An Open Letter To All Members From The Board Of Directors

Your Board of Directors met in Las Vegas on August 21-23, 2006. Although there were a number of items on the agenda, including rule proposals for the 2007 season, the vast majority of the meeting was spent on our current situation with the PRCA.

For those who have not been following our negotiations, here is a recap of recent events.

In August of 2005 the PRCA Board of Directors voted to impose a $200 competition fee upon all WPRA members who compete at rodeos sanctioned by the PRCA. The WPRA Board felt this fee would create an undue hardship upon its members, severely limiting how many would be able to retain their WPRA membership and continue to compete in pro rodeos. Therefore they felt they had no choice but to reject this proposal.

The WPRA Board countered with a proposal of its own. This proposal offered a $100,000 payment to the PRCA for the 2006 season in exchange for the PRCA's agreement that any barrel race held in conjunction with a PRCA rodeo must be WPRA sanctioned unless otherwise approved by our Board.

The proposal also offered that the WPRA would assume responsibility for all sponsorship negotiation, as this was one of the areas where the PRCA had concerns that it was paying for our members. This included taking care of our own members in the Patch Program. The offer also included a stipulation that the WPRA would retain the television and media rights and that the PRCA would have no obligation to televise the barrel race at its sanctioned rodeos.

Because their Board had indicated that Procom could operate in a less expensive manner if it was not responsible for barrel racers' entries and because we were told that money injected into Procom did not help the PRCA since Procom is a separate entity, the Board also proposed to take over the burden of the barrel racing entries itself. Along with that offer, the WPRA Board proposed to continue to provide $3 per entry to the circuit system and to increase the $2 fee for the judging program to $4 per entry.

The WPRA Board felt that this offer addressed all the concerns which the PRCA had expressed to us. It would have provided direct cash payments to the PRCA for support services and opportunities they provided to the WPRA throughout the rodeo year. Even more importantly, it would have reduced certain overhead and direct and indirect costs of the PRCA, related to the WPRA.

The PRCA Board rejected this proposal but still felt strongly that it had paid monies that directly benefited WPRA members and demanded compensation. While the WPRA Board agreed that some payment might be due, we asked for a financial analysis to arrive at a fair and just amount as we had been told by the Commissioner and the head of PRCA Properties that they really had no idea how much they paid for on our behalf. Because the necessary financial data could not be provided at that time, the two associations struck a compromise for the 2006 season.

Under the terms of the 2006 deal, the WPRA members agreed to the additional $2 Procom charge. The PRCA agreed to a number of stipulations, the most important to the negotiations being that they promised to provide a financial analysis of the costs to them for programs which directly benefit WPRA members. Such information was promised within the first quarter of the new year. The PRCA also agreed to issue a press release stating what each association contributes to the relationship.

The press release never happened nor did the PRCA attempt to provide any financial evidence to the WPRA. In May the PRCA Board of Directors proposed a $10 increase in Procom charges for the 2007 rodeo season with an addition $1 to be added each year for nine years. After consulting with you, the members, the Board felt again that this fee was too high and rejected the proposal. Instead the WPRA again requested that the PRCA provide financial information so the WPRA could quantify what, if anything was owed and a fair compensation arrangement could be reached.
Thereafter WPRA President Davis met with senior PRCA officials to try to negotiate a compromise. However, the WPRA was once again stonewalled by the PRCA's refusal to quantify the benefits it supposedly provided to the WPRA.

In a meeting in July, President Davis proposed to the PRCA Chairman of the Board Tom Feller the formation of a committee comprised of three directors from each Association's Board of Directors to negotiate a compromise. No such committee was formed, however, and August 17, 2006, the WPRA received a letter from the PRCA, stating it was creating a Professional Women's Barrel Racing Association as a subsidiary of the PRCA.

Upon notification, the WPRA immediately sent a letter to Commissioner Troy Ellerman requesting the details of this new venture. Among the questions asked were these:

· Would WPRA members be required to buy a PRCA card to go to PRCA rodeos and at what cost?

· What benefits, if any, would the subsidiary organization provide - PRCA Board representation? Standard event status? Insurance costs? Procom fee amounts?

· Can rodeo committees hold a PRCA rodeo with a WPRA barrel race or will rodeo committees be required to have a PRCA barrel race?

The WPRA requested that information by Friday, August 18, 2006. The Board asked for a quick turnaround to answer member questions and because we assumed the PRCA had thought through these issues in advance.

PRCA Commissioner Troy Ellerman responded on Friday, August 18, 2006 as follows: "I am in receipt of your letter of August 17, 2006. We are in the process of coordinating a press release with media and other appropriate parties. I will respond to questions posed in your letter as soon as possible."

As of this writing, most of these questions remain unanswered. The PRCA has indicated that the new subsidiary will have a Board hand-picked by them to govern it but no representation within the PRCA's competition committee or Board of Directors has been promised. No other details have been released at this time.

The PRCA's decision was made unilaterally without prior consultation of the WPRA (despite PRCA Board member assurance in July that the PRCA desired further negotiations with the WPRA). On Tuesday, August 22, the WPRA Board sent a letter to the PRCA Board proposing a condition of status quo for the 2007 season and the formation of a committee comprised of three-board members from each Association to reach a long-term solution.

On the afternoon of Wednesday, August 23, 2006, the PRCA Board notified the WPRA that it was not interested in further negotiations and intended to proceed with the planned subsidiary.

Throughout the course of its relationship with the PRCA, the WPRA has followed the PRCA's mandates in nearly every situation. Now, however, the Board feels we must stand united and fight this latest decision. The PRCA has decided to bypass our organization altogether, attempting to seize complete control of the barrel race and the money that is generated through it. The WPRA has serious doubts that the PRCA's subsidiary will be able to maintain the women's only status of rodeo barrel racing and will spell the end not only of our Association should they succeed, but also of our event.

We will not tolerate a repeat of the treatment that caused our founders to start this organization fifty-eight years ago nor will we stand by idly while the PRCA steals the barrel race which we made into a valuable asset for the rodeo world. We must stand united in this fight and we will prevail.

The WPRA is fortunate to already have the support of a number of rodeo committees. Several have already sent their WPRA barrel race approvals for 2007. At the present time, committees have been told that if they already have a WPRA approval then their barrel race will be co sanctioned by both the WPRA and the PWBRA. The WPRA has not been contacted regarding such an arrangement nor would we approve of such a blatant attempt to thwart our Association and our committees.

Many of the top barrel racers are supporting the WPRA as well: the following statement was approved by Brittany Pozzi, Tammy Key, Terri Kaye Kirkland, Jackie Dube, Jolee Lautaret, Kelly Maben, Layna Kight, Denise Adams, Deb Renger, Terra Bynum and Shali Lord:

We appreciate everything the WPRA has done for the sport of barrel racing and for the American cowgirl. Thanks to their efforts throughout the years, we enjoy the benefits of equal money, safer conditions and having our own female representatives work to make our sport even more successful. We support the WPRA!

Some of the biggest names in the industry are standing up for their association because their association has always stood up for them. We hope we can count on the same level of support from each and every member as we continue to protect your interests.
The WPRA will continue to provide the best possible women's barrel races in the world and will continue to be the only independent professional women's barrel racing association.

We need your help. Please keep an eye on wpra.com for the most up-to-date information as your Board works to stop this new subsidiary from overtaking our Association. As a member, the Board needs your continued support and action. We will be calling for letter writing campaigns and other coordinated actions to protest the PRCA's strong-arm tactics. Promote the WPRA to sponsors, committees, and PRCA members. Contact your director with any questions.


Posted 9/1/06
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