Kick up your heels at the QubeAgri Coonamble Rodeo & Campdraft

The Coonamble Rodeo & Campdraft Association celebrates its 65th anniversary with a full four-day program and $80,000 worth of prizemoney to be won. Photo supplied

The long weekend is just around the corner and the Coonamble Rodeo & Campdraft Association is gearing up to open the chutes on its 65th event.

After missing the event in 2020 - the first cancellation in its 65-year history - the committee have been excited to welcome QubeAgri, who have partnered with them for a four-year naming rights deal.

“We were ecstatic when QubeAgri’s Regional Manager Jeremy Brown made contact with the committee looking for the opportunity to be part of Coonamble’s premiere event,” said Association Secretary Steven Butler.

“It’s an amazing opportunity to secure such a committed sponsor and means we can make plans for the next four years.”

With the full gamut of bronc and bull riding, plus a four-day Campdraft program, and sporting events like barrel racing, steer wrestling and calf roping, the spectacle involves around a thousand competitors.

Four thousand spectators are expected to fill the stands and there is sure to be plenty of wild riding action and genuine bush entertainment at the Showground.

For those looking to kick up their heels or enjoy a sit-down meal, venues around the township will also be open until late over the weekend and courtesy buses will be buzzing between the Showground, camping areas, motels, pubs, and clubs.

On Saturday and Sunday in the main arena, the cowboys will be competing for over $80,000 worth of prize money while Monday sees both the brave-hearted first timers and the up-and-coming stars of the Rodeo circuit compete in the Junior Rodeo.

Food and retail stalls will be on site, there’s plenty of ringside seating, and activities to keep youngsters happy.

A short stroll to the other end of the grounds will bring you to the Campdraft where competition kicks off from first light on Friday morning and doesn’t stop until Monday evening.

Competitors are drawn to the event from as far afield as Central Queensland and southern Victoria by a prize purse of $25,000 with the sport’s finest horseflesh on display.

The rodeo and campdraft captures the imagination of urban dwellers who relish the chance to get out in the fresh air and rub shoulders with genuine cowboys and cowgirls, and hundreds of returnees and rodeo virgins are expected to roll out their swags this long weekend.

QubeAgri’s Hayley Royal from their Sydney office has put her hand up for electric bull ride which will be supplied by PBoz for some head-spinning fun outside the arena.

Operations Manager Peter Parslow says QubeAgri is pleased to be along for the ride.

“We opened our grain receival sites in Coonamble and Narromine just as the 2020 grain harvest got underway,” Mr Parslow said. “We took almost 100,000 tonnes here in Coonamble from growers across a wide area and so far, we’ve shifted more than 60,000tonnes out by rail.

We’re still running five trains a fortnight so it’s keeping us pretty busy.”

“QubeAgri are keen to get involved in these communities and the Long Weekend Rodeo & Campdraft seemed like a good place to start,” he said. “We took on a four-year deal because we’re here for the long haul, we’re not going anywhere, and we’re keen to see how we can help to keep this event growing.”