By Staff
Richard Dark/The Meridian Star
April 19, 2001
It's rodeo time in Lauderdale again, as the Ralph Morgan Arena will once again be the site for the 51st Semi-Annual Ralph Morgan Rodeo.
The event will take place Friday and Saturday beginning at 7:30 p.m., and with a covered grandstand, will go on rain or shine.
The rodeo has always been considered to have a rich tradition in Lauderdale. Last season, the April and August events drew overflowing crowds.
In addition to the two nights of riding and roping action, the legendary clown prince of the Harper-Morgan series, Lecile Harris, will also be around to dole out plenty of his own brand of humor.
Harris will be out there harassing angry bulls and horses just as he has done for more than 35 years.
He will also be assisted in pulling off the hilarious skits with his partner on the mike, rodeo emcee, Mike Mathis, who is best known for his plaintive cry of "Lecile!" anytime the funnyman gets close to uttering anything risque' at the family crowd which of course usually generates a ton of laughs.
There will be a smattering of local athletes that will be competing in all of the events, including barrel racing, calf roping, bull riding, steer wrestling and saddle bronc riding.
The kiddies will have the opportunity to participate in the calf scramble and if you're lucky, little ones, Lecile could choose you to dance with him, as well.
Richard Dark is a sports writer for The Meridian Star. E-mail him at rdark@themeridianstar.com.