Rodeo in the 1980’s was full of cowboys that today’s contestants list as their idols. Dave Appleton is one of them and he was rodeoing with a group of bareback riders like Bruce Ford, Marvin Garrett, Wayne Herman and more.
“There were so many great bareback riders and you had to bring you’re a game everyday,” Appleton said.
On the bronc side of things, Appleton was up against cowboys like Clint Johnson, Bud Munroe and the Etbauers.
“Any one of those guys could win on any horse, any day. That’s what was fun about it,” he said.
It was a group that fueled each other’s fires and pushed each other to be their best. Appleton battled with some of the best cowboys to ever play the game and in 1988 he came out a World Champion.