Arlee Rodeo champion honored in hall of fame
Karen Peterson photo
Bob Schall of Arlee is joining the cowboys in the Montana Cowboy Hall of Fame this month.
Karen Peterson photo
Schall won 85 saddles during his rodeo career. “I never had to buy a saddle,” he said
Karen Peterson photo
Of the 400 he has earned, Schall is most proud of the 2012 Senior Barrel Race buckle. “Look at the center,” he said with a smile.
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At 5 years old, Bob Schall helped gather in horses off the hills on the outskirts of Arlee on the family ranch. He can remember riding down steep canyons behind a herd of full-grown horses. For him, it was another regular day on the ranch. He never dreamed the western lifestyle would lead him to being a living inductee into the Montana Cowboy Hall of Fame in a ceremony this month at the age of 63.
“It’s an honor to be in the Hall of Fame,” he said. “It’s something you hear about but you don’t imagine it ever happening to you.”
Schall’s champion rodeo career began when he was a child. He said the first prize he received was a half dollar for riding a calf. He would later become a professional rodeo cowboy. Overall, he won 85 saddles and 400-plus buckles.
“I wasn’t a part-time cowboy and I never got road foundered,” he said of the thousands of miles he drove across the country to attend rodeos. “I spent 39 years on the road going to rodeos.”
He moved through the levels of competition from high school rodeo to the professional circuit in bareback riding, steer wrestling, team roping and bull riding.
“I loved being in rodeos. It was outstanding. It was a great adrenaline rush. The best part was not knowing what was going to happen next from the time you nod your head to the few seconds after you hit the ground.”
In college, he was on the first National Intercollegiate Championship Rodeo team and won in bareback riding. He also picked up a degree in agricultural production and animal science. He moved on to compete in the Professional Rodeo Cowboys Association in 1970 before responsibilities on the family ranch called him home.
“I was a rodeo cowboy but I was also a regular Montana cowboy. I could run the sawmill and manage the ranch. Learning to fix things and build things is just part of that way of life.”
Along with ranching, he participated in rodeos at the National Rodeo Association level from 1973 to 2002. He won 28 championship titles with 13 in bareback riding, five in steer wrestling, one in team roping and nine All-Around titles. In 1986, he went back to the PRCA level to win the Linderman Award for earning a combined $1,000 over three events.
“That was a big moment for me,” he said.
He didn’t quit after breaking his neck the second time or getting his hand stuck in the bareback rigging and breaking all the small bones in his hand.
“I don’t know how many times I’ve broken my hand,” he said. “I’ve also got two artificial hips and had a rotary cup operation. It’s just part of the game. When I broke a finger, I put tape on it and kept going.”
Friends accused him of being ill-tempered and not hanging out with the crowd after a rodeo, but he would rather call it focused.
“I was there to win. Every time I nodded my head I was going for first. It’s a competitive sport and I never used any drugs to win. They’ve got me on more freaking drugs now than I’ve been on in my entire life,” he said pointing to the cancer treatment medication doctors prescribed for his second bout with colon cancer.
“I got through the first round of cancer but this time it’s wicked. My teeth are loose and my gums bleed. I could list symptoms for 20 minutes. ”
A positive mindset he says is the key to winning rodeos and fighting cancer.
“I’ve had to reach down pretty deep. The trick is to stay positive. During a rodeo, I didn’t focus on if I was going to win. I asked myself how much money I was going to win, and I was thinking of the next rodeo.”
Schall credits the women in his life, including two wives and a partner, for helping him achieve his success. He said it took him a few years to learn how important people are in a person’s life. With that lesson, he didn’t hesitate when asked to be in a wedding party.
“I was the matron of honor in a cowboy hat. Yes, I said matron. Kathy is one of my best friends.”
In 2012, during his first round with cancer, horse trainer and champion barrel racer Yvette Vega helped him to get back to his positive way of thinking.
“She came over and said I was going to learn to barrel race. She put the saddle on the horse and never once said a negative thing about how many times I screwed up. It was the best thing I could have done. When you’re on a horse, you’re living again.”
Schall developed his skills as a barrel racer and went on to win the 2012 Senior Barrel Race competition in Corvallis.
“Now, I’ve got a buckle from every event in rodeo,” he said.
He plans to practice his roping skills this summer and learn to use the Internet so he can find roping horses for his daughter Emily.
“She is what makes me smile,” Schall said.
Also in District 10 — which includes Flathead, Lake, Lincoln, and Sanders counties — the Montana Cowboy Hall of Fame and Western Heritage Center awarded Legacy Awards to both Dorothy M. Johnson of Whitefish (1905-1984) for her western writing, and Ed Lane of Arlee (1867-1946) for his work with horses.
