Friends & Family Go Head to Head at Boise’s Snake River Stampede

Idaho's famous Snake River Stampede is in full swing. Nampa's Ford Idaho Center has been transformed yet again to be the home for some of the best rodeo entertainment in the country. Last week over 1,000 roping teams competed in Homedale Idaho to qualify to compete at the Snake River Stampede this week. There were six divisions and the top three teams from each. Totaling in 18 very talented teams going through and are competing for more than $10,000 in prize money.

People who grow up in it, develop close friendships over the years. Family members and friends sometimes are on a team and other times against each other.

Hailey Okamura, who started roping at 6 years old, qualified and competed at Snake River Stampede when she was 13, 15 and now again at 18 will team roping with her dad and horse Dollar. Speaking out about it Hailey said, “It’s exciting to be there in the same competition with my dad again.”

What makes this story a little more interesting is that "Hailey’s best friend Sammie Dunn, 18, also qualified in two divisions and will compete after taking first and third place as a header in the #5.5 section with heelers Lucas Cruz and Conor Ward respectively." - Snake River Stampede

“We love this!” Said Ben Badiola, President and CEO of SRC Sports. “The hard work, the competition, the appreciation and respect for everyone involved.” - Snake River Stampede

“We’ve met more genuine people in this (Western) lifestyle and made more good friends than anyone can imagine,” Lori Badiola added. - Snake River Stampede

We expect that those relationships build close friendships. From spending a little time behind the scenes over the last couple of years at the SRS I can say that it is full of incredibly talented, supportive and notably kind individuals.

Learn more about Snake River Stampede below.