MOSES LAKE — The Moses Lake Roundup Rodeo turns 80 this year, and it’s doing it in a big way.

“It's going to be huge,” said Tyler Brown, treasurer of the rodeo committee. “We've got 430 entries for all the events, which is a pretty big number. Probably up 10-15% (compared to previous years). We've got a full slate of contestants in every event, which is really spectacular.”

The fun starts Tuesday night with the Agri-Service Demolition Derby. Participation in that is pretty good too, said Aaron Schrodt, who has taken charge of the demo derby this year along with fellow longtime demo driver Alex Alvarado. The heat races have about 75 entries, Schrodt said, and the Australian Pursuit races have around 45 entries.

There’s something different about one entry in this year’s derby, Schrodt said. That’s the winner of a raffle drawing held in July to enable one audience member to participate on the track. The winner of the raffle will drive a car specially made mostly by Schrodt.

“A lot of people don't know how to build a car or don’t have the money or someplace to store it,” Schrodt said. “So we just decided ‘Hey, why don't we just build a car and give them the opportunity to buy a ticket and all you have to do is walk up, race it and walk away?’”

And the driver will in fact walk away, Schrodt added.

“It's one of the safest cars out there, guaranteed,” he said. “It was our main focus on the car, to keep it as safe as possible. It has a fire suppression system, five-point harness, complete overbuilt cage. So it’s a pretty safe car.”

Wednesday’s derby will include a salute to the unsung first responders, MACC dispatch workers, Schrodt said.

“They don't get recognized (enough),” he said.

Wednesday will include a feature that was popular last year, the Power Wheels Demo for children. Participating tots drive battery-powered toy cars with balloons attached to them, Alvarado explained.

“The kids can go out and pop all the balloons on all the vehicles,” he said. “And then at the end of that, when all the balloons are popped, kids can make one big ol’ lap around the whole track and then exit out.”

The rodeo itself begins Thursday evening. There will be some familiar faces in the arena: announcer Will Rasmussen and bullfighters Danny Newman, Matt Akers, Sean Peterson. This year’s specialty act is Rider Kriesner, Brown said. Kreisner does a little of everything: trick roping, gun spinning and whip-cracking, according to his website. He’ll also be the barrelman at the Moses Lake Roundup.

“He’s a third-generation rodeo entertainer,” Brown said. “He’s really good; we were really fortunate to get him. He’s a real crowd-pleaser, really gets involved with the crowd.”

Kreisner will be getting a workout during the bull riding, which will be the featured event all three nights, Brown said. Fifty-two riders have signed up to try their skills. The other events, while perhaps less spectacular, also will have a full slate of riders: saddle bronc, bareback riding and tie-down roping.

“And the women's barrel racing,” Brown said. “I think we had almost 100 entries in the women's barrel racing. So that's real big. A lot of people don't really look at it as a traditional rodeo event, but it goes fast and it's fun to watch. And those girls are really serious about what they do.”

Something Brown said has been really successful the last few years is a deal the rodeo has with the Grant County Fair, whereby each rodeo ticket comes with free admission to the fair as well. That’s bolstered attendance at both, he said.

Brown said the rodeo is the main attraction, but it’s more than just a roping and riding competition.

“We do a lot with our rodeo for the community,” he said. “We have a special (every) night. There’s our Cancer Foundation night. We do a Man Up Program, which is domestic violence support. And we do Military Night on Friday night, so all active military people can come and enjoy the rodeo for free.”

“We just look forward to all of our fans coming out and enjoying the entertainment that we try to put on,” he added.

Joel Martin may be reached via email at [email protected]. He looks forward every year to watching riders try to stay on top of three-quarters of a ton of very grouchy beef.

Correction: The MACC Dispatch tribute will be on Wednesday.