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National Rodeo Hall of Fame
Inducted in 2010
Bob Barnes

Bob Barnes

1929-2013

Iowa

EVENTS
Rodeo Producer and Stock Contractor
Bareback-bronc and Bull Rider

Born in Iowa in 1929, Bob Barnes began his life in rodeo as a contestant, competing in bareback-bronc and bull riding. He produced his first rodeo in the early 1950s. Sixty years later, he and Harry Vold rank as the only stock contractors to supply the NFR since it began in 1959.

Barnes’ Rafter B Ranch traveling rodeos are today regarded as pacesetters in assembling full, temporary arenas in mere hours at venues all over the Midwest. They supply roughstock for as many as 50 rodeos a year in 18 states. Among the outfit’s top horses are Crystal Springs, 1977 Bucking Horse of the Year, and Boy Ballou, NFR Bareback Bronc of the Year in 1989, 1990, 1991 and 1993.

Over the years, Bob Barnes has been an active participant in PRCA leadership positions. He was honored as PRCA Stock Contractor of the Year in 1984, and inducted into the ProRodeo Hall of Fame in 1994.

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