Jul 5, 2023 | By: Charlie Yaeger

45th Annual PRCA Rodeo in Park Rapids Features Local Families and Competitors

In its 45th year, the Park Rapids PRCA ProRodeo and Xtreme Bulls competition is still going strong. The three-day event is currently Minnesota’s largest outdoor rodeo and welcomes roughly 20,000 fans from around the state who come to get a look at the cowboys and cowgirls. But for some of the locals and their families, the rodeo is a way of life.

Take the Jokela family. They have been running the rodeo in Park Rapids since its inception.

“My grandmother is from Red Lodge, Montana, and that’s kind of where the rodeo roots come from,” says arena director Logan Veo. “My uncle Randy Jokela, the producer, wanted to bring a slice of the west out here…back to his home town of Park Rapids so that’s kind of how it started.”

For others, like professional bull rider and Nimrod resident Blaine Beaty, the Park Rapids rodeo is what inspired them to chase their dreams.

“When I was a little kid, we used to come here when the PBR was going on,” he says. “I just told my mom one day I wanted to ride bulls…and here we are.”

The Park Rapids Rodeo is always held on the weekend around July 4th. The big winner from the Xtreme Bulls Saturday night was John Young of Orient, Iowa. He took home the Silver Spurs and the $10,000 first place prize.

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