What makes Festival Western de St-Tite feel different from almost any other rodeo?

It isn’t just the livestock, the contestants, or the crowd.

It’s the way the entire show moves.

In Episode #200 of Beyond the Chutes, Doug Simcox and Sam Swearingen wrap up their three-part St-Tite series with two of the voices behind the rodeo: Stephan Mesquita and Stéphan Daoust.

They take us behind the microphones and into a production operation that includes roughly 15 to 16 people working sound, lighting, video, replays, information, rodeo operations, production, and music — all communicating in real time while the rodeo unfolds just feet away.

We talk about how announcers prepare, how they read a ride in seconds, how they help spectators understand what they’re watching, and why their job is about much more than announcing a score.

We also get into the energy that makes St-Tite unique.

When the tractor enters the arena, the party doesn’t stop. The music comes up. The crowd dances. The show keeps moving.

As Stephan explains:

“There’s no dead moment.”

That philosophy runs through the entire Festival.

This final chapter brings our St-Tite story full circle:

Anne-Marie Lemire showed us the people and organization behind the Festival. BJ Prince took us behind the rodeo. And now Stephan Mesquita and Stéphan Daoust show us how all of those pieces become a live experience.

Come for the rodeo.

Stay for the people, the music, the streets, the food, and the party.

Listen. Subscribe. Follow. Share. These stories matter.

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How do you bring roughly three-quarters of a million people into a town of about 5,000 and make it all look like it just happens?

That’s where BJ Prince comes in.

In Episode #199 of Beyond the Chutes, Doug Simcox and Sam Swearingen return to Festival Western de St-Tite for the second chapter of our three-part St-Tite series.

This conversation was recorded at the Festival in September 2025, and with another St-Tite approaching, it gives us a fascinating look behind the scenes at the people, planning, livestock, production crews, volunteers, contestants, television, security, logistics, and partnerships required to pull off one of the biggest Western celebrations anywhere.

BJ talks about the hundreds of people working behind the scenes, the livestock operation, the short-round format, The American, the growth of rodeo in Quebec and Eastern Canada, and why taking rodeo into new markets creates opportunities for the next generation.

As BJ puts it, when three-quarters of a million people arrive in a town of 5,000, you’re essentially putting entire cities worth of people into one small community — and it takes a “huge, huge army of people” to make it work.

This episode follows our conversation with Anne-Marie Lemire and takes us one step deeper into the St-Tite story.

Listen. Subscribe. Follow. Share. These stories matter.

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In the first of three special episodes from the Festival Western de St-Tite, Doug sits down with festival president Anne-Marie Lemire for a look beyond the arena and into the people, planning, community and traditions that make Saint-Tite something special.

Recorded during our visit to Quebec last year, we saved this conversation for the run-up to another Festival Western de St-Tite.

This is Episode 1 of our Saint-Tite series. Next up, we’ll sit down with BJ Prince for another side of the Saint-Tite story.

Come with us as we collect the stories, relationships and memories that keep rodeo and Western heritage alive.

Listen. Subscribe. Follow. Share. These stories matter.

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In Episode 3 of our Rolling Smooth series, Doug Simcox sits down again with Stan Cromlish of Wandering Gypsy RV Life to talk about one of the biggest challenges on the road: power.

From crowded rodeo grounds with questionable electrical hookups to keeping the air conditioner running on a hot summer day, Stan breaks down what RV owners, rodeo families, horse trailers and travelers need to know about soft-start systems, generators, inverters, converters and batteries.

We also talk about maintaining your RV air-conditioning system, improving cooling performance, AGM versus lithium batteries, and a few lessons learned the hard way from years of traveling.

Because when you’re miles from home, parked at a rodeo ground and everybody is plugged into the same power pole, you definitely don’t want to be the guy who shuts everybody down.

Rolling Smooth is about practical lessons from the road — keeping your rig safe, reliable and ready for the next adventure.

Listen, follow, subscribe and share. These stories matter.

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For the third year, Beyond the Chutes connected with Team Australia during their July trip to the United States—but this time, the conversation happened face-to-face.

Recorded at the 34th International Finals Youth Rodeo in Shawnee, Oklahoma, Buddy and Sam sit down with the young Australian competitors to talk about borrowed horses, long flights, broncs, bulls, barrel racing, pole bending, American food, new friendships, and the pride of representing their country halfway around the world.

Then Colin Ferguson joins the conversation to share the story behind the team: the planning, family support, horse connections, travel, and opportunities that make these international rodeo experiences possible. He also looks back on his own first rodeo trip to America in 1989 and explains why young Australian competitors continue making the journey today.

This episode is about more than results in the arena. It is about courage, family, friendship, and what can happen when young people are given the chance to chase a rodeo dream.

Beyond the Chutes is proudly presented by ParaSight System.

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Doug and Sam take the BTC bus down the rodeo road for a Texas trip packed with youth rodeo, old friends, world champions, Cajun cooking, historic artifacts, and stories waiting to be preserved.

The journey begins with a stop at the International Finals Youth Rodeo in Shawnee, Oklahoma, where nearly 900 contestants, three busy arenas, and hundreds of breakaway ropers create one of the biggest youth rodeo gatherings in the country. Along the way, Doug and Sam reconnect with rodeo legends, meet Team Australia, talk military rodeo, and preview future conversations with names including Clarence LeBon, Tom Walker, Bob Schmutz, Rob Smets, Tom Kearney, Ronnie Bowman, and Missy Long.

Then it is on to Springtown, Texas, for Kelly and Charlene Clark’s Buckhorn Rodeo Reunion, where saddles, buckles, photographs, and memories raise an important question: what happens to rodeo history if nobody records it?

This episode is about more than miles traveled. It is about the people, relationships, artifacts, and stories found along the way—and why Beyond the Chutes is committed to preserving them.

Follow Beyond the Chutes for more real stories from the rodeo road. #BeyondTheChutes

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Step inside The Buckhorn with longtime rodeo cowboy, historian, and collector Kelly Clark for a guided tour through a remarkable collection of rodeo history.

Kelly shares the stories behind championship saddles, famous hats, buckles, photographs, chaps, shirts, back numbers, and other artifacts connected to generations of rodeo legends. Along the way, he reflects on his father, IRA World Champion John Clark, his own career in bareback riding and bull riding, the early days of the IPRA, Madison Square Garden, Northside Coliseum, Gilley’s, and many of the cowboys who helped shape the sport.

The collection includes pieces tied to Tom Mix, Gene Autry, Donnie Gay, Larry Mahan, Bill Hash, Rick Chatman, Lenore Roe, JB Mauney, and many more.

This episode was recorded as a visual tour, but the stories stand on their own. To see the photographs, saddles, hats, and artifacts Kelly describes, watch the complete video on the Beyond the Chutes YouTube channel or Spotify.

The Buckhorn is more than a collection. Kelly has given these artifacts a home—and he gives them a voice.

These stories matter. This history matters.

Beyond the Chutes is presented by ParaSight System.

In this special episode of Beyond the Chutes, as presented by ParaSight System, Doug Simcox sits down on the back porch in Taylorsville, Kentucky, with his son Ben Simcox for a candid conversation about where the show is headed and why the release schedule is slowing down.

This episode pulls back the curtain on the growing Beyond the Chutes archive project: collecting rodeo artifacts, digitizing Tom Woods’ historic rodeo photos and slides, scanning old Rodeo News magazines, preserving podcast transcripts, and building a searchable wiki-style database to connect the people, places, events, stories, and forgotten pieces of rodeo history.

Doug and Ben talk about the three-prong approach to preserving rodeo history: gather the physical artifacts, digitize and modernize them, and organize them into a working historical archive. They also discuss how this archive can support future shows, books, documentaries, articles, and deeper storytelling around the IRA, IPRA, Longhorn Rodeo, World’s Toughest Rodeo, and the broader Western lifestyle.

This is a call to the rodeo community: if you have old photos, programs, magazines, VHS tapes, stories, or memories from the rodeo road, Beyond the Chutes wants to hear from you. These stories matter. This history matters. And now is the time to preserve it.

In this episode of Beyond the Chutes, presented by ParaSight System, we continue the Rolling Smooth series with Stan Cromlish from Wandering Gypsy RV Life. We’re talking about one of the most important parts of any rig headed down the rodeo road: tires.

Stan and Doug cover tire pressure monitoring systems, tire heat, rig weight, proper tire pressure, GVWR, blowout prevention, and why knowing your numbers can save you money, time, and maybe even your horses. Whether you’re hauling a horse trailer, pulling a camper, driving a motorhome, or running miles during Cowboy Christmas, this episode is about staying safe, avoiding roadside disasters, and keeping your rig road-ready before trouble finds you.

Keep it safe, keep it smart, and keep rolling smooth.

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“I watched Mike Swearingen spur this bull to death and I said… that’s who I want to ride bulls like.”

Recorded last fall at Mike Swearingen’s Rodeo Reunion in Wyoming, New York, Doug Simcox and Sam Swearingen sit down with northeast bull rider Chris Anderson — a guy who came into rodeo later than most… married, with kids… nearly 30 years old… and still went all in.

Chris talks about getting his start at a backyard rodeo… discovering Mike Swearingen’s rodeo school… chasing rodeos across the Northeast… and building a life around bull riding.

The conversation dives into:

• Mike Swearingen’s Rodeo School • Starting bull riding at nearly 30 years old • Rodeo life with family on the road • Early northeast rodeo days • The Hard Way Bull Riding Association • Darlene Spafford’s important role behind the scenes • Weekly bull ridings, fair circuits, and legendary bulls like Flatline • Mike Swearingen, Sam Swearingen, and the riders who helped shape a generation of northeastern bull riders

This episode is full of rodeo stories, old friends, hard-earned memories, and the kind of conversations that happen when rodeo people gather after decades on the road.

Beyond the Chutes… presented by ParaSight System.

Follow Beyond the Chutes for more real stories from the rodeo road. #BeyondTheChutes

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