All-Around • Inducted 2003 Todd Whatley was a true all-around cowboy, working both ends of the arena. Born in 1920 in Rufe, Okla., his rodeo career began at age 17 when he rode a wild cow at a competition in Battiest, Okla. Ten years later, in 1947, he won the steer...
Contract Personnel • Inducted 2003 Nancy Sheppard was born to a Western ranching family on Dec. 29, 1929, in Fort Worth, Texas. Her father was a roper and member of the Cowboys’ Turtle Association and her mother began showing horses in the Fort Worth Coliseum as a child. Sheppard made her...
Saddle Bronc Riding • Inducted 2003 Dennis Reiners, born Oct. 17, 1937, in Clara City, Minn., grew up on a farm. He started his bronc riding career after watching the flamboyant Casey Tibbs ride in Clear Lake, S.D., in 1950. He went on to qualify for nine National Finals Rodeos in...
All-Around • Inducted 2003 Dee Pickett, born Sept. 8, 1955, in San Diego, Calif., discovered rodeo when he was 7 years old and his family moved to Idaho. Although he had the opportunity to tryout for two professional football teams after his standout football career as a quarterback at Boise State...
Livestock • Class of 2025 RTR Little Willy was undoubtedly one of the best steer wrestling horses of all time, winning nearly $4 million in a 12-year career. Purchased as a three-year-old by Greg Cassidy, Willy blossomed as a rodeo horse. He carried many cowboys in his career including Curtis and...
Contract Personnel • Inducted 2025 Skipper Voss went to college as a football player and pole-vaulter. It wasn’t until his good friend invited him to a rodeo and dared him to ride a bull that he was bitten by the rodeo bug. Before his ride at a rodeo, his friend got...
Stock Contractor • Inducted 2025 Harley Tucker knew a good bucking horse when he saw one. His son said he had a knack for finding them. Tucker always made sure his stock was well cared for and had the best of everything, even if that meant he was the one hauling...
Tie-Down Roping • Class of 2025 Stran Smith has lived by the mantra of “Never give up on your dreams.” It has paid off for him with 11 National Finals Rodeo qualifications, 3 Texas Circuit titles, and a World’s Champion gold buckle. Born into a ranching and rodeo family, Smith grew...
Team Roping • Inducted 2025 Steve Purcella began his professional rodeo career in 1986 when he joined the PRCA. Ten years after his entrance into the PRCA, Purcella and partner Steve Northcott captured the National Finals Rodeo Average to win them the World Championship. The pair gained the lead in the average...
Notable • Inducted 2025 Pam Minick’s career left a legacy as a true ambassador for the western way of life as a competitor and promoter. From being named Miss Rodeo America in 1973 (Pam Martin), to winning the WPRA breakaway roping world title in 1982, to serving on the WPRA Board...
