VALE – Every year the Vale 4th of July Rodeo looks and feels like one big community reunion.
That’s just fine with longtime local resident Topper Schlupe, the new president of the Vale 4th of July Rodeo Board.
A big part of the Vale 4th of July Rodeo magic is it attracts not only spectators from around the region but it also lures families and former residents and graduates of Vale High School.
“If you want to see someone you haven’t seen in a long time, go to the Vale 4th of July Rodeo and you will see them,” he said.
Schlupe stepped into the top rodeo position last year but he was already familiar with the rodeo board and the event.
In the past, he filled the treasurer and secretary positions for the rodeo board.
“I started working in the rodeo when I was in fifth grade because my Dad was involved in the rodeo,” said Schlupe.
Schlupe, who lives in Willowcreek, said because he is new to the top job, he relies on rodeo board vice president Jim Mendiola.
“I’m not the person who knows the stock contractors or the judges, but I know what we all do and all the schematics to put it together,” he said.
Schlupe said the rodeo is one of the “biggest amateur rodeos around.”
“There will be lots of cowboys and one of the biggest payoffs in purse money,” he said.
Schlupe said each category at the rodeo offers a different pay out and those range from $500 up to $1,000.
“I want to make sure it continues on and we put together a good show for the public,” said Schlupe.
Schlupe said the rodeo – which includes the slack performance Tuesday, July 2, and nightly shows Wednesday through Saturday, July 3-6 – is recreated every year by a group of 20 to 25 people on the rodeo board. The work to prepare for the next rodeo begins shortly after the last rodeo ride ends, he said.
The rodeo is a long-standing tradition for most members of the rodeo board, he said.
“Everybody that is on the board, they were involved when they were kids and their parents were involved. It is something we all enjoy. We’ve all grown up with it being one of the highlights of our childhood,” said Schlupe.
Schlupe said during the past nine months, the rodeo board made a series of improvements to the rodeo grounds.
“This year we had the ability to purchase all aluminum seats for the south side (bleachers), the last section that was wood seats. Now we are in in the process of redoing the fence by the entry gate to the double gates out by the parking lot,” he said.
Schlupe said the rodeo board was able to fund the new bleachers through grants and from some proceeds from last year’s rodeo.
Schlupe said rodeo board members began to spruce up the arena early in the spring.
“We started working in March on Wednesdays,” he said.
Now, he said, rodeo board member work crews will begin to work two days a week to get ready for the rodeo.
“We will get a constant 10 to 15 people down there working,” he said.
Schlupe said the rodeo helps the local economy.
“We try to do our damnedest to keep everything in Vale. We don’t say to a vendor, yes, you can bring your booth from Boise to sell something because that money goes to Boise, not Vale,” he said.
Schlupe, 70, said the amount of money the rodeo earns hinges on weather.
“Some years the weather hits wrong and if you have a 105-degree night you are not going to get people to sit in the grandstands,” he said.
The climate is “something you can’t do much about.”
“So, you kind of take what you can get for the gate and hope the weather is good,” he said.
Mendiola said in 2023 the rodeo gate proceeds usually range from $45,000 to $50,000.
Schlupe said another attractive part of the rodeo is its price.
Ticket prices this year are $12 for 13 years old and up, while tickets for those ages 6 to 12 are $8. Kids under 5 get in free.
“I think it is a very affordable rodeo,” he said.
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