Published: June 22, 2006 11:48 am      

Rodeo honors life of deceased local cowboy

This past Saturday, for the first time, three-time bareback world champion Arthur Stoner got the recognition he deserved, according to his mother, Jackie Stoner, who was present at the event.

The Arthur Stoner Memorial Arena in Jones kicked off its first rodeo with several big names, a number of professionals and the horse Stoner first rode professionally. The event drew a large crowd that filled the bleachers, with Jackie sitting in the front row.

Arthur Stoner was the first black man to win three IPRA world championships —in 1991, 1992 and 1994. Only three other black IPRA cowboys have won world championships — Clarence LeBlance won the IPRA steer wrestling world title twice in 1983 and 1990, Danell Tipton won the IPRA bull riding gold buckle in 1995 and Ronnie Fields, Oklahoma City, is trying for his third steer wrestling world title, according to a June 16 issue of the Oklahoma City KEY magazine.

According to Jackie, Arthur was “very, very deep in Christ.”

“I taught him as a child to put God first,” Jackie said. “When his friends were out playing, he would read the Bible. He never rode a horse without praying over it.”

She stated that the distinguished cowboy used to ride around in a van with the word “Riding for Jesus” written on it.

His brother, Gary, who also attended the event, noted he had given Arthur his first horse at age 6 or 7, but that Arthur had already been riding before then.

In 1995, Arthur, then 25, passed away from meningitis, while in Tennessee. Jackie said that he had been disappointed not long before when he won the world championship in 1994 and had not received as much recognition as he thought he deserved. After his death, Jackie asked Midwest City if they might put up something in his honor, as it was his childhood home, but told The Sun that the city declined, citing lack of funds. She noted that he had once told her that he thought they should have put him on the front.

“[Arthur] said, ‘Why can’t they put my picture on the front of the [IPRA]?’” Jackie said. “I told him he would get his recognition. I would like to thank everybody responsible for putting this rodeo arena together because otherwise he would never have been recognized as a three-time world champion, the first black three-time world champion.”

The Sun spoke to two young cowboys at the event — one who has gone pro and another who is hoping to. Both spoke about their love of the sport and how it has kept a lot of young men out of trouble.

Kendall Parker grew up in rodeo in the town of Arcadia. Parker competes in bulldogging and earned second place, Saturday with a time of 16.2 seconds.

“I grew up in this atmosphere,” he said. “I took with it and ran with it.”

Parker works for the City of Oklahoma City, in the streets department. He practices three or four times a week just after work, from about 5 to 6 p.m. until 10 or 11 p.m. According to him, he would trade his day job in a second for the opportunity to compete professionally and hopes to one day.

Noting that rodeos “will keep a man out of a lot of trouble,” Parker said it was the only place he felt untroubled and at peace.

“It’s the only place I have peace of mind. There’s no place I’d rather be,” he said.

According to Tori Johnson, who is already competing professionally, the key is to stick with it.

“A lot of guys, they give it up. Practice constantly and you will get better,” Johnson said.

The three-year steer wrestling state champion has wrestled all over the United States and practices every day as well as competing every weekend. He also competes in calf-roping, which he took second in, Saturday, and first in the Choctaw rodeo on Friday.

“I’m going to compete in the Las Vegas national finals this year,” Johnson said. “In the 10-day finale.”

Johnson noted that he had been riding since he was 3 years old with grandparents who owned and loved horses. He took part in high school rodeos and attended Bacone College in Muskogee, where he competed at the college level.

Rodeo is growing in Eastern Oklahoma County. The Arthur Memorial Arena was conceived of by R.D. Cheatham, who had it built on his land as a way to contribute to the community. In Choctaw, there has been a lot of work to get a rodeo started of their own. A July rodeo will take place in Spencer and is being organized by Danell Tipton, mentioned above as one of the four black cowboys with world titles.