Rodeo at West HillsFor two decades, the West Hills Community College Rodeo Program has been a powerhouse in the West Coast Region of the National Intercollegiate Rodeo Association. In that time it has been the dominate rodeo program in the West Coast as well as one of the leading rodeo program in the nation, claiming numerous Regional and National, team and individual championships.
At West Hills Community College, rodeo is a sport more than an activity or a club. Rodeo is a part of the athletic program and its student athlete’s train and practice like any intercollegiate sport on campus. Our goal is to continue to field successful and competitive top-notch teams. Likewise, our rodeo athletes need to be focused on their goals of improving their rodeo skills while maintaining high academic and scholastic goals.
Rodeo Facilities
The West Hills
College rodeo facilities are located on the Coalinga school farm, which
is a 186-acre Agricultural Laboratory for West Hills College.
The rodeo facility includes three arenas and 72
covered horse stalls for rodeo student horses. Plans
are currently being developed for a new rodeo facility to be located
on the WHC Farm of the Future north of Coalinga.
The West Hills College rodeo program has been designed to attract those students who wish to pursue their goals in rodeo and at the same time obtain a quality education. West Hills Community College's theme “once you go here, you can go anywhere” really applies to successful members of the rodeo program who have gone on to being awarded rodeo scholarships at Universities all across the nation. These individuals have not only demonstrated superior rodeo skills but have also graduated with grades acceptable to these institutes of higher education. Our graduates realize the uniqueness of this program by providing academic programs that will allow them an easy transfer to the University level as well as opportunities to practice and advance their rodeo experience.
West Hills Community
College provides those people in the rodeo program practice in the six
men’s events and the three women’s events. Weekly practices
include calf roping, team roping, breakaway roping, steer wrestling,
goat tying, barrel racing, bronc riding, bareback riding and bull riding,
and the college keeps adequate numbers of livestock to insure quality
practices. We are fortunate to be involved with one of the nation's
most renowned rodeo companies and work hand in hand with Cotton Rosser
and the Flying U Rodeo Ranches. Much of our practice stock that
we use comes from the Flying U and many of their outstanding bucking
horses are in semi-retirement at West Hills being teachers themselves
to the future rodeo stars of tomorrow. Many of the bulls used
are young animals, which gain experience bucking, and our students gain
the experience of practicing. Many of the stock used have gone on to
NFR and PBR events. So, if you hear a bronc named West Hills
or a bull named Falcon Express on the next televised rodeo,
you’ll know where it originated.
Rodeo Athletes at West Hills Community College
Being a rodeo student at West Hills is a privilege and an honor.
Serious consideration should be given to those applying to West Hills to understand to the goals and purpose of this program.
Rodeo students a West Hills are required to be enrolled as full time students (a minimum of twelve acedemic units) in addition to the rodeo classes Animal Science 5 Rodeo Skills and Management, a weekly hour lecture, as well as Animal Science 7, Intercollegiate Rodeo, which is the practice class. It should be noted that all students are held to high moral and ethical standards and good citizenship and community involvement.
Students selected for the rodeo program are required to participate in various activities in the community and on campus, including workdays and fundraisers.
In short, it is important that our rodeo student's goals are to be academically successful as well as be a part of a Championship Program.