PRCA Rodeo Secretary Sandy Gwatney

Sandy Gwatney, PRCA Rodeo Secretary, is the liaison between the Oakley Rodeo Committee, stock contractor, judges, timers, announcers, and contestants. At the local level, many secretaries are responsible for taking the contestants’ entries, creating day sheets, posting the timed event and rough stock draws, and calculating payout.

Sandy Gwatney has had a lifelong love affair with horses, and she has carried that over into a successful rodeo career. From showing horses as a youngster to roping and hazing for her husband, John Gwatney, horses have defined Sandy. She has received three nominations for ProRodeo Secretary of the Year and served as Assistant Secretary and Timer at the NFR.

Sandy is a PRCA card-carrying secretary and timer, and is, too, a jack-of-all-trades who coordinates the opening ceremonies along with her husband, John Gwatney.  “Both John and Sandy are a huge part of our team,” Carr said. “John runs the entire timed-event end of the rodeo and does a lot of things for our company. Sandy can just do so many things. They’ve been with us the last five years, and I appreciate everything they do.”

The Gwatneys see it as the next part of their lives on the rodeo trail.

“It’s a love of the game,” Sandy said. “John and I met at a rodeo, and shortly thereafter, I started traveling with him while he competed.

“I grew up showing quarter horses. When I was 21, I bought my first head horse. I roped for quite a few years, then kind of got out of it. I met John and learned how to haze, because he was a bulldogger. I started hazing for him almost right away.”

That job as a steer wrestler’s teammate who guides the steers into position was replaced by a lot more – a wedding band and more years working together in just about every capacity imaginable.

“When we moved to Texas, we got the opportunity to meet Mr. Carr and learn how much he loves the sport of rodeo, and with it, the promotion of the sport,” Sandy said. “His drive to do it keeps you coming back. He wants to make his crew a family function. We have a great bunch of people, and Pete has a passion for animals.”