Breakaway Bluff: The Saga Between Red Bluff and the WPRA
If you are involved in the rodeo world at all, even just as a social media follower, you have seen #addbreakaway over the last few months. In the last few weeks, the conversation has centered on the Red Bluff Roundup in Red Bluff, Calif., and the WPRA Breakaway.
"Bluff" is an attempt to deceive someone into believing that one can or will do something. In this case, it means will or will not do something.
Poker players know and understand the definition of a bluff very well. Not only do they understand the meaning, but they also know how to execute one professionally.
The WPRA tried, but it appears on the surface that, in the end, Red Bluff was the better poker player.
In December, at the committee meetings, the WPRA board presented a plan to require rodeos to provide the breakaway roping equal added money by the year 2026. The idea was that in 2024, committees would be required to add 50% of what they add to the WPRA barrel race. That would increase to 75% in 2025 and then be at equal added money in 2026.
Red Bluff decided to increase their added money to $8,500 from $7,500 the year before and submitted that to the WPRA for review. That did not meet the 50% rule.
After multiple conversations with WPRA leadership and directors, ultimately, the committee at Red Bluff had been "turned off" and decided not to host a breakaway roping as part of their rodeo in 2024.
The news broke, and social media went wild. Post after post had hundreds of shares and comments. People started flooding the Red Bluff committee with phone calls and emails. Some of them were respectful and asked for further information, while others were demanding and one-sided.
The media attention worked, and Red Bluff held a meeting on Wednesday, March 6, to revisit the breakaway roping and discuss how they wanted to proceed.
In the end, they agreed to host a breakaway roping, but not to the added money requirement. So, who's bluff really worked?
Who came out on top of the situation? That is something that is left to be decided for sure. Did Red Bluff set the example for other committees to follow that they do not have to rise to the occasion of meeting the graduated added money scale put into place by the board of the WPRA?
Did the breakaway ropers and the WPRA come out on top, proving that they can gain ground and footing by using social media while not holding to the stance that the breakaway ropers should have equal added money?
Did the actions of many with the negative posts, emails, and phone calls gain ground toward women's equality in rodeo or add more fuel to the fire?
Will other committees resist adding the optional breakaway event after seeing all this, or will they embrace the chance to add one of the hottest events going?
History is being made, but how it will be written is still yet to be decided. Only time will tell.
