Campus Cowboys and Cowgirls: A Research Note on College Rodeo Athletes

College rodeo has evolved from small, single-campus fund-raisers, celebrations, and/or competitions into an internationally recognized North American collegiate sport. Throughout its history, though, the sport has received virtually no attention in the sociological literature. In this research note I provide a descriptive summary of member characteristics and selected findings from a 2003-2004 National Intercollegiate Rodeo Association membership survey. I also empirically examine the association of size of place of residency during childhood with previous involvement in rodeo (i.e., before participating in college rodeo). Findings reveal that respondents who spent most of their childhood in more rural areas (i.e., in the countryside outside any city or town) have participated in rodeo (or rodeo-related events), on average, for more years than those who primarily resided in more urban locales (i.e., a city of 50,000 or more) during childhood