A 365-day job: Ray Hanson’s commitment to the Newport Rodeo

NEWPORT — Newport, Washington is a small but scenic community perched along the Washington–Idaho border, and a hallmark of that community is the Newport Rodeo. For Ray Hanson, the President of the Newport Rodeo Association, the rodeo is a 365-day job.  

“Because soon as our rodeo is over, we’re planning the next year’s already,” Hanson said. “If you’re not on top of it, you’re behind it...to be able to put out the best product for your community that’s coming to watch your events.” 

Hanson has been with the Newport Rodeo for 21 years and has spent the last 14 as the president, he said. Like many rodeo presidents, he wears a lot of hats to make the events happen.  

“I do everything from sponsorship to networking with other rodeo committees and going to conventions to learn how to do things better, working with other production companies, such as video board people, the Cowboy Channel plus app,” Hanson said.  

More importantly, they work to br -funding to support the rodeo and return the investment to the community through an event that brings them together.  

“Pretty much everything is community work, working with the City Council and the community in the county on trying to obtain hotel-motel tax to help with paying for advertising, because we’re bringing in people to stay in our community while we’re having our events. So, they will allow us to get, basically, grant money from them for advertising,” he said.  

Hanson said the association reinvests locally by supporting youth sports, children’s health programs and community events, ensuring the rodeo remains both an entertainment attraction and a community partner. 

“We’ve been able to do far more of it in the last 15 years, because we’ve grown our rodeo up to where we have the revenue base to be able to afford to do it, due to ticket sales and sponsorships and things of that nature, so we can give more back,” Hanson said.  

The extent of how much they can give back varies each year, he said. Attendance, sponsorships and how the event goes factors into how much they can give. Like any business, recessions can happen.  

“We’re 100% volunteer based, everyone that works for our rodeo (or) that’s part of our committee is a volunteer,” Hanson said. “A lot of people might think, ‘Oh, he’s getting paid to do this or something.’ No, I actually own a small business, a diesel repair business. I volunteer with the Rodeo Association. I’m a volunteer firefighter within the community. So I wear a lot of different hats to keep myself busy, and that’s the way it is with all of our people.” 

However, Hanson and the Rodeo Association will contract out employees for certain needs such as announcing, bringing the rodeo stock, barrel man clowns, bullfighters and pickup men.  

For those who simply volunteer their time to help the rodeo be the best it can, it can come down to a series of factors why they do it for free. For some, it’s the love of the sport, others enjoy investing in their community, and the rodeo offers a way to do that, For some their love for it stems from growing up around it.  

“We have people that are generational, people who have their parents and their grandparents part of the organization, and they grew up in it, so they love it, and they still come to do it,” Hanson said.  

When he is not putting together his own rodeo, Hanson spends a lot of time traveling to other events to learn from them – what to or not to do. Last year, he traveled to over 20 rodeos, he said.  

He’s picked up some ideas along the way that work well for Newport, while he’s also learned that some things might not work as well in a small town rodeo if they come from a bigger city event.  

Figuring out how to get their rodeo on television was one of Hanson’s best learning lessons, he said. He wanted to figure out how to bring recognition to his community and draw more interest in their event.  

He pointed to how the NFL is able to run their production from start to finish somewhat seamlessly. In that setting, they are relying on people, however, in the rodeo setting they have to also rely on animals – which can be unpredictable at times.  

“You never know what’s going to go happen. Is that horse not going to buck out good and he’s just going to run off? Or is that bull going to just lay down in the bucking chute (and) not want to go buck out?” he said. “The industry has realized that it’s not just about the sport now, it’s about telling the story of your community and the industry as a whole.”  

When Hanson is on the production side of things, he thinks about the viewer living in New York who may not be as familiar with the rodeo. He wants to reach those people too.  

Yet, one of the bigger challenges he faces throughout each year is finance. According to Hanson, there’s not a lot of money to be made in this sport, whether you’re a stock contractor or a part of a rodeo committee. Their goal is to make enough to carry into the next year, he said.  

“Everyone I know in this industry is pretty much in it because they’re community minded and they want to make things better, and they enjoy the sport and the people... some of the best people I’ve ever known are in the rodeo industry,” Hanson said.  

Even the competitors in the rodeo, who may win a lot of money in a given year but end up having to spend much of it to cover their expenses.  

“Even the top guys that are winning $500,000 a year, they might have spent $400,000 of that $500,000 to cover their expenses, because they’ve got horses and trailers and trucks,” he said.  

Despite the challenges that come with working in the rodeo industry, it’s the people that keep pulling Hanson back in, he said. Community is central to how he organizes, it’s important to make their event feel like home for anyone who buys a ticket. It’s a mindset that he’s carried on from his predecessors, he said.  

“It’s one of those things that I am quite passionate about, helping others, because I can sit on the couch and not run into a burning building and try and assist someone on their worst day in their lives. But that’s something that I choose to do, and I’m passionate about that, because everybody matters,” he said.  

As he embarks on his 21st year with the Newport Rodeo Association, Hanson sees no end in sight. If the passion remains, he intends to stay involved and giving back to his community through this event.  

“I’ve told everyone as well, ‘I’ll be involved in rodeo, as long as it’s still fun and people see a value in what I can bring to it, and we all enjoy each other.’ And when I can’t enjoy it anymore, then it’s probably time to move on,” Hanson said.  

The 77th Newport Rodeo is slated for June 25-27. Tickets are available at www.rodeoticket.com 

    A steer wrestler dives on to a steer at the Newport Rodeo, one of the many competitions they hold at the event.
 Josh Homer/Burning Ember Photography   

    A barrel racer and her horse cut sharply left around a barrel at the Newport Rodeo.
 Josh Homer/Burning Ember Photography   

    A black and white bucking horse does its best to throw the bareback rider off at the Newport Rodeo.
 Josh Homer/Burning Ember Photography   

    A bull rider holds tightly with his right hand as a bull bucks him around at the Newport Rodeo.
 Josh Homer/Burning Ember Photography