Western heritage restored to glory
BRAWLEY — The classic statue of Casey Tibbs was returned to its pedestal after the original, worn from decades of bearing up under harsh climate, was dismantled recently.
The fiberglass statue of the renowned bronco rider was donated by Tibbs himself in 1966. It was returned to its base at the Cattle Call Arena on Friday.
The Cattle Call Rodeo Committee spearheaded the restoration after it was deemed necessary to remove the original at the arena as well as its twin at the downtown Plaza noted Mark Huber, a committee member. The statue is modeled after Tibbs competing in a rodeo at the Cow Palace in San Francisco during the 1950s, Huber believed.
The statue removed from the arena was donated to the Pioneers Museum. An unveiling for the new arena statue will take place Nov. 3 at 10 a.m. As soon as the Plaza base structure is completed, the other replica will be returned to its place. The original Plaza statue will be raffled off. Tickets are $50 each with a limit of 500 total tickets. They may be purchased at the Plaza Pre-sale ticket booth, at the arena or from a committee member. All proceeds will be reinvested into the rodeo. The raffle drawing is Nov. 12 and for further information, people may check the Rodeo Committee’s web page: cattlecallrodeo.com.
The base of the statue had to be completely dismantled and the new one required seven and a half cubic yards of concrete. The foundation is anchored in a three-foot diameter column, six-feet deep and the above ground pedestal will be adorned with Coronado stone.
It was after Tibbs and Cotton Rosser, Flying U Rodeo producer, returned from Japan, that they decided to have the statues made and donated to Brawley.
Danny Williams, another committee member, recalled an older bronco rider who competed from 20 years ago. Williams said, every time when that bronco rider got to the arena hill top and saw the statue, the adrenaline would just hit him. Williams hopes the new statues last as long as the originals. Williams called Tibbs a great cowboy and admitted he always wanted to be a rodeo contestant.
“I didn’t make it- I think we all try riding those bare backs as kids, but that’s as far as we get,” he said.
“But this is the way I give back to the community, through my involvement in the Cattle Call Rodeo.”
Curt Rutherford, president of the Cattle Call Rodeo Committee, recalled the statue in the Plaza went up a few years after the one in the Arena was placed.
“I think the statues have become quintessential icons,” said Rutherford. “With the statues berthed at two different locations, I think that everybody here enjoys having something like that in Brawley. Something like this is few and far between.”
Traditions run deep in families here and Huber even drafted his son Matt, an employee of Elms Equipment Rental, Inc., to work the fork lift and help with returning the statue to its pedestal. “It’s a piece of history,” he said.
Huber remarked he has lived in Brawly all his life. “This is a fixture,” he said. “When you drive down Main Street and don’t see the statue, there’s something wrong.”