The Hennessey Rodeo has become a significant event in Hennessey bringing spectators and competitors from all over Oklahoma and even from out of state. It has always been a big rodeo, but it had record attendance this year and was wall-to-wall people. This event is great fun for everyone and is a big social event as well as a show. Stacy Cline is the announcer that keeps everything moving and entertains the crowd with stories and facts about rodeos. This rodeo is a true family show. Along with many helpers, you can find the entire Cline family working the event, from the ticket gate, working the shoots, and some of them competing.
This year the rodeo grounds found their limit with huge crowds.
Several attendees requested their money back because there was nowhere to stand. Stacy Cline, the event promoter, said, “We were packed on Friday and Saturday. We had some people from the town that drove to the event, then went home and walked back because there was no place to fit another car.”
Parking at the rodeo grounds has always been a problem, but it gets challenging to park when these many people show up. In the past, there has been talk at the Hennessey Board of Trustees meeting about what to do with the rodeo grounds. Parking has been brought up more than once, but a decision has never been made. The town owns the rodeo grounds along with a large parcel of land to the west that used to be the town dump. It would make a perfect parking lot, but it is separated by a large drop-off, making it difficult to walk between the two areas.
The Hennessey Lions Club helped feed the crowd, and Hennessey police patrolled the grounds keeping everyone safe. This has been the official Hennessey Rodeo for many years, and each year it keeps growing. But, unfortunately, they may have found the limits of the old Hennessey rodeo arena this year!
