Will Rogers' Wild West featured in New Documentary
Posted on Monday, August 14, 2006 @ 10:24:35 EDT by xtv
John writes "The art of Wild West shows lives on in Oklahoma, and is once again gaining in popularity.
Issaquah, WA, USA, August 14, 2006 (XTVWorld.Com) -- Each year, at the Will Rogers Wild West Arts Club Expo, in Claremore, OK, experts and beginners alike come from all over the world to learn and compete in competitions ranging from trick riding to knife throwing. Bennett-Watt Entertainment has captured this famous event in its newest addition to its award winning High Definition (HD) travel documentary TV and DVD series Discoveries.America.
"Different types of people
come here for different reasons." states Mark Allen, National Director of Will Rogers Wild West Arts Club, ".some are just enthusiasts, they don't perform, they just always wanted to learn how to do this.other people are performers at various levels and are very well known.every year we have contests for the Guinness Book of World Records - like, who can swing the biggest loop and who can do the most Texas skips." This year, at the 2006 Expo, Charley Keys won 1st Place and a new world's record
for the men's Big Loop with a loop length of 107 feet 2 inches.
Two women attending the Expo from Sweden were there to learn trick roping and how to crack a whip - they said there's no cowboys and cowgirls in Sweden, so they have to come to the USA to learn these skills.
Allen says ". most of these skills came from the working cowboy, they got a little bored just trying to loop everyday the same thing, so one guy said I can do a fancier swing or I can loop it over the top or underneath - that's
how trick roping developed, they'd get to the end of the trail drive or round up and they'd show off these skills to each other.this is primarily how wild west shows and rodeos came about."
This special segment in Discoveries.America, Oklahoma highlights a variety of demonstrations and competitions in the many venues of wild west arts including trick roping, trick riding, knife and tomahawk throwing, gun spinning, quick-draw shooting, whip cracking, trick riding and trick shooting. For more information
on Will Rogers Wild West Arts Club go to: www.wwac.com.
Discoveries.America, Oklahoma is a collection of video essays about the people of Oklahoma past and present. Special segments include cattle roundups, the National Memorial & Museum in Oklahoma City, resurgence of the American buffalo, the making of chile relienos, roadside sculpture artists, a tour of the Will Rogers Museum, the Apache Rattlesnake Festival, and the Will Rogers Wild West Arts Club Expo.
The Discoveries.America series provides
a fresh look at America in the 21st Century. Filmed entirely in Widescreen Digital High Definition (HD), the series chronicles history, people, culture, travel and locations unique to each state in the United States. Subjects range from cowboys, musicians, historians and artists to casinos, cliff dwellings and space centers. Video essays delve into cultural traditions, political history and lifestyle trends, and provide portraits of national parks, monuments and people of interest.
Production of the complete
Discoveries.America series continues throughout 2006 and will ultimately include fifty-one 60-minute shows for HD broadcast and DVD. The programs are broadcast nationally on HD Cable network INHD2 (see www.INHD.com ). Each program is also available on DVD.
Discoveries.America DVDs retail for $24.95 each. They are encoded to play in all regions and are playable on most DVD players internationally.
Contact: Bennett-Watt Entertainment, Inc. 13021 244th Ave SE Issaquah, WA 98027, 800-327-2893
http://www.discoveriesamerica.com
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