By Karin Eagle
Native Sun News Staff Writer PINE RIDGE – A young Lakota girl from the Pine Ridge Reservation is moving closer to her dreams of championship on the national rodeo scene. Twelve year old Kateri Weston, from Porcupine, has qualified to compete at the Indian National Finals Rodeo (INFR) in Las Vegas this November. The rodeo is scheduled for Nov. 5-9, 2013. Slated to ride number 15 in the lineup for the Juniors Barrel Racing completion on Nov. 15, Weston, a six grader at Our Lady of Lourdes, is currently seeking sponsorship to help defray the costs of traveling with her family to the rodeo. The INFR is not unknown to the tribes of South Dakota, with a large percentage of the competitors and winners coming from South Dakota. Having began in 1976, several individuals brought together various regional Indian Rodeo Associations from the U.S. and Canada to form the Indian National Finals Rodeo Inc. Champion Indian cowboys and cowgirls came together at the Salt Palace in Salt Lake City, Utah to compete against each other in the first ever Indian National Finals Rodeo. Sanctioning nearly 700 rodeos nationwide and offering annual prize money exceeding over a million dollars the INFR is, by far, the largest and the oldest Indian Rodeo Organization in the world. The INFR also works with a variety of youth rodeo associations as well as the National High School Rodeo Association and the National Intercollegiate Rodeo Association, creating a natural progression for the athletes climbing from the ranks of youth and college rodeo to professional rodeo. The INFR currently has 11 Regions within the United States and Canada with members ranging from 8 years of age to 80. Indian Pro Rodeo is one of the only sporting events where children can compete with their parents and grandparents. Contestants compete for over $1,000,000 in prize money and awards throughout the year, which culminates with the Indian National Finals Rodeo, where 350+ qualified contestants compete in the 8 major events. The majority of the INFR members are also members of Professional Rodeo Cowboys Association (PRCA). The INFR has been in existence since 1976. The INFR Commission has taken steps to increase the awareness and preservation of the INFR for the Professional Indian Cowboys and Cowgirls. Another key component that has been implemented is the INFR Scholarship Program. Since 2005, the INFR has provided over $50,000 in scholarship assistance to members of the organization, and take pride in seeing the INFR Cowboys and Cowgirls achieve their educational goals. In 2006 the INFR Commission added the INFR Tour concept as a way to qualify to the INFR. Contestants travel thousands of miles to attend tour rodeos to get the points needed to qualify for the INFR. Entries at the tour rodeos vary based on the added purse money. We had over 400 entries at one tour rodeo that had an added purse of $10,000 in each event. In 2010 the INFR Commission added junior and senior events to the finals. This helps protect the future of Indian Rodeo as well as allow the INFR to pay respect to elder cowboys and cowgirls. To date the Jr./Sr. finals have been a huge success. 2011 was the first year the INFR established the Indian National Finals Rodeo Hall of Fame. The first year inductees were founders and/or past commissioners of the INFR. Last year’s INFR saw the induction of the following INFR greats including Howard Hunter Sr., Gracie Welsh, Felix Gilbert Sr., Josiah Johns and Harry Shade. To help Kateri Weston fulfill her dream of competing at this level, you can contact her father, Terry Weston, Jr. at (605) 867-2372 or (605) 899-1340. (Contact Karin Eagle at staffwriter@nsweekly.com) Copyright permission by Native Sun News
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