Spurs hanging on wooden fence

The 75th anniversary poster by Dennis McGregor depicts the era of the first Sisters Rodeo in 1940. The saddlebronc cowboy is reminiscent of mustached characters of the old West, dressed in a throwback loose-fitting shirt and baggy dungarees.

“I talked to a lot of people about this painting,” McGregor said. “I wanted to give a true historical representation of Sisters Rodeo in 1940.”

The painting clarifies why McGregor has become a premier poster artist in Central Oregon. The richness of stars in a blue-black sky above sundown colors over the Three Sisters sets off the boldness of the sorrel Paint horse and its rider. There is detailed accuracy in the gear — from the horse’s halter to the horsehair rope gripped by the cowboy.

According to celebrated local hat maker Gene Baldwin, the cowboy hat McGregor chose is a Tom Horn hat, customized by the legendary cowboy detective with a crease down the middle that extended to the back of the hat, dented on the sides.

“Most cowboys put some sort of identifying crease or tuck on their hats to individualize them,” said Baldwin. “This was Horn’s.”

“Tom Horn rode with Roosevelt in Cuba, and became a Pinkerton detective,” Baldwin added. “He worked for the Wyoming Cattlemen’s Association controlling rustlers. On his big black horse with his distinctive hat, people were struck with fear when they saw him riding in.”

Even the saddlebronc depicts the 1940s. The big-jawed Paint horse has old scars and ragged unshod hooves in a nod to historical reality. Rough stock, as bucking stock is known, was exactly that, rough, even in appearance. Scar tissue and damaged hides were non-issues. As long as the animal wasn’t lame and could buck, cosmetics be damned.

A horse’s feet got little attention through the 1940s, including having horseshoes. Rodeo horses wore their hooves down moving over rocky ground in the off-season. To this day, bucking horses are not shod, although they may get their hooves trimmed if they don’t get a natural leveling wear as they move across ranch lands.

Dennis McGregor is proud to celebrate the 75th anniversary

— Courtesy of Bonnie Malone, Sisters Rodeo