Riding gay

I think that really isolated a lot of people who identified as gay but were very rugged and masculine. The river offers class II & III rapids and is a great introduction to whitewater rafting

With 12,000 private acres adjacent to the Beartooth Wilderness Area, the ranch offers many private hiking trails in the West Rosebud Valley.

I got the impression that gay rodeo events began out of this desperate need within the community to say: We are gay but we’re not necessarily this Hollywood identity of gay—we’re cowboys, ranch hands, and lumbermen.

It was the opposite of the classic tale of someone being gay, living in a rural area, and feeling like they needed to escape to the big city.

Throughout the week, keep your eyes open for wildlife. So if people want to get into arguments about ‘true Americans,’ then she is an example of an amazing ‘true American’ who should be accepted exactly as she is.

Who’s this (above)?
This is Frank. The rodeo organizers themselves have also received some difficult pushback in the areas where they throw these events.

It was like: No, I want to stay in my rural area, and retain this deep pride about where I grew up and the work I do.

Which gay rodeo did you attend for this project and what was it like?
I went to Palm Springs Hot Rodeo and shot over the course of four or five days. We don’t ride nose-to-tail, but spread out and learn to control our horse.

Billings has museums, shopping, a performing arts center, and good restaurants to choose from!

Day 2: Head to the Ranch

We’ll have time to catch up on sleep after a fun night out. When I started documenting it I discovered all these subcultures within rodeo, like the Bill Pickett Invitational Rodeo and the IGRA.

That’s part of why I wanted to document it, to amplify and share.

So these events used to be more popular?
The first event that the IGRA threw in the 80s was massively popular, but attendance has dropped since. I saw it as a way to explore a lot of bigger questions about the country as a whole.

It’s sad, because you’d think things like this would get better with time and there would be more acceptance, but it seems to be going in the opposite direction.

Any final thoughts you’d like to share?
In basic terms, I think there’s a huge difference between the idea of the American West and the reality of the American West.

If it’s a hot day you may want to take a dip in the river. One day we may be riding through alpine forests near the mountains, another day through aspen meadows along a river, and another day in the open hill country.

On one afternoon we’ll do a rafting trip on the Stillwater River. The ranch limits the number of guests to 12, and room and cabin preference is given to those who book first.

For those who are new to riding, basic instruction is provided before we head out over the hills and through the open pastures. And eventually the International Gay Rodeo Association was founded in 1985. A tributary of the Yellowstone River, the Stillwater meanders through a one-sided canyon, which was once home of the Crow Indians and buffalo herds.

We hold two meetings during the year: A run event planning meeting in March and our Christmas Party in December.  Otherwise, we communicate runs using our club mailing list.