Grassroots Gurus

A lot of families are driven by one particular sport. Consider Toronto’s Hughes family, those Florida natives who watched two sons just win Olympic gold for Team USA in hockey, while their mom helped develop the gold-medal winning women’s team.

The Ellerman family isn’t far from roping’s version of that Hughes clan. For instance, today’s professional rodeo ranks are made up of athletes that got their start in youth associations – and the Ellermans started one of those from the ground up. Three decades ago, Jay and Tammy Ellerman along with Tammy’s brother Dave started what became the Colorado Junior Rodeo Association.

“My daughter was about 9 years old and loved horses and riding, but all they had at the time were Little Britches events and those didn’t pay back any money,” recalled Tammy. “I had to take her to a little open rodeo. That’s when my brother-in-law and I decided we would produce a little series for the Colorado kids. His idea was to award saddles in every event and offer several divisions. I think we were the first to offer ‘pee wee’ events and pay out money. We did it for 17 years, I guess.”

Not only did they offer some 20 divisions for kids, but Ellermans also hosted the first mixed team roping and parent/child ropings in the region, all with the idea that they were preparing area kids for a future in rodeo, business, and the Western industry.

Their son, Britt, was only a baby when Tammy was out hustling sponsorships, but all that hectic work paid off – the CJRA celebrated its 30^th anniversary in 2024. Tammy’s sister Mitch Hickey is still the secretary of it, and members now also include kids from Wyoming, Nebraska and Kansas.

“You just do it,” Tammy said. “What gave me the most joy was knowing the competitors that came from there were exceptional. When we were going strong, we gave a start to NFR ropers from Colorado like Garrett Tonnozi and Brock Hanson and Shay Carroll, and girls, too. There were so many that thrived and went on to do bigger and better things. Plus, the relationships I built with so many of those kids – they still see me and tell me how much they got out of it.”

The rodeo community has always been a family, and Colorado businesses stepped up to the plate, plus volunteers were plentiful whenever the fledgling association needed something. Of course, today’s world of youth rodeo looks much different than it did 15 or 20 years ago, thanks to the rise of added money in amateur roping and barrel racing jackpots, plus high-paying events like the Junior NFR and World Championship Junior Rodeo. Back when Tammy and her siblings were young, their dad told them if they wanted to rope, they should go to the mountain with him and doctor cattle.

“When I was a kid, we could basically compete for an ice cream cone,” said Tammy.

Considering her dad rode bulls, team roped, tied calves and won the all-around at the National Western when he was 16, it’s safe to say that competing – and winning – has always been a big deal in that family. Because of Ellermans’ sacrifices, multiple generations growing up in the Rocky Mountain region have been winners, as well.