Mayor Kathy Taylor Proclaims May 13 “Jim Shoulders Day”; Honors Tulsa Legend During Jim Shoulders Great Western Weekend

TULSA, Okla., May 12, 2006 -- Tulsa Mayor Kathy Taylor has proclaimed May 13, 2006 as “Jim Shoulders Day” in the City of Tulsa, honoring the Tulsa native and Oklahoma rodeo legend who will turn 78 on Saturday during the Jim Shoulders Great Western Weekend.

Tulsa is hosting the championship finals of the Wrangler ProRodeo Winter Tour -- known as the Pace Picante ProRodeo Chute-out -- as well as a Dodge Xtreme Bulls 2006 Ride Hard Tour stop and a western trade fair during the three-day festival that starts on Friday and ends Sunday.

The proclamation will be presented to Shoulders Friday during the opening ceremonies of the Dodge Xtreme Bulls Ride Hard Tour event at 8 p.m. tomorrow night at the Tulsa Convention Center Arena.

“Jim Shoulders is a national treasure and has represented the best of Tulsa and Oklahoma his entire life,” said Taylor. “He personifies all of our best attributes -- hard work, love of family, steadfast faith and rock solid loyalty. I hope my fellow Tulsans will come out to the rodeo this weekend to celebrate Jim’s legacy and see the best professional rodeo action available anywhere outside the Wrangler NFR.”

Shoulders’ record of 16 world championships in multiple events may never be surpassed. He was a five-time World Champion All-Around , seven-time World Champion Bull Rider and four-time World Champion Bareback Bronc Rider, winning all 16 world titles in a 10-year span, from 1949-59. Born in Tulsa on May 13, 1928, Shoulders retired to his Henryetta ranch in 1970, where he operated a successful stock contracting business as well as a rodeo production company and rodeo riding school. Shoulders is a member of the Pro Rodeo Hall of Fame in Colorado Springs and the National Cowboy & Western Heritage Museum Rodeo Hall of Fame in Oklahoma City.

The Pace Chute-out, which boasts a purse of $350,000, is being held in Tulsa for the first time in the event's history. The last time the State of Oklahoma hosted one of the Professional Rodeo Cowboys Association's premier events was more than 20 years ago when the National Finals Rodeo was in Oklahoma City.

The first round of the Pace Chute-out will be Saturday, May 13 at 8 p.m. with the semifinal and championship rounds slated for Sunday, May 14 at 3 p.m. Event tickets can be purchased at the Tulsa Performing Arts Center, on the internet at MyTicketOffice.com, at the MyTicketOffice.com kiosk at the Tulsa Convention Center or by phone at 918-596-7111 or 1-800-364-7111.

The web site for The Jim Shoulders Great Western Weekend is www.greatwesternweekend.com.

# # #

Media contact: Lynda Haschke at 972-740-3529 or [email protected]