Marysville Stampede returns

Jeff Larson, Appeal-Democrat, Marysville, Calif.
·2 min read

Sep. 20—For anyone new to the Marysville Stampede, the road into Cotton Rosser Arena may have seemed long, tedious, and perhaps never-ending with multiple left and right turns over a beaten path before the destination was reached.

But any recurring rodeo participant or fan will say that destination, once reached, is undoubtedly worth seeing — at least once.

Cotton Rosser Arena on Saturday for military appreciation night was surrounded by multiple grassy hills — all of which were packed with families soaking in the return of the 87th edition of the Marysville Stampede.

"It's exciting to have local camaraderie ... just being together with the community is great," said Felicia Victor, 33, of Plumas Lake.

Victor had three members of her family, all small-aged children, with her as they attended Beckwourth Riverfront Park for the Marysville Stampede for the first time.

A long-time fan of the rodeo,Victor has seen the spectacle in other parts of the country, most notably Washington and North Dakota.

One of her favorite events is typically when the queen is announced.

The Stampede Queen in 2021 was Marysville native Lilly Ekberg, 18. Ekberg, a college student, has been involved with rodeo essentially her whole life.

"I wanted to be queen when I was 4 when I started with Flying U Rodeo," said Ekberg. "I knew I wanted it when I was little and have worked till I got it."

The process of becoming queen, Ekberg said, was long and basically started after she lost during the 86th stampede in 2019.

Ekberg has been working with her 4-year-old horse Jojo for over two years to get to this point. Rodeo, she said, is a 24-hour, seven-day commitment that doesn't necessarily produce results over night.

"It's one of the hardest sports in the world to compete in," Ekberg said.

But as queen, she said it's a fulfilling responsibility to promote Flying U Rodeo for all the little cowboys and cowgirls running around Marysville and Yuba-Sutter looking to become that next big thing in the sport.

Ekberg said the job of queen comes down to making sure rodeo is put in a positive light.

"I want to be a good role model," she said. "What (people) see and what they think may not be the same thing so I want to educate as to what actually happens in the sport."

Ekberg and her colleagues at Flying U Rodeo continue the rodeo tour this year with a host of sites across the western region of the country, including the annual Red Bluff Roundup this spring.

For more information, visit https://flyingurodeo.com.