The 2026 Fourth of July weekend was a little soggy on the Kenai Peninsula but the rodeo festival still gathered about 1000 people with visitors attending all the way south from Fairbanks. Lara McGinnis, one of the community coordinators, shared a few of the post-event details and then more about what makes the Ninilchik event most notable
“…This is the oldest rodeo in Alaska that started in 1960 and so we are what we consider a homesteader's rodeo. So we don't have your typical events: we focus on the kids, and we focus on the community. So we've got trick riders, and we've got a young horseback drill team, and we do calf riding and calf scrambles, and we had block riding, but we don't have any goals. We just keep it a very local and hometown feel, and everybody absolutely loves it.”
The rodeo events included barrel racing, lead line pole bending, keyhole race, bareback steers, steer wrestling, goat tying, team roping, saddle bronc, steer daubing, calf scramble, hide race, tug of war, up pole bending, 3 legged sack race, rescue race and breakaway. Also performing were the Alaska Stars Drill Team and the Alaska Youth Equestrian Club Trick Riders. The Alaska Stars Drill Team is a performance group that participates in rodeos and community events in Alaska, showcasing choreographed routines for entertainment and competition.
This year’s event includes a beach race that is a component that started with COVID for social distancing rather than the typical rodeo competition.
“It was actually an idea that Shirley's dad, Jim Wilson, came up with in 1961. They just never implemented it, but we did, and it was such a huge success that we've continued to do it, and there's probably seven or 800 people that line the beach to watch those horses race. It's a lot of fun…We pick the lowest tide we possibly can, rodeo weekend, and go for it,” McGinnis said.
“Shirley” is Shirley Cox who along with her daughter, Katie Matthews, are also two key coordinators for the Ninilchik Rodeo.
“My name is Shirley Cox. I have been involved in putting this rodeo on with my family since I was two years old, and then the organization that was putting on the rodeo, morphed into a junior rodeo association, and then I was president of the Peninsula Orchard Association for Junior Association for many years, then we all outgrew them in the junior part, so then it became the Peninsula Workman Association, and a couple years ago that organization disbanded, and now we have the Alaska Equestrian Sports Club that puts on the rodeo, and it's… I'm just one of the head people.”
Finally, the event also holds a competition every two years for a rodeo queen and a high school queen. Last year’s awardee was Kaydence Campbell and Kylie Barnes was the high school queen. There was not a competition held in 2026.
“It's based on horsemanship and ticket sales in the community, so marketing, and then overall presentation. You have to do an interview with some of the things, but it's not a beauty pageant, it's, you know, how good a horseman are you, how you know how much grit have you got…,” McGinnis said.
Additional upcoming events at the Ninilchik Fairgrounds are SalmonFest 2026 which will take place July 31st-August 2nd, and the Kenai Peninsula Fair, August 14th-16th.
Reporting from Homer, this is Emilie Springer.
