CANADIAN PROFESSIONAL RODEO HALL OF FAME ANNOUNCES 2009 INDUCTEES
March 30 , 2009

Eight new inductees will be introduced to the Canadian Professional Rodeo Hall of Fame (CPRHF) at the annual induction ceremony held in Calgary, Alta. this fall.
First founded in 1979 by a group of dedicated rodeo enthusiasts, and established as an association in 1980, the Canadian Rodeo Historical Association (CHRA) awards those who have made significant contributions to the sport of rodeo in Canada.
Don Dewar, Jim Clifford, Mark Wagner, Ruth McDougall, Claire & Lois Dewar, Jim Kelts, Wes Zieffle, and Zieffle’s steer wrestling horse Twist will join the outstanding 149 contestants, builders and animals already inducted into the Hall of Fame.

Jim Clifford

Remembered as a colourful character both in and out of the arena, Jim tried his hand at nearly all the major rodeo events: bareback, saddle bronc, bull riding, wild cow milking and the wild horse race, an event at which he excelled and earned him the nickname “Wild Horse.”
But it was bareback riding that ultimately proved the Ribstone, Alta.-native’s specialty. Jim placed in the top four in the Canadian standings nine times between 1963 and 1975. In 1965, he won the bareback championship title and was named high point champion. 1965 was an exciting year for Jim, because he also won the bareback riding championship at the Calgary Stampede. In 1967, he represented Canadian cowboys for a season in Australia. Jim even gave judging a go, when he was selected for the CFR in 1978.
Sadly, Jim has since passed away, but his legacy lives on through his years of spirited competition and support of his peers.

Don Dewar

From 1946 to 1954, Don Dewar competed in saddle bronc, steer decorating (known today as steer wrestling) and tie-down roping, so that he qualified for the All-Around title, and placed in the Canadian standings an impressive 13 times over nine consecutive years. He won the Canadian championship in the steer decorating in 1951, and placed second in the All-Around standings in 1948, 1949, 1951 and 1953.
Nearly every year from 1941 to 1945, Don was also a regular competitor competing at the Calgary Stampede in nearly every event. He placed first in round six of the Stampede’s Wild Horse Race in 1942, a feat that earned him 35 bucks. His rodeo resume also includes a world champion title in steer wrestling from a 1950 Rodeo Association of America (RAA) event in Boston.
Don currently resides in Ontario.

Claire and Lois Dewar

The Dewar sisters grew up on a mixed ranch/farm operation in Hoosier, Sask. with their older brother – and fellow 2009 inductee – Don. Not long after the girls first learned to walk, they found themselves riding horses bareback around the homestead, and after they saw pictures of vaulting in the rodeo magazines brought home by their brother, the duo got a little more daring and started developing their own stunts.
In the early ’50s, they became the first female trick riders in Canada and performed their daring stunts at stampedes, parades and fairs across North America, working with rodeo promoters and stock contractors like Harry Vold, Reg Kesler and Jerry Myers, who the Dewars now follow into the Hall of Fame.
Lois moved to the States in 1958,but the pair continued to perform together and often competed in ladies barrel racing events. Claire was instrumental in forming the Saskatchewan Girls Barrel Racing Association, and Lois won that provincial title twice. Lois later started the Cutting Horse Futurity show in southern Alberta, now run by the Calgary Stampede. She remained on staff as barn manager until she retired. Claire helped organize the annual horse show in Fiske, Sask, not far from Rosetown, where the Dewar Sisters performed for their first paying audience. She now resides in Airdrie, Alta. They also shared their knowledge with enthusiastic trick riding students like Sandy and Leanne Short, who went on to become internationally renowned trick riders in their own right.

Jim Kelts

Jim competed in his first rodeo as a teenager at Gooseberry Lake, near Vermilion, Alta., in 1971. The following year, he made his professional saddle bronc debut in Killam, Alta. as a permit holder, joining the CPRA in 1974.
Over the course of his career, Jim was a Canadian Finals Rodeo finalist nine times (1974-1982) and a National Finals Rodeo (NFR) finalist four times (1974, 1976-1978). He won the Canadian Novice Saddle Bronc Championship in 1973, placed fourth overall in the world standings in 1978. He ranked among the top four in Canada 10 times, finishing second four times and finally winning the Canadian saddle bronc title in 1984.
After retiring from active competition, Jim has stayed involved in rodeo as a pickup man at many CPRA sanctioned rodeos.

Ruth McDougall

Starting in 1983, the year ladies barrel racing joined the CPRA, Ruth placed in the top two at the CFR for eight consecutive years. Five of those years saw her win the championship title and an unprecedented three in a row from 1987 to 1989.
She was equally successful competing at the NFR in Las Vegas, Nev. She was the ladies barrel racing champion at the Calgary Stampede in 1986.
McDougall now lives in Oklahoma with husband Junior Garrison.

Mark Wagner

Mark Wagner has been involved in and sponsored many rodeos across western Canada, and was instrumental in helping the Luxton Pro Rodeo in British Columbia make the transition from amateur to professional. He helped contestants pay their entry fees, and even their way down the road if they needed help on occasion.
Additionally, Wagner owned and operated Gayland Shows (later named MF Wagner Shows), a carnival and midway business that provided entertainment in conjunction with many CPRA rodeos. Mark used some of the money earned from this venture to develop and enhance rodeo in Armstrong, B.C. MF Wagner Shows also provided financial awards to contestants through a series of rodeos that encouraged contestants to compete at rodeos they might not otherwise have entered.

Wes Zieffle

Wes was born in Medicine Hat in 1945 and worked his first rodeo when he was 14. As a contestant, he joined the CPRA in 1964 and was extremely successful competing in steer wrestling, tie-down roping and team roping; however, it’s his non-competitive contributions to rodeo that have really made him a champion in the Canadian rodeo arena.
Mentor, instructor, father and friend, Wes has had many champions practice in his arena at Monitor, Alta. and never seems to tire of the action. The unselfish giving of his time, facilities and his horses has helped many young cowboys hone their skills.
Twist
Twist started out as a rope horse until Wes Zieffle purchased him for $400 worth of oats. Trained by Zieffle as a steer wrestling horse, he was the first to receive the title of Steer Wrestling Horse of the Year, an honour bestowed upon the steed in 1979, and a title he won four more times! Twist carried many riders to the CFR, including Ben Hern, Ken Guenther and Blaine Pederson, and was featured on the CFR’s official 1982 poster.
The 2009 Banquet and Induction Ceremonies will be held Oct. 17,
2009 at the Carriage House Inn in Calgary, Alta. Tickets will be available at the Canadian Professional Rodeo Association office starting July 15.
If anyone has any information and or pictures pertaining to this year’s Hall of Fame inductees, please contact the CRHA office at 403-236-8511.