“It’s going to be lit,” says rodeo entrepreneur Ivan McClellan, of the Eight Seconds Juneteenth Rodeo on Saturday June 17, an event he created to showcase the athleticism and grit of Black cowboys. “You’ll see jewelry, you’ll see braids, you'll see a flavor and character to these cowboys that’s unlike the sort of buttoned up traditional white cowboy that we’re so used to."

It'll all take place at the Portland Expo Center, where Black cowboys will compete in bull riding, barrel racing, steer wrestling, steer undecorating, bareback riding, and mutton busting in front of an expected crowd of 2,500.

McClellan's focus on lighting—by "lit," he means well lit—is unsurprising: he’s a photographer who has spent the last eight years documenting Black cowboys across the country in a photo series called Eight Seconds, which began after he went to his first Black rodeo in 2015. “Just seeing Blackness merge with cowboy culture—which I’ve loved my whole life—was so inspiring for me,” he says. “The opportunity to bring that to the community here and open a lot of other eyes is important for me as a storyteller and an artist. And I can’t think of a better place to do it.”

The economics of hosting a Black rodeo are tricky. “It costs hundreds of thousands of dollars to compete in a rodeo season—from the tractor trailers to gas, hotels, and rodeo fees,” says McClellan, who's keenly interested in the economics of Western sports, and in creating equity between white and Black rodeos. He's partnered on campaigns with brands like Tecovas, Stetson, and Wrangler, and even connected cowboys with those brands, including assisting athletes in obtaining sponsorships. He says Black rodeos typically have prize pools around $5,000–$15,000, while ones like the St Paul Rodeo will have prize pools in the hundreds of thousands of dollars. The Pendleton Round-Up pays $110,000 in rodeo prize money. 

The Eight Seconds Rodeo will give away $60,000 in prize money, most of which is coming from a handful of sponsors, including Travel Portland, and some from McClellan’s own pocket. Attendees can expect music from DJ O.G. One, the official DJ of the Portland Trail Blazers, and food and apparel vendors like Felton and Mary’s, Tecovas, and Soul District Athletic Club. More than anything, McClellan wants rodeo-goers to pay attention to the cowboys. “Hopefully it will disrupt that [traditional cowboy] image and make it something new.”