PRCA fires back at new Elite Rodeo Athletes tour, vows to terminate memberships

The Professional Rodeo Cowboys Association is firing back at cowboys and cowgirls who want to compete on other tours, namely the new Elite Rodeo Athletes tour set to start in March of next year.
The PRCA released a statement on Tuesday announcing new bylaws for the 2016 season. Within the new rules is a measure to make sure cowboys and cowgirls "are not pursuing interests in Conflicting Rodeo Associations while receiving the benefits of PRCA membership." Several current and former PRCA world champions announced earlier this year that they would collectively form the ERA to ensure less travel while hoping to earn more money.  Last week, the ERA announced its cowboys and cowgirls would cut back on PRCA rodeos to focus more attention on the new tour World champions Clay Tryan, Kaycee Feild, Bobby Mote and Trevor Brazile are among members of the ERA. The PRCA responeded Tuesday by announcing that "any person applying for PRCA membership who is an officer, board member, employee or has an ownership or financial interest of any form in a Conflicting Rodeo Association shall not be issued a membership, permit or renewal of membership with the PRCA." The news could deal a major blow to some of the PRCA's top rodeos, such as Fort Worth, San Antonio, and Denver, along with the lucrative Cowboy Christmas stretch, in which the world's top cowboys and cowgirls regularly compete...more

From the PRCA website, here are the new bylaws:


I. Competing Rodeo Events Bylaws B15.1.1.1-.2
B15.1.1.1        Definition of Competing Rodeo Events. Competing Rodeo Events are events not sanctioned by the PRCA in which contestants compete in two or more of the following events: bareback riding, saddle bronc riding, bull riding, tie-down roping, steer wrestling, and team roping. 
B15.1.1.2        Rodeo Committees. In light of the PRCA's long-standing and ongoing efforts to create popular and successful PRCA-sanctioned professional rodeo competitions and promote rodeo sports in general, including but not limited to creating the National Finals Rodeo event and qualifying points system, soliciting corporate sponsors and television contracts, establishing rodeo rules and regulations, and developing youth and new contestant growth programs—and in order to protect the quality of all PRCA-sanctioned events—any rodeo committee and/or contracting party involved in producing a PRCA-sanctioned event agrees not to schedule, produce, promote or participate in a Competing Rodeo Event seventy-two hours before, during or seventy-two hours after a PRCA-sanctioned event.  The PRCA shall have the right to approve specific events that are in conflict with this Bylaw should the PRCA deem any such event to be in the interest of its members and the promotion of professional rodeo sports in general. 
II. Conflicting Rodeo Association Interests Bylaws B.1.2.1.1-.2
B1.2.1.1          Definition of Conflicting Rodeo Association.  Conflicting Rodeo Associations are companies, partnerships, associations or other entities whose direct or indirect purpose is to produce, promote, and/or sanction professional rodeo contests in which contestants compete in two or more of the following events: bareback riding, saddle bronc riding, bull riding, tie-down roping, steer wrestling, and team roping. 
B1.2.1.2          Prohibition on Conflicting Rodeo Association Interests.  In order to ensure that PRCA members—whose popularity and success are the result of participation in PRCA-sanctioned rodeos and related PRCA promotional efforts and activities (and the associated costly investments the PRCA has made in promoting PRCA events and rodeo sports in general)—are not pursuing interests in Conflicting Rodeo Associations while receiving the benefits of PRCA membership and are putting forth their best efforts on behalf of the PRCA, any person applying for PRCA membership who is an officer, board member, employee or has an ownership or financial interest of any form in a Conflicting Rodeo Association shall not be issued a membership, permit or renewal of membership with the PRCA.