Beyond the Chutes

In this special episode of Beyond the Chutes, as presented by ParaSight System, Doug Simcox sits down on the back porch in Taylorsville, Kentucky, with his son Ben Simcox for a candid conversation about where the show is headed and why the release schedule is slowing down. This episode pulls back the curtain on the growing Beyond the Chutes archive project: collecting rodeo artifacts, digitizing T...

In this episode of Beyond the Chutes , presented by ParaSight System , we continue the Rolling Smooth series with Stan Cromlish from Wandering Gypsy RV Life . We’re talking about one of the most important parts of any rig headed down the rodeo road: tires. Stan and Doug cover tire pressure monitoring systems, tire heat, rig weight, proper tire pressure, GVWR, blowout prevention, and why knowing yo...

“I watched Mike Swearingen spur this bull to death and I said… that’s who I want to ride bulls like.” Recorded last fall at Mike Swearingen’s Rodeo Reunion in Wyoming, New York, Doug Simcox and Sam Swearingen sit down with northeast bull rider Chris Anderson — a guy who came into rodeo later than most… married, with kids… nearly 30 years old… and still went all in. Chris talks about getting his st...

How do you get to The American Rodeo ? How do the qualifiers work? What happens in Lexington… and what waits in Arlington? In this special standalone conversation pulled from our larger Lexington coverage, Doug Simcox and Sam Swearingen sit down with Lane Peterson, Competition Manager of The American Rodeo , inside the Alltech Arena at the Kentucky Horse Park during The American Eastern Regional F...

What really goes into building a podcast from the road? In this special crossover episode, Doug Simcox of Beyond the Chutes joins Stan Cromlish on the Wandering Gypsy RV Life podcast for a behind-the-scenes conversation recorded at Kickback Ranch in Raymer, Alabama. From rodeo arenas and campgrounds to editing bays and RV dinettes, Doug and Stan talk about what it really takes to build podcasts wh...

Stan Cromlish has lived the cowboy life—and now he’s built a new one on the road. In this first episode of Cowboys & Cowgirls: Rolling Smooth , we sit down with Stan—rodeo man, author of the Rolling Smooth series, and full-time RVer—to talk about the journey from the arena to life behind the wheel. This isn’t theory. It’s real-world experience from someone who’s lived both sides—rodeo roads an...

Recorded last fall at Mike Swearingen’s Rodeo Reunion in Wyoming, New York, this episode of Beyond the Chutes sits down with a true patriarch of rodeo in the East—Jim Swearingen. Husband to Nancy, father to Mike, Sam, Danny, Pearl, Patty, and Beth, Jim didn’t just raise a rodeo family—he helped build a rodeo community. From a small riding stable in Western New York to the early days of Little Brit...

From the dirt of Lexington, Kentucky at the Alltech Arena, this episode of Beyond the Chutes takes you inside the moment—live, unscripted, and right after the win. At The American Rodeo Eastern Regional Finals, the stakes are simple: win here, and you’re headed to Arlington, Texas… Globe Life Field… and a shot at a record $2 million. We talk with the winners as it happens—no retakes, no reset, jus...

From the dirt of Lexington, Kentucky at the Alltech Arena, this episode of Beyond the Chutes brings you inside the moment—right after the win. We talk with Tilden Hooper, Dawson Hay, Jayden Roy, Austin Stewart, Brandon Edwards, and Lane Peterson following their performances at The American Eastern Regional Finals. With $10,000 on the line and everything pointing toward Arlington, Texas, these ride...

1985 IPRA World Champion Kenny Phillips shares his journey from rodeo glory to emergency room doctor… In the fall of 1986, Kenny Phillips broke his neck… and somehow, that was only part of the story. Recorded at Mike Swearingen’s Rodeo Reunion in Wyoming, New York, this episode of Beyond the Chutes brings you a powerful conversation with IPRA World Champion bareback rider Kenny Phillips—a man whos...

Recorded live at Mike Swearingen’s Rodeo Reunion in Wyoming, New York, this episode of Beyond the Chutes features one of the most recognizable names in Northeast rodeo— Jimmy Grasso . A Jersey-born cowboy who didn’t climb on his first bronc until his late 20s, Jimmy built a career defined by grit, consistency, and one simple rule: show up. Whether it was a small-town rodeo or a major event, if the...

Recorded live at the Kickback Ranch Rodeo Reunion in Ramer, Alabama, this episode of Beyond the Chutes features lifelong cowboy Bruce Brannen. Bruce takes us from his first rodeo as a 9-year-old at the Montgomery Coliseum, to years of calf roping, college rodeo at Sam Houston State, and a 33-year career teaching art and drafting. Along the way, he shares how trick roping unexpectedly changed his l...

At the Mountain Cove Rodeo Reunion in North Georgia , you never know who you’re going to meet. In this episode of Beyond the Chutes , hosts Doug Simcox and Sam Swearingen sit down with comedian and impersonator Mark Staggs , a performer whose voice work can instantly transport you from the rodeo arena to the streets of Dodge City. Mark brings the legendary Festus from Gunsmoke back to life in a hi...

Two Mountain Cove Rodeo Reunion Legends share the miles, the moments, and the brotherhood built on the road between rodeos. Recorded last fall at the historic and legendary Mountain Cove Rodeo Reunion , organized by Marlon Harris, Sam Swearingen and Doug Simcox sat down with Mountain Cove Rodeo Reunion Legends Award winners Adam Wood and Kevin Ellis . These two cowboys spent years running the Sout...

“People don’t realize it, but a rodeo family is totally different than anything else.” This episode of Beyond the Chutes takes you to Mountain Cove Farms in North Georgia for Reunion XI —a gathering where the mountains wrap around you like a horseshoe and the rodeo roots run deep. Doug and Sam are back together on location at the Show Barn, catching up on the road, the season, and why places like...

From a small-town kid in Greencastle, Pennsylvania… to Major League Baseball clubhouses with Ted Williams… to rodeo arenas across America with the Justin Sports Medicine team — Bill Zeigler has lived a life most of us only read about. In this episode of Beyond the Chutes , presented by ParaSight Systems, Bill shares how a handwritten letter and a little help from Nelly Fox led him to the Washingto...

Phil Broome grew up in northwest Georgia with a wrestling coach who taught him one thing: “This is your Opportunity Period.” That mindset carried him from high school state championships to the bareback riding chutes — but the road wasn’t straight, and it wasn’t easy. In this episode of Beyond the Chutes , Doug Simcox and Sam Swearingen sit down with Phil to talk about: • Winning a Georgia state w...

BTC is on the road at the First Frontier Circuit Finals in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania , sitting down with Larry Frost — a rodeo producer from Levant, Maine whose story proves rodeo doesn’t always start with a business plan. It starts with a dream, a family willing to do the work, and a commitment to community. In this Friday night bonus episode, Larry shares how a phone call turned into a charity ro...

Recorded on the Texas Swing, host Doug Simcox steps inside The Buckhorn —Kelly Clark’s one-of-a-kind “man cave” that turned into a full-blown rodeo museum. Walls covered in championship saddles, a U.S. map marked with the places Kelly’s competed, and artifacts that stretch back to the early days of organized rodeo… it’s overwhelming in the best way. In this first conversation with Kelly, we start...

BTC On the Road Again This Bonus Episode of Beyond the Chutes was recorded on the road at the First Frontier Circuit Finals , inside the Penn Harris Hotel, while the competition was still unfolding. Sam Swearingen and Doug Simcox sit down with Raymond Hostetler and Tyler Waltz in the middle of the Finals, with rounds already completed and one more to go. The conversation captures real-time decisio...

Rodeo is won long before the gate opens. Recorded at the First Frontier Circuit Finals, this episode of Beyond the Chutes dives deep into the mental side of competition with bareback rider Tyler, saddle bronc rider Raymond, and rodeo cowboy, stock contractor, mentor and coach, Sam Swearingen. This conversation is part of our Quiet Enough to Ride series—where we explore why elite competitors agree...

Beyond the Chutes — BTC Short Go (Presented by ParaSight System) brings you a quick, share-size “M&M” bite of rodeo life from the PRCA First Frontier Circuit . In this Short Go, Jamie Myers (wife of tie-down roper JR Myers ) shares what happens behind the scenes at the Circuit Finals — including the real work of pulling together awards and competitor goodies for the Top 12 headed to Harrisburg...

This is Beyond the Chutes , and this special Bonus Episode was recorded on the road at the First Frontier Circuit Finals . In this episode, Sam Swearingen sits down with bullfighter Riggin Dailey for a candid, in-the-moment conversation about one of the most dangerous and least understood jobs in rodeo — helping keep the cowboys safe . Recorded during the Finals, this conversation goes beyond the...

This episode of Beyond the Chutes , as presented by ParaSight Systems — helping vets help pets , was recorded Friday morning at the First Frontier Circuit Finals in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania. In this conversation, Doug Simcox and Sam Swearingen sit down with Tom Glause , CEO of the Professional Rodeo Cowboys Association, for an honest, people-first discussion about leadership, relationships, and th...

BTC On the Road Again | First Frontier Circuit Finals This is Beyond the Chutes , and this special Bonus Episode takes you inside the First Frontier Circuit Finals — not from the stands, but from the quiet moments just before it all happens. Recorded on the road at the Penn Harris Hotel , just hours before the final performance, this episode features a real-time conversation with Brianna Waltz — I...