Celebrating 40 Years of Excellence and Safety: The International Lineman's Rodeo Grows from Humble Beginnings to a Global Event

If lineworkers could snag a time machine, they could set it to September 1984 at the Manhattan Vocational Technical College in Manhattan, Kansas — the date of the very first International Lineman’s Rodeo. On that day, a dozen teams of journeyman lineworkers from four utilities in Kansas and Missouri blazed the trail to an annual tradition.

Last year, the number of competitors skyrocketed to 440 apprentices and 292 journeymen teams compared to 36 journeymen lineworkers in 1984. While the event has experienced explosive growth, its mission has remained the same — to showcase safety in the line trade and educate the public about what lineworkers do to power their communities.

As the event is heading into its 40th year, it’s a great milestone to celebrate, says Dennis Kerr, who retired from DTE Energy and is now the co-chairman of the International Lineman’s Rodeo Association (ILRA). He says overall, the International Lineman’s Rodeo is an opportunity to see old friends and meet new ones. He enjoys seeing all the competitors line up to get their packets, joining lineworkers and their families for the Lineman’s BBQ the day before the competition and announcing the scholarship award winners.

“This event brings the whole brotherhood and sisterhood together for a great competition,” Kerr says. “It demonstrates how an event like this run by all volunteers to make it a family event for everyone to enjoy, have fun, be challenged on events and promote the line trade.”

Kerr says the event has grown because every year, the best of the best in the world is competing at a very high level and it is promoting the skills and safety of lineworkers.

“Every lineworker who competes wants to be the best of the best for this competition,” Kerr says. “Every year, we see the camaraderie that has developed and the joys of seeing each other compete, plus a learning experience to watch some different ways of accomplishing an event.”

Looking Back

Four decades ago, Dale Warman, a retired supervisor from Kansas City Power & Light (KCP&L, now Evergy), partnered with Tom White from TWSCO and Charlie Young from Southwest Line Construction to organize the first Lineman’s Rodeo. Today he serves as the co-chairman of the ILRA along with Kerr. One of his favorite parts of the International Lineman’s Rodeo Week is seeing all the lineworkers and their families enjoying themselves.

“It’s what makes me smile every year,” says Warman, who has a special sign dedicated to him on the Rodeo grounds and is part of the Lineman’s Hall of Fame. “It is for the lineworkers and put on by lineworkers to ensure we practice safety rules in our daily work.”

While he has had a lot of great memories over the years, one particular Rodeo sticks out in his mind — the year that it rained, and the heavy rainfall transformed the Rodeo grounds from dry packed dirt to muddy terrain.

“We were all in raincoats and stayed inside the tents to keep dry,” he recalled. In his experience, the last 40 years have flown by, and he can’t believe the event is celebrating its 40th anniversary. For 2024, the ILRA is planning to celebrate all the volunteers who have been involved for years to make the event a success and are still helping it to grow today.

“Our success has been possible due to all the people who make it possible — the judges, the ground crews who work all year getting the grounds ready and a board of directors who have the lineworkers and their families as top priority and have been for 40 years,” he says.

Mike Willman, the “voice of the Rodeo,” has been involved with the International Lineman’s Rodeo since 1992. Lineworkers can spot him as the DJ at the Lineman’s BBQ, the emcee on the award stage and as the announcer on the Rodeo grounds. He says enormous work goes on behind the scenes, and it takes a large number of volunteers to host the Rodeo.

“I’ve actually been a part of the Rodeo for 32 years, so I’ve seen a lot of things come and go,” says Willman, who joined the ILRA while working at KCP&L and is now producing a special ruby-themed video to show during the 40th anniversary of the event. “In those days, we actually had industry characters like Louie the Lightning Bug and Reddy Kilowatt roaming the grounds in costume. It’s always been a colorful event filled with enthusiastic competitors, vendors and families.”

Scaling to the Top

While the Lineman’s Rodeo has its roots in Manhattan, Kansas, the event moved from KCP&L’s Sub One training grounds to St. Louis for the 100th anniversary of the IBEW to Worlds of Fun and the West Bottoms. Today, the Lineman’s Rodeo’s home is located at the Agricultural Hall of Fame grounds in Bonner Springs, Kansas. One competitor who has been at the International Lineman’s Rodeo for 25 out of the last 40 years is Bruce Thompson, an International Lineman’s Rodeo competitor who retired from Southern California Edison (SCE) and IBEW Local 47.

“I actually went back there last year and competed in the Rodeo as a climber at 66 years old with a team I had competed with before including my friend, Bryce Monday, who is like a firecracker — he’s fast, good, and loves the trade,” he says.  “We finished in the top 20% of our division. I’ll take it. That’s a win.”

When he looks back on his time competing at the Rodeo, he is flooded with a lot of good memories. For example, he had the opportunity to compete on the same journeyman team as his son, Bruce, and was one of the first to wear a Go Pro at the Rodeo to record the competitors in action. Back in 1992, at his first Rodeo, he also constructed one of the first tool carts out of 1 in. electric metallic tube conduit when other teams were using wheelbarrows to haul around their tools, PPE and supplies on the Rodeo grounds.

Another unforgettable experience was the year he and his team won a trophy, and they were on the same plane as the winning teams from San Diego Gas & Electric (SDG&E), Los Angeles Department of Water and Power (LADWP) and SCE.

“It was a West Coast sweep, and all our teams were on the same plane with our hardware,” he says. “It was just one of those things I will never forget.”

For many of the competitors, the most memorable moments are centered around climbing to the top of their divisions. For example, Corry Ruch, a power line maintainer for Hydro One in Waterford, Ontario, Canada, will never forget when she and her teammates — Rudy Kerec and Richard Smedley — won second place in the senior division in 2019. She says the Rodeo gets bigger every year, and she enjoys seeing the pride in the trade and competing.

“Thank you for all the wonderful memories,” she says. “I’ve competed in four Rodeos, and I have loved every minute of it.”

Milton Draper, a crew foreman for Ameren Illinois in Edwardsville, Illinois, says his favorite memory was being able to walk across the stage at the International Lineman’s Rodeo award banquet in 2019.

“It’s such an amazing event to get together with different lineworkers across the globe,” he says. “We’re able to share different tricks of the trade.”

One of his favorite parts of the International Lineman’s Rodeo is the competitive attitude of all the competitors. “When it’s go time, everyone has their game face on and is ready to have a good, safe time,” he says.

Since the event started 40 years ago, it has grown so much between different vendors and new tools.

“The best part about it is having more and more competitors,” he says. “We have more who want to be a part of it. They want to be able to say, ‘Yeah, I competed at the International Lineman’s Rodeo with their chest held high.’”

This year, Draper will be coaching the apprentices, scheduling practices and helping the Ameren Illinois teams with anything they need on site. He says he loves everything about the Rodeo.

“I enjoy seeing friends from across the world year after year and to watch some amazing competitors compete,” Draper says. “This will be my ninth or 10th year. I’ve been a competitor, a judge and observer. It’s just so fun and addicting to be a part of the competition in any way possible.”

He says it is truly a family event that he enjoys spending with his wife and two children, who travel from Illinois to Kansas for International Lineman’s Rodeo Week.

“My family personally enjoys it,” says Draper, who was a guest on the T&D World Line Life Podcast along with his son, Preston, at last year’s Lineman’s Expo. “My kids have been coming since they were in the womb, and now I feel like my son, Preston, knows more people than I do.”

Focus on Safety

The International Lineman’s Rodeo is all about showcasing the skills of the trade, but it’s also about safety. From Wednesday through Saturday night of Rodeo week, safety is always top of mind, and the ILRA has volunteers to supervise safe work practices on the Rodeo grounds. For example, Michael Stremel, electric operations inspector for Midwest Energy, Inc. in Hays, Kansas, served as a safety observer on the sidelines at the 2023 International Lineman’s Rodeo. His team, which included Bill Nowlin and John Horesky, won first place in the senior division in 2014.

“I’m looking forward to this year’s event, and it’s great to see this continuing year after year to showcase the electric utility industry and the line trade,” he says. “I enjoy seeing the Rodeo competition and watching lineworkers demonstrate their skills. It’s amazing seeing how much the event has grown every year, and the ILRA committee and the volunteers are what keep this great event going.”

During the Lineman’s Expo, in which vendors showcase their tools and technology for the line trade, Stremel and Doug Flick will be raising money to support the Flick/Stremel Lineman Scholarship Foundation with their third annual Lineman Gun Raffle. This year, the prize will be a Ruger 1911 in a .45 Caliber complete with a lineman engraving and a walnut display case.

To get ready for the big day, he’s attending planning meetings throughout the year prior to the actual event. He says he’s thankful for all the past committee members who have given so much of their time to make the event what it is today.

“I am glad to be on board as an ILRA volunteer to help keep this event going and growing,” he says. “I’m looking forward to the 50th anniversary of this event.”

Another ILRA board member, Rustin Owen, is a senior advanced field service engineer for Honeywell Salisbury in Antwerp, Ohio. He first competed at the International Lineman’s Rodeo as part of the military division, and at that point in time, he was a competitor looking at an event with tools he had never used.

“Multiple teams were giving pointers and helping from their experience in the field at the event,” Owen says. “That’s when you know you are among the best when they help you out in a competition.”

Owen says he is excited to be part of the International Lineman’s Rodeo and to share his experience with his father, a retired lineworker.

“I love spending the whole week with friends from around the world who are now more like family,” he says. “It’s mind blowing to see how far it has come and how much it has grown.”
This year, Owen says it’s a double celebration — 40 years of the Lineman’s Rodeo and 100 years since the patent for the line hose, which is a major safety component in line work and one that has been in the Rodeo for many years. He’s also looking forward to the safety conference.

While the original Lineman’s Rodeo just included the competition, the International Lineman’s Rodeo now comprises of a one-and-a-half-day safety and training conference to kick off Rodeo week. During this conference, which is free and open to attendees, line program students, young apprentices and seasoned journeymen can listen to presentations from personal injury stories to how to properly wear personal protective equipment (PPE) in the field and more.

“As part of the safety committee, we are putting together a great conference with some great education for the industry,” Owen says.

At the International Lineman’s Rodeo, the competitors can also share best practices and how they are doing work safely and efficiently. As Kerr looks ahead to the future of the event, he hopes to see new lineworkers attending and learning the safe way to do their work from the older and more experienced lineworkers. He says this year will be better than last year, and each year, attendees will continue to see improvements.

“Many of our board members are getting older and will eventually completely retire, so hopefully our replacements will have the same enthusiasm to maintain the success and integrity of the ILRA,” he says. “The International Lineman’s Rodeo is a great event that I hope will continue for years to come.”