return to Festival Western de St-Tite for the second chapter of…
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#198 Inside Festival Western de St-Tite with General Manager Anne-Marie Lemire
In the first of three special episodes from the Festival Western de St-Tite, Doug sits down with festival president Anne-Marie Lemire for a look beyond the arena and into the people, planning, community and traditions that make Saint-Tite something special. Recorded during our visit to Quebec…
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#197 Rolling Smooth Ep. 3 — Power, Air Conditioning & Keeping Your Rig Cool
In Episode 3 of our Rolling Smooth series, Doug Simcox sits down again with Stan Cromlish of Wandering Gypsy RV Life to talk about one of the biggest challenges on the road: power. From crowded rodeo grounds with questionable electrical hookups to keeping the air conditioner running on a hot…
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#196 Team Australia at the IFYR: Rodeo, Friendship and Opportunity
For the third year, Beyond the Chutes connected with Team Australia during their July trip to the United States—but this time, the conversation happened face-to-face. Recorded at the 34th International Finals Youth Rodeo in Shawnee, Oklahoma, Buddy and Sam sit down with the young Australian...
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#195 Texas Trip: From the IFYR to the Buckhorn
Doug and Sam take the BTC bus down the rodeo road for a Texas trip packed with youth rodeo, old friends, world champions, Cajun cooking, historic artifacts, and stories waiting to be preserved. The journey begins with a stop at the International Finals Youth Rodeo in Shawnee, Oklahoma, where…
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#194 Inside the Buckhorn with Kelly Clark
Step inside The Buckhorn with longtime rodeo cowboy, historian, and collector Kelly Clark for a guided tour through a remarkable collection of rodeo history. Kelly shares the stories behind championship saddles, famous hats, buckles, photographs, chaps, shirts, back numbers, and other artifacts...
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#193 Building the Rodeo Archive: Where Beyond the Chutes Is Headed
In this special episode of Beyond the Chutes, as presented by ParaSight System, Doug Simcox sits down on the back porch in Taylorsville, Kentucky, with his son Ben Simcox for a candid conversation about where the show is headed and why the release schedule is slowing down. This episode pulls back...
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#192 Rolling Smooth: Tires, Weight & Road Safety with Stan Cromlish
In this episode of Beyond the Chutes, presented by ParaSight System, we continue the Rolling Smooth series with Stan Cromlish from Wandering Gypsy RV Life. We’re talking about one of the most important parts of any rig headed down the rodeo road: tires. Stan and Doug cover tire pressure…
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#191 Chris Anderson | Mike Swearingen, Hard Way Bull Riding & Life on the Rodeo Road
“I watched Mike Swearingen spur this bull to death and I said… that’s who I want to ride bulls like.” Recorded last fall at Mike Swearingen’s Rodeo Reunion in Wyoming, New York, Doug Simcox and Sam Swearingen sit down with northeast bull rider Chris Anderson — a guy who came into rodeo later than...
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#190 Inside The American Rodeo with Lane Peterson | The Road to Arlington, $2 Million & The Eastern Regional Finals
How do you get to The American Rodeo? How do the qualifiers work? What happens in Lexington… and what waits in Arlington? In this special standalone conversation pulled from our larger Lexington coverage, Doug Simcox and Sam Swearingen sit down with Lane Peterson, Competition Manager of The...
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#189 Rolling Smooth: Behind the Scenes of Podcasting on the Rodeo Road
What really goes into building a podcast from the road? In this special crossover episode, Doug Simcox of Beyond the Chutes joins Stan Cromlish on the Wandering Gypsy RV Life podcast for a behind-the-scenes conversation recorded at Kickback Ranch in Raymer, Alabama. From rodeo arenas and...
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#188 Cowboy to Full-Time RVer: Stan Cromlish’s Rolling Smooth Story
Stan Cromlish has lived the cowboy life—and now he’s built a new one on the road. In this first episode of Cowboys & Cowgirls: Rolling Smooth, we sit down with Stan—rodeo man, author of the Rolling Smooth series, and full-time RVer—to talk about the journey from the arena to life behind the…
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#187 Jim Swearingen | He Set the Table for a Rodeo Dynasty
Recorded last fall at Mike Swearingen’s Rodeo Reunion in Wyoming, New York, this episode of Beyond the Chutes sits down with a true patriarch of rodeo in the East—Jim Swearingen. Husband to Nancy, father to Mike, Sam, Danny, Pearl, Patty, and Beth, Jim didn’t just raise a rodeo family—he helped...
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#186 American Rodeo Eastern Qualifier: Winner Interviews - $2 Million on the Line
From the dirt of Lexington, Kentucky at the Alltech Arena, this episode of Beyond the Chutes takes you inside the moment—live, unscripted, and right after the win. At The American Rodeo Eastern Regional Finals, the stakes are simple: win here, and you’re headed to Arlington, Texas… Globe Life...
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#185 The American Rodeo: From Lexington to Arlington: Winning Rides, Big Stakes, One Step Closer
From the dirt of Lexington, Kentucky at the Alltech Arena, this episode of Beyond the Chutes brings you inside the moment—right after the win. We talk with Tilden Hooper, Dawson Hay, Jayden Roy, Austin Stewart, Brandon Edwards, and Lane Peterson following their performances at The American…
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#184 Kenny Phillips 1985 World Champion to ER Doctor - Truly Blessed
1985 IPRA World Champion Kenny Phillips shares his journey from rodeo glory to emergency room doctor… In the fall of 1986, Kenny Phillips broke his neck… and somehow, that was only part of the story. Recorded at Mike Swearingen’s Rodeo Reunion in Wyoming, New York, this episode of Beyond the…
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#183 Jimmy Grasso – 16x Dodge National Circuit Finals Cowboy Who Showed Up Every Time | Beyond the Chutes
Recorded live at Mike Swearingen’s Rodeo Reunion in Wyoming, New York, this episode of Beyond the Chutes features one of the most recognizable names in Northeast rodeo—Jimmy Grasso. A Jersey-born cowboy who didn’t climb on his first bronc until his late 20s, Jimmy built a career defined by grit,...
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#182 Bruce Brannen - So Broke, I Couldn't Pay Attention
Recorded live at the Kickback Ranch Rodeo Reunion in Ramer, Alabama, this episode of Beyond the Chutes features lifelong cowboy Bruce Brannen. Bruce takes us from his first rodeo as a 9-year-old at the Montgomery Coliseum, to years of calf roping, college rodeo at Sam Houston State, and a 33-year...
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#181 Mark Staggs — Festus Comes to the Mountain Cove Rodeo Reunion | Comedy, Impersonations & Rodeo Stories
At the Mountain Cove Rodeo Reunion in North Georgia, you never know who you’re going to meet. In this episode of Beyond the Chutes, hosts Doug Simcox and Sam Swearingen sit down with comedian and impersonator Mark Staggs, a performer whose voice work can instantly transport you from the rodeo…
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#180 Legends of the Road: Adam Wood & Kevin Ellis | Mountain Cove Rodeo Reunion
Two Mountain Cove Rodeo Reunion Legends share the miles, the moments, and the brotherhood built on the road between rodeos. Recorded last fall at the historic and legendary Mountain Cove Rodeo Reunion, organized by Marlon Harris, Sam Swearingen and Doug Simcox sat down with Mountain Cove Rodeo...
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#179 Mountain Cove Rodeo Reunion XI — Marlon Harris, Legends Awards, and Tradition
“People don’t realize it, but a rodeo family is totally different than anything else.” This episode of Beyond the Chutes takes you to Mountain Cove Farms in North Georgia for Reunion XI—a gathering where the mountains wrap around you like a horseshoe and the rodeo roots run deep. Doug and Sam are...
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#178 Bill Ziegler — From Ted Williams to the Justin Healers | A Life in Baseball & Rodeo
From a small-town kid in Greencastle, Pennsylvania… to Major League Baseball clubhouses with Ted Williams… to rodeo arenas across America with the Justin Sports Medicine team — Bill Zeigler has lived a life most of us only read about. In this episode of Beyond the Chutes, presented by ParaSight...
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#177 Phil Broome - Opportunity Period
Phil Broome grew up in northwest Georgia with a wrestling coach who taught him one thing: “This is your Opportunity Period.” That mindset carried him from high school state championships to the bareback riding chutes — but the road wasn’t straight, and it wasn’t easy. In this episode of Beyond…
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#176 Bonus Episode | Frost Family — First Frontier Circuit, Maine Rodeo Roots
BTC is on the road at the First Frontier Circuit Finals in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, sitting down with Larry Frost — a rodeo producer from Levant, Maine whose story proves rodeo doesn’t always start with a business plan. It starts with a dream, a family willing to do the work, and a commitment to...
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#175 The Buckhorn Recordings - Kelly Clark: That's the Best I've Ever Seen It Done.
Recorded on the Texas Swing, host Doug Simcox steps inside The Buckhorn—Kelly Clark’s one-of-a-kind “man cave” that turned into a full-blown rodeo museum. Walls covered in championship saddles, a U.S. map marked with the places Kelly’s competed, and artifacts that stretch back to the early days…
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#174 Raymond Hostetler & Tyler Waltz | PRCA First Frontier Circuit Finals
BTC On the Road Again This Bonus Episode of Beyond the Chutes was recorded on the road at the First Frontier Circuit Finals, inside the Penn Harris Hotel, while the competition was still unfolding. Sam Swearingen and Doug Simcox sit down with Raymond Hostetler and Tyler Waltz in the middle of the...
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#173 Rodeo Mindset: See It, Feel It, Trust It | Quiet Enough to Ride
Rodeo is won long before the gate opens. Recorded at the First Frontier Circuit Finals, this episode of Beyond the Chutes dives deep into the mental side of competition with bareback rider Tyler, saddle bronc rider Raymond, and rodeo cowboy, stock contractor, mentor and coach, Sam Swearingen.…
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#172 Jayme Myers - Family, Faith and Rodeo | PRCA First Frontier Circuit Finals
Beyond the Chutes — BTC Short Go (Presented by ParaSight System) brings you a quick, share-size “M&M” bite of rodeo life from the PRCA First Frontier Circuit. In this Short Go, Jamie Myers (wife of tie-down roper JR Myers) shares what happens behind the scenes at the Circuit Finals — including…
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#171 Bullfighter Riggin Dailey - First Frontier Circuit Finals
This is Beyond the Chutes, and this special Bonus Episode was recorded on the road at the First Frontier Circuit Finals. In this episode, Sam Swearingen sits down with bullfighter Riggin Dailey for a candid, in-the-moment conversation about one of the most dangerous and least understood jobs in...
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#170 Tom Glause (PRCA CEO) - Leadership, Relationships & the State of Rodeo
This episode of Beyond the Chutes, as presented by ParaSight Systems — helping vets help pets, was recorded Friday morning at the First Frontier Circuit Finals in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania. In this conversation, Doug Simcox and Sam Swearingen sit down with Tom Glause, CEO of the Professional Rodeo...
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#169 Brianna Waltz - First Frontier Circuit Finals Rodeo 2026
BTC On the Road Again | First Frontier Circuit Finals This is Beyond the Chutes, and this special Bonus Episode takes you inside the First Frontier Circuit Finals — not from the stands, but from the quiet moments just before it all happens. Recorded on the road at the Penn Harris Hotel, just…
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#168 From If to When: Karissa Landis at the First Frontier Circuit Finals
Beyond the Chutes | First Frontier Circuit Finals Series Before the gate opens and the clock starts, there’s a moment when it’s just a rider, a horse, and everything you’ve worked on to that moment. In Episode 1 of our special First Frontier Circuit Finals series, we sit down with Karissa Landis…
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#167 Wes Ward Part 2 - Tattoo Ward from Fantasy Island, Oklahoma.
In Part 2 of our conversation with Wes Ward, recorded during the Beyond the Chutes Texas Swing 2025 inside the BTC Bus at a Chute 2 Productions bull riding, Wes opens up about the long road that follows a lifetime in the saddle. After riding bareback horses for more than two decades, Wes faced…
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#166 Wes Ward Part 1 - Jack Wiseman Taught Me How to Win That Day
In Part 1 of this Texas Swing episode of Beyond the Chutes, host Doug Simcox sits down with legendary rodeo cowboy and announcer Wes Ward for a powerful, story-driven conversation recorded on the road in October 2025. This episode centers on Wes Ward’s early rodeo journey and his deep, personal...
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Episode #165 - Ronnie Williams Part 2: Pals of Tales on the Rodeo Trail
In Episode 2 of Beyond the Chutes, recorded on the Texas Swing 2025, Doug and Sam continue their conversation with rodeo legend Ronnie Williams — a man who didn’t just ride through rodeo history, he helped build it. Ronnie reflects on the hard miles of the old rodeo road, hauling coast to coast...
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#164 Ronnie Williams Part 1 - I Didn’t Think You Could Get Hurt Riding a Bucking Horse
In this Part One episode of Beyond the Chutes, Doug Simcox and Sam Swearingen sit down in Mineral Wells, Texas with Ronnie Williams, an eight-time IPRA Bareback Riding World Champion, as part of the Texas Swing 2025, recorded in October. Ronnie takes us back to where it all began—growing up on…
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#163 Ryan King - Handcrafted in Sheridan: The Story Behind King Saddlery & King Ropes
BTC hits Sheridan, Wyoming for a special conversation with Ryan King of the legendary King Saddlery, King Ropes, and the Don King Museum. Doug interviews Ryan King who walks us through the family’s three-generation history — from Don King’s pioneering Sheridan-style tooling to 4,000-rope trips to...
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Episode #162 – Glen Bird Part 2: I Hope Everybody Keeps Making Eight
In Part 2 of our Weatherford, Texas conversation, six-time IRA/IPRA world champion Glen Bird dives deeper into the wild, gritty, laugh-till-you-cry heart of rodeo life. Glen shares priceless stories of the early Longhorn Rodeo days with Loretta Lynn, Mooney Lynn, and Bruce Lehrke, but two...
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#161 — Glen Bird Part 1: But Look at All the Fun We’re Having
In their first conversation - Part 1 - Doug and Sam sit down with four-time bull-riding world champion and two-time All-Around (IRA/IPRA) Glen Bird in Weatherford, Texas. From a ranch kid in Matador, TX to one of the sport’s most technically precise riders, Glen shares the road that shaped his...
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#160 Inside The American Rodeo with Lane Peterson: Regionals, Million-Dollar Bonus & IPRA Tie-In
Recorded onsite at Festival Western de St-Tite, this episode goes inside The American Rodeo with Competition Manager Lane Peterson (Teton Ridge)—from breeding buckers and judging worldwide to building a modern, TV-ready tournament that truly opens doors for athletes. Lane explains the pathway:...
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#159 The State of Rodeo 2025 with IPRA President Dale Yerigan
We’re in St-Tite, Quebec — home of the legendary Festival Western de St-Tite — sitting down once again with Dale Yerigan, President and General Manager of the International Professional Rodeo Association and IPRA Canada. From the rise of breakaway roping to new rule changes shaking up the rodeo...
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#158 - Daylon Swearingen - on recovery, ranch life, and what’s next
We roll tape from Daylon Swearingen’s ranch bunkhouse—formerly a dairy milking parlor turned cowboy crash pad. Daylon opens up about taking three months off to heal from a concussion, the training protocol he’s following, and why strong necks, helmets, and mouth guards matter. We break down the...
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#157 - The Texas Swing
We took the BTC bus deep into Texas and filled the tanks with stories. From Sulphur Springs to Weatherford, Mineral Wells, Wylie, and Springtown, Doug and Sam catch you up on a whirlwind week: wellness updates and futurity talk with Daylon Swearingen at Daylon’s Ranch, living-room rodeo museums…
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#156 — Marilyn Duplissey: Dreams Fulfilled
From open shows in southeast Oklahoma to two IPRA world titles and a run at the NFR, Marilyn Duplissey built a life around good horses, hard lessons, and a tougher business plan. In this final chapter, Marilyn takes us through 1976 in Tulsa, the decision to buy her WPRA card, and the…
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#155 Kylee Ferguson: Three-Stop International Youth Rodeo Challenge
Fresh off Team Australia’s big summer—highlighted by Cade Ferguson’s IFYR Saddle Bronc title—Kylee Ferguson joins BTC with the inside story on the new International Youth Rodeo Challenge spanning Mount Isa, Richmond, and Townsville. We cover team sizes, horse “buddy” rotation to keep things fair,...
About this show
Welcome to Beyond the Chutes, a Rodeo podcast where hosts Doug Simcox and Sam Swearingen dive deep into the heart of the Western and Rodeo culture. Join us as we explore the full spectrum of rodeo life, from the adrenaline-pumping action at the bucking chutes to the precision and skill of the timed event chute. Our conversations extend to those who make the rodeo world turn: competitors, committee members, stock contractors, judges, secretaries, and the vibrant personalities of contract acts, entertainers, and announcers. Together, we uncover their unique stories, experiences, and the unforgettable places their rodeo journeys have taken them.
Hosted by
Doug Simcox