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Texas Cowboy Hall of Fame Director, Andrea Ruby, is educated about Western culture and lifestyle and compelled to share the TCHOF story and collection with the world, and is a life-long Tarrant County resident. She was born into the Western lifestyle, and for her, it’s home, heart, and spirit. As the granddaughter of Bob Wills, the “King of Western Swing,” Andrea naturally developed an enduring love for preserving Western music, lifestyle, and culture.
After spending her early career in marketing and nearly 14 years as a successful retail business owner, Andrea is motivated to bring her passion, experience, and insights to the Fort Worth Stockyards. She says, “As the Texas Cowboy Hall of Fame’s proud past now readies to meet a new vision, I am beyond excited for this opportunity. I am eager to engage old and new supporters to invest in the process and excited to dive into this journey as we focus on making visitor experiences even more engaging, educational, and entertaining.”
Board of Directors
Dave Appleton
Dave Appleton was an elite competitor for 15 seasons in both bareback riding and saddle bronc riding. His versatility helped him reach the ultimate pinnacle of rodeo success when he won the 1988 all-around gold buckle. He defeated reigning three-time all-around champion Lewis Feild by $644 to claim the coveted title with $121,546 and become the first Australian-born cowboy to win a PRCA world championship.
Appleton also won the 1988 National Finals Rodeo bareback riding average championship and finished second in the world standings in that event.
Appleton qualified for the NFR in bareback riding eight times (1982-88, 1990) and three times more in saddle bronc riding (1984-86), highlighted by him winning the NFR saddle bronc riding average crown in 1986.
Appleton wanted to be a jockey, but grew too tall when he was 15 years old and changed his focus to the rodeo arena. He rodeoed in Australia in 1978-79 before coming over to the United States. He bought his PRCA card in 1980 and competed at the top level through 1994.
Appleton had a penchant for rising to the occasion, especially when he drew the rankest horses in the pen. They were right in his wheelhouse.
Appleton also was one of the pioneers of the PRCA patch program, which began June 1, 1990 and remains a much-needed source of revenue for PRCA cowboys. American Airlines was Appleton’s first sponsor.
World Championships: 1 (all-around, 1988)
Born January 30, 1960 in Clermont, Queensland, Australia
Appleton also won the 1988 National Finals Rodeo bareback riding average championship and finished second in the world standings in that event.
Appleton qualified for the NFR in bareback riding eight times (1982-88, 1990) and three times more in saddle bronc riding (1984-86), highlighted by him winning the NFR saddle bronc riding average crown in 1986.
Appleton wanted to be a jockey, but grew too tall when he was 15 years old and changed his focus to the rodeo arena. He rodeoed in Australia in 1978-79 before coming over to the United States. He bought his PRCA card in 1980 and competed at the top level through 1994.
Appleton had a penchant for rising to the occasion, especially when he drew the rankest horses in the pen. They were right in his wheelhouse.
Appleton also was one of the pioneers of the PRCA patch program, which began June 1, 1990 and remains a much-needed source of revenue for PRCA cowboys. American Airlines was Appleton’s first sponsor.
World Championships: 1 (all-around, 1988)
Born January 30, 1960 in Clermont, Queensland, Australia
Hub Baker
H.B. “Hub” Baker – Preservationist attended high school in Brenham Texas and college at Texas A&M.
Hub competed in high school rodeos and qualified for the Texas High School Rodeo Finals in tie-down roping and cutting competition. Hub showed cutting horses at the NCHA futurity in the late 1960s. His love for the western way of life started early when he began working on the family farm and ranch.
In 1980, Hub came to the Fort Worth Stockyards, where he helped open the iconic Honky Tonk, Billy Bob’s Texas with his friend and partner Billy Bob Barnett. Alongside his other partners and friends Steve Murrin, Don Jury, Billy Bob Barnett, Billy Minick, Holt Hickman and others he worked on renovation in the Fort Worth Stockyards. As General Manager of Cowtown Coliseum, more than 250 rodeo events are produced annually along with the Pawnee Bill Wild West show which is the only continuous Wild West Show in the United States.
Hub is a member of the Greeting Committee for the Fort Worth Livestock Show and Rodeo. He is also General Manager of the annual Red Steagall Cowboy Gathering and Western Swing Festival. Hub is an inductee in the Texas Cowboy Hall of Fame. He received the Bull Riding Hall of Fame Legacy Award.
Hub has been quoted as saying. “I’m proud to have been allowed to follow my dreams and I hope in a small way to have helped maintain our heritage and the western way of life.”
Hub competed in high school rodeos and qualified for the Texas High School Rodeo Finals in tie-down roping and cutting competition. Hub showed cutting horses at the NCHA futurity in the late 1960s. His love for the western way of life started early when he began working on the family farm and ranch.
In 1980, Hub came to the Fort Worth Stockyards, where he helped open the iconic Honky Tonk, Billy Bob’s Texas with his friend and partner Billy Bob Barnett. Alongside his other partners and friends Steve Murrin, Don Jury, Billy Bob Barnett, Billy Minick, Holt Hickman and others he worked on renovation in the Fort Worth Stockyards. As General Manager of Cowtown Coliseum, more than 250 rodeo events are produced annually along with the Pawnee Bill Wild West show which is the only continuous Wild West Show in the United States.
Hub is a member of the Greeting Committee for the Fort Worth Livestock Show and Rodeo. He is also General Manager of the annual Red Steagall Cowboy Gathering and Western Swing Festival. Hub is an inductee in the Texas Cowboy Hall of Fame. He received the Bull Riding Hall of Fame Legacy Award.
Hub has been quoted as saying. “I’m proud to have been allowed to follow my dreams and I hope in a small way to have helped maintain our heritage and the western way of life.”
Sharon Beach
Sharon is partner in McAlister Assets, a private equity/alternative investing firm focused on real estate and rail served industrial park investments. She joined McAlister Assets in 2017 after a 25 year career with Merck & Co.
Actively shows cutting horses, is an NCHA Director, served as chairman and vice chairman of the NCHA Long Range Planning Committee and Governance Committee from 2015 – 2021. Has also served on various special committees.
Graduate of Texas A&M University. Hobbies include traveling, hunting, golf and spending time with family and friends.
Actively shows cutting horses, is an NCHA Director, served as chairman and vice chairman of the NCHA Long Range Planning Committee and Governance Committee from 2015 – 2021. Has also served on various special committees.
Graduate of Texas A&M University. Hobbies include traveling, hunting, golf and spending time with family and friends.
Ricky Bolin
NFR qualifier and General Manager of HatCo – makers of Resistol, Stetson & Charlie 1 Horse.
Ricky Bolin grew up attending rodeos in Mesquite and dreamed of joining the circuit someday. He qualified for his first national finals, held in Oklahoma City, at age 19. He qualified for the same national finals, for a fourth time, when the event moved to Las Vegas in 1985. Four years later, he stopped competing. “I retired when I was 30, which is actually pretty old for a bull rider,” Bolin says.
Ricky Bolin was 15 years old when he bought his second car. It was the same year he graduated from amateur rodeos to riding professionally—a rare exception granted before the age-18 minimum, with support from Neal Gay and Jim Shoulders, both members of the Pro Rodeo Hall of Fame.
The new ride replaced the Buick LeSabre he bought when he was 14, which came with a license plate that read “HA T750.” Even back then, Bolin had the feeling it meant something. “It wasn’t a vanity plate or anything; it had to be a direction,” he says. “I’ve always remembered that.”
Today, Bolin heads up operations at Hatco Inc., which produces a million hats a year for brands such as Resistol, Charlie 1 Horse, and Stetson, arguably the most well-known hat in the world. Every hat is handcrafted in the company’s factory and headquarters in Garland, but the brands they fall under are entirely their own. Resistol, the oldest sponsor of the Professional Rodeo Cowboy Association, targets the working cowboy and country music fans, with collections from both George Strait and Jason Aldean. The more fashion-minded Charlie 1 Horse, founded in the 1970s and made famous by wearers such as Waylon Jennings, Charlie Daniels, and retired NASCAR driver Richard Petty, are finished off in a special corner of the factory, where hand-cut leathers, beaded headbands, and feathers are added to give the hats their own distinct themes and personalities.
Ricky Bolin grew up attending rodeos in Mesquite and dreamed of joining the circuit someday. He qualified for his first national finals, held in Oklahoma City, at age 19. He qualified for the same national finals, for a fourth time, when the event moved to Las Vegas in 1985. Four years later, he stopped competing. “I retired when I was 30, which is actually pretty old for a bull rider,” Bolin says.
Ricky Bolin was 15 years old when he bought his second car. It was the same year he graduated from amateur rodeos to riding professionally—a rare exception granted before the age-18 minimum, with support from Neal Gay and Jim Shoulders, both members of the Pro Rodeo Hall of Fame.
The new ride replaced the Buick LeSabre he bought when he was 14, which came with a license plate that read “HA T750.” Even back then, Bolin had the feeling it meant something. “It wasn’t a vanity plate or anything; it had to be a direction,” he says. “I’ve always remembered that.”
Today, Bolin heads up operations at Hatco Inc., which produces a million hats a year for brands such as Resistol, Charlie 1 Horse, and Stetson, arguably the most well-known hat in the world. Every hat is handcrafted in the company’s factory and headquarters in Garland, but the brands they fall under are entirely their own. Resistol, the oldest sponsor of the Professional Rodeo Cowboy Association, targets the working cowboy and country music fans, with collections from both George Strait and Jason Aldean. The more fashion-minded Charlie 1 Horse, founded in the 1970s and made famous by wearers such as Waylon Jennings, Charlie Daniels, and retired NASCAR driver Richard Petty, are finished off in a special corner of the factory, where hand-cut leathers, beaded headbands, and feathers are added to give the hats their own distinct themes and personalities.
Eddie Broussard
Regional President, Texas Capital Bank, Fort Worth
Eddie Broussard serves as the regional president of Texas Capital Bank in Fort Worth, a role he assumed in September 2019 after serving as interim market leader for a year prior. He leads the Fort Worth team, drives Commercial and Corporate Banking in Tarrant County, and coordinates efforts with the bank’s Commercial Real Estate, Private Wealth, and other products and functional partners in Fort Worth and the West Texas region.
Broussard brings more than 30 years of corporate banking and financial leadership experience with skills in building market share, business development, strategic planning, negotiations, and operations management.
Prior to joining Texas Capital Bank in 2013 in the Fort Worth Corporate Banking group, Broussard held several executive roles at Drillers Service, Inc, for more than 11 years, including vice president and COO, where he led all financial, operational, and sales functions for the wholesale distribution company. Before that, he was the chief financial officer of Preferred Pump & Equipment for six years.
Broussard’s commitment to the greater Tarrant County community includes leadership roles with several non-profit partners. He currently serves as the chairman of Downtown Fort Worth, Inc., and The Fort Worth Sports Commission. Also, holds board seats for the Fort Worth Chamber of Commerce as well as the local Tarrant County Homeless Coalition. He acts as an advisory council board member of Texas Tech University’s Rawls College of Business.
Broussard earned a bachelor’s degree in finance from Rawls College of Business at Texas Tech University.
Eddie Broussard serves as the regional president of Texas Capital Bank in Fort Worth, a role he assumed in September 2019 after serving as interim market leader for a year prior. He leads the Fort Worth team, drives Commercial and Corporate Banking in Tarrant County, and coordinates efforts with the bank’s Commercial Real Estate, Private Wealth, and other products and functional partners in Fort Worth and the West Texas region.
Broussard brings more than 30 years of corporate banking and financial leadership experience with skills in building market share, business development, strategic planning, negotiations, and operations management.
Prior to joining Texas Capital Bank in 2013 in the Fort Worth Corporate Banking group, Broussard held several executive roles at Drillers Service, Inc, for more than 11 years, including vice president and COO, where he led all financial, operational, and sales functions for the wholesale distribution company. Before that, he was the chief financial officer of Preferred Pump & Equipment for six years.
Broussard’s commitment to the greater Tarrant County community includes leadership roles with several non-profit partners. He currently serves as the chairman of Downtown Fort Worth, Inc., and The Fort Worth Sports Commission. Also, holds board seats for the Fort Worth Chamber of Commerce as well as the local Tarrant County Homeless Coalition. He acts as an advisory council board member of Texas Tech University’s Rawls College of Business.
Broussard earned a bachelor’s degree in finance from Rawls College of Business at Texas Tech University.
Chris Cox
Cox was born in Kissimmee, Florida and moved to Australia with his family at age one. In Australia he lived on a large cattle ranch, before returning to America as an adult.
Cox began training horses at age 7. As an adult, he has trained mustangs for the Bureau of Land Management. He gives clinics in the United States and has competed in cutting horse competitions. He has won Road to the Horse four times, making him the only trainer to do so.
Cox began training horses at age 7. As an adult, he has trained mustangs for the Bureau of Land Management. He gives clinics in the United States and has competed in cutting horse competitions. He has won Road to the Horse four times, making him the only trainer to do so.
Debbie Garrison
Miss Rodeo America and 12-Time PWRA Finals Qualifier.
Debbie Garrison was raised in Mineral Wells, Texas, and attended college at Tarleton State University in Stephenville, Texas, where she competed on the Rodeo Team in Barrel Racing and Goat Tying. She was also a part of the Gymnastics Team and was the Head Cheerleader.
Garrison was selected as 1979 Miss Rodeo America representing Texas, where she garnered the Horsemanship and Appearance titles.
Following her year as Miss Rodeo America, Garrison became a sales representative and sales manager for T.O. Stanley Boot Company and Salaminder Western Clothing Line.
Garrison was a 12-time Professional Women’s Rodeo Association Finals Qualifier in the Team Roping event as a Header and won the average twice and Reserve World Championship twice.
She was inducted into the Texas Cowboy Hall of Fame in 1999, the Texas Rodeo Cowboy Hall of Fame in 2017, the Cowboy Capital Walk of Fame in 2000, the Mineral Wells High School Athletic Hall of Fame in 2003 and the Tarleton State University Rodeo Hall of Fame in 2016.
Garrison currently- and proudly-serves on the TCHOF Board of Directors and remains involved in many charitable events raising money for youth scholarships.
Debbie Garrison was raised in Mineral Wells, Texas, and attended college at Tarleton State University in Stephenville, Texas, where she competed on the Rodeo Team in Barrel Racing and Goat Tying. She was also a part of the Gymnastics Team and was the Head Cheerleader.
Garrison was selected as 1979 Miss Rodeo America representing Texas, where she garnered the Horsemanship and Appearance titles.
Following her year as Miss Rodeo America, Garrison became a sales representative and sales manager for T.O. Stanley Boot Company and Salaminder Western Clothing Line.
Garrison was a 12-time Professional Women’s Rodeo Association Finals Qualifier in the Team Roping event as a Header and won the average twice and Reserve World Championship twice.
She was inducted into the Texas Cowboy Hall of Fame in 1999, the Texas Rodeo Cowboy Hall of Fame in 2017, the Cowboy Capital Walk of Fame in 2000, the Mineral Wells High School Athletic Hall of Fame in 2003 and the Tarleton State University Rodeo Hall of Fame in 2016.
Garrison currently- and proudly-serves on the TCHOF Board of Directors and remains involved in many charitable events raising money for youth scholarships.
Brad Hickman
Brenda Hickman Kostohryz
Billy & Pam Minick
BM=NFR Bull Rider and Rodeo Producer & 2011 RSSoT recipient; PM = Miss Rodeo America, Rodeo Sports Commentator, and Television Personality
Born January 10, 1939 in Fort Worth, Texas, Billy Minick’s dad was a boss gambler in Fort Worth. “Gambling in the late 40s and 50s wasn’t legal, it was tolerated,” said the 80-year-old.
Billy won the state high school All Around Champion in 1958, competing in steer wrestling and bareback riding. From there he went to the National High School Finals in Sulphur, Louisiana. “I was way in lead for all around; came off my second bull and broke my arm.” He was in the hospital in Lake Charles for ten days. While he was there, the coach from McNeese State College offered him a rodeo scholarship. “I went there a year and a half – got along good – but had ants in my pants and had to get back to rodeo. Fame and fortune were waiting.” A year into his rodeo road, in December of 1961, Billy was drafted into the Army, where he served as a medic. “How they made a medic out of the bull rider is a wonder.” He spent his time after medical school in Alaska. “I went to eight rodeos up there, winning the bareback at all of them, and won the All Around at the Anchorage rodeo.”
His stay in Alaska was spent in a field hospital working with the natives, giving classes on childbirth and other things. “The Army taught me #1 to always be on time or early; #2 respect the system of bosses. You can fight it or take it for what it’s worth and get something out of it. I was bitter when I went in,” he admits. “I was peaking in my rodeo career – then I learned that I can’t fight it. You begin to realize how many people went through the same thing and died for this country to let us do what we do today.”
Billy went right back to rodeo when he got out, starting off winning at the winter shows, but then hitting a cold spell and just getting by. He was able to make one NFR qualification in the bull riding, 1966. “I had a great year in ’66, leading one or two for the world championship most of the year, ending up fourth.” He had a job offer in 1967 and decided to take it, moving to Medora, North Dakota to start a show there. At the entrance to Teddy Roosevelt National Badlands Park, Medora is a tourist town that operated in summertime. The ranch/rodeo show was educational to the public and Billy remained there for two years. “I’d go to Spring rodeos and was approached by Harry Knight and Gene Autry to buy their rodeo company.”
Billy had experience in production and he inquired where the rodeo company was located; they said San Antonio. “I asked what the temperature was and they said 72 and I took it.” He was able to purchase the Harry Knight Rodeo company and lease the Flying A ranch in Fowler, Colorado. “Harry Knight stayed with me a couple years and we went on to produce major rodeos they had from fall of 1968 to 1974 adding a few along the way. Billy sold the rodeo company to Mike Cervi in 1975.
The year before, Mike had bought Beutler Brothers and combined them both and the combined rodeo companies dominated the major rodeos. Billy worked for Mike for four years, running Mike’s cattle ordering business, which was the largest order buying cattle company in Northwest. “The headquarters was in Caldwell Idaho, and we shipped thousands of head of cattle,” he said. “I loved that business – it was real people doing real things. I liked the action, and the numbers, I’ve always been good with numbers.” The job included working with a lot of people to ship the cattle all over.
About 1979, Billy headed back to Texas. “I came back and had a ranch leased from Neal Gay.” Neal became his best friend, and Billy helped him with the Mesquite rodeo for a few years. Billy ended up quitting that and started messing around with the chrome plating business in Ft. Worth. “The company had a truck division and offered me and another boy 10% to get the sales up in the chrome business for over the road.” He built that up and added another side job, bringing him back to his love of rodeo.
“When Billy Bob’s Texas opened April 1, 1981, I got hired to do the bull riding every Friday and Saturday night,” he said. The event is held in the former auction ring and is run like a regular rodeo – timers, announcers, secretary, bull fighters, etc. “It was a huge success. I had my own little operation in the bull riding. I was the only one that could stay on budget – I was in my element.” In December, Billy Bob Barnett, one of the owners of the 100,000 square foot club in Ft. Worth, made him an offer. “I took the club over as GM, not in charge of marketing, etc. just operational.” He stayed in that position through 1985.
In 1982, Billy’s life changed again. His wife, Pam, walked through the door of Billy Bob’s, there to watch The Beach Boys. “If it hadn’t been for Pam, I wouldn’t be here today,” said Billy. It was Pam’s first time in the Fort Worth Stockyards, and she fell in love with the brick paved streets and Billy Minick. That was in December and they were married the following May.
In 1986, Billy Bob started to do a development in the Stock Yards and raised a lot of money from notes to fund the development. Billy and Pam decided not to invest, so they parted ways. Billy sold insurance and picked up broncs, Pam worked for various TV shows, the face of the interviews at the NFR. “We got by.”
In 1987, country music declined in popularity the economy in Texas went south, and the development project failed to produce the budget necessary. Billy Bob’s fell into bankruptcy in 1988 and closed its doors Friday, Jan. 8, 1988. Three investors formed a partnership and reopened the honkytonk November 25, 1988 with a very conservative budget. “Holt Hickman was financing it. He came and got me and said would you go back to work and see if you can pull it out. Said I’d give it a try, only if I had total control of it all.” Billy walked back in the door Feb 1, 1989, and promptly hired his wife, Pam, to do the marketing. “We went to work cutting corners and getting this cleaned up and straightened out. We started breaking even and making a little money. Garth Brooks came along and changed music. Country turned around in the early 1990s and that was a big help.”
37 years later, Billy Bob’s Texas is a success, with more than a million and a half people coming through the door each year. Billy Minick still comes “to the office” one day a week and Pam runs the marketing. The rest of his time is spent at their home, a little slice of heaven that they enjoy. “We have the best horses in the country and my biggest decision every day is where I’m going to lunch and playing golf.”
“I’ve been fair with people – I come off the asphalt and made myself a cowboy,” he says of his life. “Rodeo taught me how to survive – I’ve always enjoyed real people doing real things.”
He is quick to give credit to Pam. Married for 35 years, he calls her excellent. “I don’t like to take credit for anything. I couldn’t do it without that bond – it’s the relationships.” She’s excellent – married 35 years.
Pam’s Story…
Pam was raised on five acres in Las Vegas, Nevada; considered a ranch. Her family of four had no involvement in horses until Pam and her sister, Lynn, decided to give it a try. Her parents bought Rebel and Rio, quarter horses that were used to pull a wagon up and down the Vegas strip for advertising. Pam and her sister rode the $300 horses bareback for the first nine months – with no clue how to care for or even ride. Those two horses shaped Pam’s respect and love for horses and forever changed the direction of her life. She joined 4-H, showing her horse and entering all the events associated with the county fair, which included speed events. “They had 8 events; four speed and four show. One year I won high point in all 8 on the same horse,” she recalls.
That led to rodeo. She started competing in the Nevada High School Rodeo Association. “Every high school rodeo is 400 miles away when you live in Las Vegas – every weekend you’re driving 400 miles one way. My mom would occasionally go, but for the most part, I went alone. My parents weren’t involved in rodeo, and we didn’t know any different.” She competed in breakaway, barrel racing, pole bending, and goat tying, finding the most success in barrel racing. Her horsepower changed over the years, and thanks to friends and mentors, she was able to compete at the National High School Finals.
After high school, she planned to go to UNLV, but before she could go to her first class, she won Miss Rodeo Nevada at the state fair in Reno. “Two months later, I won Miss Rodeo America,” she said. As the youngest Miss Rodeo America, she hit the road in 1973 to represent the sport. Traveling by herself was nothing new to her, having traveled to several rodeos, including National Finals, on her own. “For me, it felt like rodeoing, and I’d worked in high school in the PR department of a hotel, so publicity is what I knew, so when I would get into town, I was an aggressive publicity monger. I did every interview possible,” she said. “I felt the job was a PR person. The committees paid $15 a day and required you to go to Rotary breakfast and a few others, but I would go over and above those; I created my own path.”
After her reign, she lived in Arizona for ten years. During that time, she continued to pursue her career in front of huge crowds and television; commentated for the NFR on and off since 1976, commentating for PBR for 12 years, 26 shows a year; announcing the Houston Livestock Show and rodeo – the first woman to announce that event. “I don’t like being a woman announcer,” she admits. “I like being a sideline reporter where I can do some investigative stuff.” She ended up in Ft. Worth to announce a rodeo. “That’s where I met Billy.”
The duo have continued to manage the famous Billy Bob’s of Texas, Pam as the marketing director. “I’m here 9-5 everyday Monday through Friday – I love it because it’s a challenge,” she said. Along with that job, she produces Gentle Giants, a show she shoots, hosts, and edits every week for RFD-TV. When she’s home, she rides all her horses and really feels she has come full circle in her life.
“I’ve never made big plans, I believe in God’s plan. Sometimes I have to be patient – I never thought I’d be Miss Rodeo America, or the first lady sports commentator; but I never looked at it as setting a goal,” she said. “I was in the right place at the right time. I’ve always been prepared for the next thing that God has for me. Every day I sit on my porch and look out where I live and say I’m blessed.”
Source: https://rodeonews.com/back-when-they-bucked-with-billy-pam-minick/
Born January 10, 1939 in Fort Worth, Texas, Billy Minick’s dad was a boss gambler in Fort Worth. “Gambling in the late 40s and 50s wasn’t legal, it was tolerated,” said the 80-year-old.
Billy won the state high school All Around Champion in 1958, competing in steer wrestling and bareback riding. From there he went to the National High School Finals in Sulphur, Louisiana. “I was way in lead for all around; came off my second bull and broke my arm.” He was in the hospital in Lake Charles for ten days. While he was there, the coach from McNeese State College offered him a rodeo scholarship. “I went there a year and a half – got along good – but had ants in my pants and had to get back to rodeo. Fame and fortune were waiting.” A year into his rodeo road, in December of 1961, Billy was drafted into the Army, where he served as a medic. “How they made a medic out of the bull rider is a wonder.” He spent his time after medical school in Alaska. “I went to eight rodeos up there, winning the bareback at all of them, and won the All Around at the Anchorage rodeo.”
His stay in Alaska was spent in a field hospital working with the natives, giving classes on childbirth and other things. “The Army taught me #1 to always be on time or early; #2 respect the system of bosses. You can fight it or take it for what it’s worth and get something out of it. I was bitter when I went in,” he admits. “I was peaking in my rodeo career – then I learned that I can’t fight it. You begin to realize how many people went through the same thing and died for this country to let us do what we do today.”
Billy went right back to rodeo when he got out, starting off winning at the winter shows, but then hitting a cold spell and just getting by. He was able to make one NFR qualification in the bull riding, 1966. “I had a great year in ’66, leading one or two for the world championship most of the year, ending up fourth.” He had a job offer in 1967 and decided to take it, moving to Medora, North Dakota to start a show there. At the entrance to Teddy Roosevelt National Badlands Park, Medora is a tourist town that operated in summertime. The ranch/rodeo show was educational to the public and Billy remained there for two years. “I’d go to Spring rodeos and was approached by Harry Knight and Gene Autry to buy their rodeo company.”
Billy had experience in production and he inquired where the rodeo company was located; they said San Antonio. “I asked what the temperature was and they said 72 and I took it.” He was able to purchase the Harry Knight Rodeo company and lease the Flying A ranch in Fowler, Colorado. “Harry Knight stayed with me a couple years and we went on to produce major rodeos they had from fall of 1968 to 1974 adding a few along the way. Billy sold the rodeo company to Mike Cervi in 1975.
The year before, Mike had bought Beutler Brothers and combined them both and the combined rodeo companies dominated the major rodeos. Billy worked for Mike for four years, running Mike’s cattle ordering business, which was the largest order buying cattle company in Northwest. “The headquarters was in Caldwell Idaho, and we shipped thousands of head of cattle,” he said. “I loved that business – it was real people doing real things. I liked the action, and the numbers, I’ve always been good with numbers.” The job included working with a lot of people to ship the cattle all over.
About 1979, Billy headed back to Texas. “I came back and had a ranch leased from Neal Gay.” Neal became his best friend, and Billy helped him with the Mesquite rodeo for a few years. Billy ended up quitting that and started messing around with the chrome plating business in Ft. Worth. “The company had a truck division and offered me and another boy 10% to get the sales up in the chrome business for over the road.” He built that up and added another side job, bringing him back to his love of rodeo.
“When Billy Bob’s Texas opened April 1, 1981, I got hired to do the bull riding every Friday and Saturday night,” he said. The event is held in the former auction ring and is run like a regular rodeo – timers, announcers, secretary, bull fighters, etc. “It was a huge success. I had my own little operation in the bull riding. I was the only one that could stay on budget – I was in my element.” In December, Billy Bob Barnett, one of the owners of the 100,000 square foot club in Ft. Worth, made him an offer. “I took the club over as GM, not in charge of marketing, etc. just operational.” He stayed in that position through 1985.
In 1982, Billy’s life changed again. His wife, Pam, walked through the door of Billy Bob’s, there to watch The Beach Boys. “If it hadn’t been for Pam, I wouldn’t be here today,” said Billy. It was Pam’s first time in the Fort Worth Stockyards, and she fell in love with the brick paved streets and Billy Minick. That was in December and they were married the following May.
In 1986, Billy Bob started to do a development in the Stock Yards and raised a lot of money from notes to fund the development. Billy and Pam decided not to invest, so they parted ways. Billy sold insurance and picked up broncs, Pam worked for various TV shows, the face of the interviews at the NFR. “We got by.”
In 1987, country music declined in popularity the economy in Texas went south, and the development project failed to produce the budget necessary. Billy Bob’s fell into bankruptcy in 1988 and closed its doors Friday, Jan. 8, 1988. Three investors formed a partnership and reopened the honkytonk November 25, 1988 with a very conservative budget. “Holt Hickman was financing it. He came and got me and said would you go back to work and see if you can pull it out. Said I’d give it a try, only if I had total control of it all.” Billy walked back in the door Feb 1, 1989, and promptly hired his wife, Pam, to do the marketing. “We went to work cutting corners and getting this cleaned up and straightened out. We started breaking even and making a little money. Garth Brooks came along and changed music. Country turned around in the early 1990s and that was a big help.”
37 years later, Billy Bob’s Texas is a success, with more than a million and a half people coming through the door each year. Billy Minick still comes “to the office” one day a week and Pam runs the marketing. The rest of his time is spent at their home, a little slice of heaven that they enjoy. “We have the best horses in the country and my biggest decision every day is where I’m going to lunch and playing golf.”
“I’ve been fair with people – I come off the asphalt and made myself a cowboy,” he says of his life. “Rodeo taught me how to survive – I’ve always enjoyed real people doing real things.”
He is quick to give credit to Pam. Married for 35 years, he calls her excellent. “I don’t like to take credit for anything. I couldn’t do it without that bond – it’s the relationships.” She’s excellent – married 35 years.
Pam’s Story…
Pam was raised on five acres in Las Vegas, Nevada; considered a ranch. Her family of four had no involvement in horses until Pam and her sister, Lynn, decided to give it a try. Her parents bought Rebel and Rio, quarter horses that were used to pull a wagon up and down the Vegas strip for advertising. Pam and her sister rode the $300 horses bareback for the first nine months – with no clue how to care for or even ride. Those two horses shaped Pam’s respect and love for horses and forever changed the direction of her life. She joined 4-H, showing her horse and entering all the events associated with the county fair, which included speed events. “They had 8 events; four speed and four show. One year I won high point in all 8 on the same horse,” she recalls.
That led to rodeo. She started competing in the Nevada High School Rodeo Association. “Every high school rodeo is 400 miles away when you live in Las Vegas – every weekend you’re driving 400 miles one way. My mom would occasionally go, but for the most part, I went alone. My parents weren’t involved in rodeo, and we didn’t know any different.” She competed in breakaway, barrel racing, pole bending, and goat tying, finding the most success in barrel racing. Her horsepower changed over the years, and thanks to friends and mentors, she was able to compete at the National High School Finals.
After high school, she planned to go to UNLV, but before she could go to her first class, she won Miss Rodeo Nevada at the state fair in Reno. “Two months later, I won Miss Rodeo America,” she said. As the youngest Miss Rodeo America, she hit the road in 1973 to represent the sport. Traveling by herself was nothing new to her, having traveled to several rodeos, including National Finals, on her own. “For me, it felt like rodeoing, and I’d worked in high school in the PR department of a hotel, so publicity is what I knew, so when I would get into town, I was an aggressive publicity monger. I did every interview possible,” she said. “I felt the job was a PR person. The committees paid $15 a day and required you to go to Rotary breakfast and a few others, but I would go over and above those; I created my own path.”
After her reign, she lived in Arizona for ten years. During that time, she continued to pursue her career in front of huge crowds and television; commentated for the NFR on and off since 1976, commentating for PBR for 12 years, 26 shows a year; announcing the Houston Livestock Show and rodeo – the first woman to announce that event. “I don’t like being a woman announcer,” she admits. “I like being a sideline reporter where I can do some investigative stuff.” She ended up in Ft. Worth to announce a rodeo. “That’s where I met Billy.”
The duo have continued to manage the famous Billy Bob’s of Texas, Pam as the marketing director. “I’m here 9-5 everyday Monday through Friday – I love it because it’s a challenge,” she said. Along with that job, she produces Gentle Giants, a show she shoots, hosts, and edits every week for RFD-TV. When she’s home, she rides all her horses and really feels she has come full circle in her life.
“I’ve never made big plans, I believe in God’s plan. Sometimes I have to be patient – I never thought I’d be Miss Rodeo America, or the first lady sports commentator; but I never looked at it as setting a goal,” she said. “I was in the right place at the right time. I’ve always been prepared for the next thing that God has for me. Every day I sit on my porch and look out where I live and say I’m blessed.”
Source: https://rodeonews.com/back-when-they-bucked-with-billy-pam-minick/
Bobby Norris
Cutting Horse Trainer & Rancher
The ranching industry has always been a part of Bobby Norris’ life. Born and raised on a large ranch in Colorado Springs, Bobby brought his own equine operation to Texas in 1982. He currently trains cutting horses at his ranch in Burleson, Texas.
Bobby’s affiliations include: Member, National Cowboy Hall of Fame; Past president, Rocky Mountain Quarter Horse Youth Association; Past president, American Junior Quarter Horse Association; Past president American Cutting Horse Association (three terms); Board Member, National Cutting Horse Association; Member of the National Cattlemen’s Beef Association; Founder – Roundup for Autism; Nominated to Texas cowboy hall of fame in 2013; Honorary member of the Cowboy artists of America; and on the Executive Committee and Board of Directors of the National Cowboy Hall of Fame in Oklahoma City.
With a lifetime background in the Farming and Ranching industry, significant contacts all over the United States, and several World Championships in the equine world, Bobby is well-suited to help with all of your farm and ranch real estate needs.
Whether it is 5 acres, or 5,000 acres plus, Bobby can help you market or find the perfect farm/ranch property
https://www.bobbynorris.com
The ranching industry has always been a part of Bobby Norris’ life. Born and raised on a large ranch in Colorado Springs, Bobby brought his own equine operation to Texas in 1982. He currently trains cutting horses at his ranch in Burleson, Texas.
Bobby’s affiliations include: Member, National Cowboy Hall of Fame; Past president, Rocky Mountain Quarter Horse Youth Association; Past president, American Junior Quarter Horse Association; Past president American Cutting Horse Association (three terms); Board Member, National Cutting Horse Association; Member of the National Cattlemen’s Beef Association; Founder – Roundup for Autism; Nominated to Texas cowboy hall of fame in 2013; Honorary member of the Cowboy artists of America; and on the Executive Committee and Board of Directors of the National Cowboy Hall of Fame in Oklahoma City.
With a lifetime background in the Farming and Ranching industry, significant contacts all over the United States, and several World Championships in the equine world, Bobby is well-suited to help with all of your farm and ranch real estate needs.
Whether it is 5 acres, or 5,000 acres plus, Bobby can help you market or find the perfect farm/ranch property
https://www.bobbynorris.com
Jean Roach
Red Steagall
Official Cowboy Poet of Texas, Author, Award Winning Musician, Rancher
Russell "Red" Steagall is an American actor, musician, poet, and stage performer who focuses on American Western and country music genres.
The entertainment career of Red Steagall has spanned the globe from Australia to the Middle East, to South America and the Far East. He has performed for heads of state including a special party for President Reagan at the White House in l983.
A native Texan, Russell “Red” Steagall was born in Gainesville, Texas. He enjoyed a career in Agricultural Chemistry after graduating from West Texas A&M University with a degree in Animal Science and Agronomy. He then spent eight years as a music industry executive in Hollywood, California and has spent the years since then as a recording artist, poet, songwriter, television and motion picture personality and radio show host. As a songwriter, Steagall has had over 200 of his compositions recorded both by him and other artists. His work on radio and TV includes programs like Cowboy Corner which celebrates the cowboy way of life and host many famous guests. Red’s poetry has won many awards, and promotes the cowboy history and heritage across America.
Each year since 1991, Red has hosted THE RED STEAGALL COWBOY GATHERING in the Stockyards National Historic District of Fort Worth, Texas. This authentic western event, which draws thousands each year, features a ranch rodeo, chuck wagon cook-off, youth poetry contest, youth fiddle contest, western swing dances, cowboy music and poetry, a trappings show, and horsemanship clinics.
He currently ranches and maintains offices outside of Fort Worth, Texas. Mr. Steagall was inducted into the Texas Cowboy Hall of Fame in 2004.
https://www.redsteagall.com
Russell "Red" Steagall is an American actor, musician, poet, and stage performer who focuses on American Western and country music genres.
The entertainment career of Red Steagall has spanned the globe from Australia to the Middle East, to South America and the Far East. He has performed for heads of state including a special party for President Reagan at the White House in l983.
A native Texan, Russell “Red” Steagall was born in Gainesville, Texas. He enjoyed a career in Agricultural Chemistry after graduating from West Texas A&M University with a degree in Animal Science and Agronomy. He then spent eight years as a music industry executive in Hollywood, California and has spent the years since then as a recording artist, poet, songwriter, television and motion picture personality and radio show host. As a songwriter, Steagall has had over 200 of his compositions recorded both by him and other artists. His work on radio and TV includes programs like Cowboy Corner which celebrates the cowboy way of life and host many famous guests. Red’s poetry has won many awards, and promotes the cowboy history and heritage across America.
Each year since 1991, Red has hosted THE RED STEAGALL COWBOY GATHERING in the Stockyards National Historic District of Fort Worth, Texas. This authentic western event, which draws thousands each year, features a ranch rodeo, chuck wagon cook-off, youth poetry contest, youth fiddle contest, western swing dances, cowboy music and poetry, a trappings show, and horsemanship clinics.
He currently ranches and maintains offices outside of Fort Worth, Texas. Mr. Steagall was inducted into the Texas Cowboy Hall of Fame in 2004.
https://www.redsteagall.com
Teri Wenglein
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