Urban Cowboys and Cowgirls at Weekend Rodeo

Spectators were treated to lawn tractor and diesel truck pulls, a classic car show, a ranch rodeo and a good old-fashioned BBQ Cookoff during Saturday's "Smoke on the River" event at the Manatee County Fairgrounds.

The weather could not have been more perfect for the family-friendly event, sponsored by the Manatee County Cattlemen's Association, partnering with the Braden River Future Farmers of America Alumni group.

Competitors tapped their inner cowgirl and cowboy for the ranch rodeo, who showed off their skills in a variety of different events, with some hoping to land a spot in the state finals this fall.

Events included Team Sorting, Team Doctoring, Calf Branding, Double Mugging and Woods Tying. The winning team qualified for a spot in the 2012 Florida Ranch Rodeo State Finals, scheduled to be held in Kissimmee in September.

A junior team was a new addition this year and featured members between ages eight and 16.

The lawn tractor pull attracted contestants of different ages. Aage Anderson brought his own lawn tractor, named Psycho Deere, from his home in Clearwater for the event.

His tractor, which was definitely not a standard lawn tractor, managed to pull the sled 73 feet, and it weighed a whopping 4,000-5,000 pounds.  

Anderson's distance was crushed though when Caitlin Felts, a first grader from Samoset Elementary, had her turn at the tractor pull. She showed all the boys who was boss, kicking up dirt and pulling the sled a full pull of 200 feet to the other side of the arena.  

The cookoff competition was just as serious, with seven teams of what one person described as hardcore smokers, who brought out their custom smokers and put their cooking skills to the test.

Competitors cooked ribs, pulled pork and chicken, each using their own special secrets to try to win the judges' votes.  

Casey Horne and Robin Bryant teamed up, and the smells coming from their smoker were the first thing that people noticed when arriving at the fairgrounds.

One of Bryant's secrets was a North Carolina-style sauce with a vinegar base. The massive smoker, custom built by Horne, was exactly what his boss had sketched on paper.

"If you ain't first you're last," said Horne, when asked if he thought they would win the cookoff.  

The Lakewood Ranch Future Farmers of America put together an all girls' team and with the help of their adviser's step-father, Jerry Wolfe, were also hoping for a big win.  

"We are hoping we have beginners luck," said Megan Hildreth, an 11th grader at Lakewood Ranch High School, as they readied their four racks of ribs, 24 chicken thighs and massive pulled pork butt for the judges.  

Jordan Pascuzzi, a 10th grader at Lakewood Ranch, was sure they would win. When askead about a secret ingredient, she said, "Well, we just threw together the things we thought would be good."

The Cattlemen's Association has sponsored the ranch rodeo for the last several years and were approached this year by the Braden River FFA Alumni group.

The FFA group added the lawn tractor pull and the barbecue cookoff to the annual ranch rodeo lineup.

The goal was to raise money to go toward scholarships and to offset some of the costs for student FFA trips. Students occasionally travel to livestock shows, leadership conferences and other events throughout the year.

Profits from Saturday's event will be split between the FFA program and Cattlemen’s Association.

Jason McKendree, vice president of the Cattlemen's Association, said that he was glad to have the FFA Alumni on board and predicted that the final tally would show a higher attendance this year because of the partnership.

McKendree said that previous years' attendance has been between 300 and 400 people.