'Up to us to continue that legacy'
Sep. 20—For the 88th year, folks from all over the western United States ventured up and down the winding single-lane road that leads directly to Beckwourth Riverfront Park and the Cotton Rosser Arena and Pavilion to celebrate the latest Marysville Stampede.
The event, sponsored by Flying U Rodeo and the late Cotton Rosser and his family, begins each year on Wednesday with the Twin Cities Cattle Drive and ends with a two-day regional rodeo where some of the state and western region's premier bull riders, cattle ropers and steer wrestlers compete for spots in the Wrangler National Rodeo Finals in Las Vegas in December.
There's also the Miss Marysville Stampede Rodeo Queen who is elected or appointed in time for the weeklong event.
This year's queen is a two-time Miss Marysville Stampede winner, Lilly May-Ekberg.
May-Ekberg is the first repeat queen since the 2019-20 Stampede.
May-Ekberg said she takes her duties seriously because the Marysville Stampede is the stepping stone to bigger and better queen competitions.
The 19-year-old from Marysville has already begun preparing to vie for Miss Rodeo California, which she hopes is a precursor to Miss Rodeo America.
The state and national queen competitions are much more involved and require coaching, modeling leather queen dresses, interviews and speeches, May-Ekberg said.
May-Ekberg learned alot from this year's Miss California Rodeo, Jackie Scarry, who will be vying for Miss Rodeo America beginning Nov. 27 in Las Vegas as a precursor event to the National Rodeo Finals.
Scarry said Miss California Rodeo Queen is just a one-term election, so she's chomping at the bit to move to the next step in her queen career.
As for May-Ekberg, she will definitely be back in Marysville to judge the pageant to elect the 2023 Miss Marysville Stampede.
With the passing of Cotton Rosser earlier this year, May-Ekberg said she, the Rosser family and everyone with Flying U Rodeo believe it is crucial to maintain the standards that the stampede has set for almost nine decades.
Karin Rosser, Cotton's widow and one of the main organizers behind the stampede for almost a half-century, said when she first started the event it was a lot different.
"When we first started it was Cotton and his office staff that put it together," Karin Rosser said.
But with the help of many volunteers and those labeled "Friends of the Stampede," Rosser said the stampede has grown bigger and better each year.
This year, in addition to a weekend filled with rodeo competition, Rosser said the stampede added a play area for children that featured bull riding, gold mining and numerous other activities for the many families who attend each year.
First-year rodeo attendee Jasmeena Contreras called the Marysville Stampede one of the most genuine events she and her family have ever attended.
Contreras said almost every person she met on Saturday while walking the grounds of Cotton Rosser Arena and Pavilion turned into a positive experience.
Katharine Rosser, another one of the do-it-all volunteers, said attendance in 2022 was record-breaking, which warms the family's heart.
"As a family that is rewarding to see because Cotton has supported this community for over 65 years," Rosser said.
Rosser is excited for the future of the Marysville Stampede because as Cotton's daughter, it falls on her and the family to move the stampede forward.
"It's a family affair and it will continue to be," Rosser said. "My dad did us a great service by giving us the playbook on how to be successful and continue growing the sport. It's up to us to continue that legacy."
The stampede concluded on Sunday with the final day of the rodeo.
