Rodeo notebook: Rodeo is an art form for Bristow cowboy

Hays' work “8-Second Ride” is on the IFR 43 poster and passes. He also donated that piece, which was auctioned Thursday night at the National Cowboy and Western Heritage Museum to raise money for the Miss Rodeo USA Association.

Hays, 27, paints in the contemporary western style. His works also will be on display at the Calgary Stampede, the Cheyenne Frontier Days Rodeo and the National Finals Rodeo this year.

“I have been painting two months just for those shows,” he said.

He also will have a gallery this fall at National Cowboy and Western Heritage Museum. Hays earned a Masters of Fine Arts from West Texas A&M and Bachelor of Fine Arts from Oklahoma State University, where he was on Cowboys rodeo team. Before that, he was a member of the rodeo team at Panhandle State University.

“I started painting when I was 7,” Hays said. “That's what I have always loved. I'm just into the iconic images of Oklahoma.”

RODEO COACH IN IFR 43

Jenna Lee Hayes, 27, from Weatherford is competing in her first International Finals Rodeo in breakaway roping.

She also is the assistant rodeo coach for the Southwestern Oklahoma State University in Weatherford.

Nine junior colleges and universities in Oklahoma field rodeo teams that compete in the Central Plains Region. Southwestern competes in four rodeos in the fall and six in the spring, Hayes said.

“We are doing really good,” Hayes said of Southwestern's season. “The women are winning the Central Plains Region and the men are third.”