Cody Brown, 6, hoists a piece of candy that he snagged roadside at Kansas' Biggest Rodeo Parade on Saturday, August 4, 2007 in Phillipsburg, Kan.
The Nicodemus Buffalo Soldier Cavalry parade down Phillipsburg, Kan., before Kansas' Biggest Rodeo on Saturday, August 4, 2007. Nicodemus, located near Phillipsburg, is the oldest surviving town west of the Mississippi founded by African Americans.
As temperatures climbed to the near-century mark in Phillipsburg, residents like Terry Gitchel sought refuge underneath the shade of their pickups.
Tracy Archer, 14, from Densmore, Kan., saddles up his horse for the Grand Entry at Kansas' Biggest Rodeo on Saturday, August 4, 2007 in Phillipsburg, Kan.
Benton Hrabe, 12, from Kensington, Kan., takes an afternoon nap on his horse, Bo. "I'm just tired," said Hrabe in the shade after spending all day Saturday atop his horse.
Youth hang on the underside of bleachers waiting for the start of Kansas' Biggest Rodeo on Saturday, August 4, 2007 in Phillipsburg, Kan.
Bull Fighter Greg Rumohr, from Rio Vista, Tx., has been fighting bulls for 24 years. "I've had both my ears tore off," said Rumohr, who made it nine consecutive years to the Bull Fighting Championships. "It's not work for me," he said.
"This rodeo has turned into a community event," says Rod Innes, president of Kansas' Biggest Rodeo in Phillipsburg, Kan. "Class reunions are held on this weekend, family reunions are held on this weekend. Everyone comes home for rodeo," said Innes.
Bull Fighter Donny Sparks, second from left, talks with passersby interested in the pomp and circumstance surrounding Sparks' unusual occupation.
Bareback rider Justin Williams, from DeSoto, tapes his right forearm, elbow and arm before mounting. In the rodeo circuit, bareback riding is known as the most physically demanding of all the events.
Bareback rider Tim Wilkinson, from Ft. Scott, Kan., stretches before mounting a bucking horse at Kansas' Biggest Rodeo on Saturday, August 4, 2007 in Phillipsburg, Kan.
Leather boots double as a storage unit for personal belongings at Kansas' Biggest Rodeo on Saturday, August 4, 2007 in Phillipsburg, Kan.
Bulls and horses wait for their turn in the spotlight in holding pens at Kansas' Biggest Rodeo.
The Prairie Duster Drill Team run drills at Kansas' Biggest Rodeo. The team serves as ambassadors for the rodeo and has been riding in formation since1985.
Members of the Prairie Duster Drill Team, who serve as the rodeo's ambassadors, hustle into formation at Kansas' Biggest Rodeo.
Bull Fighter Greg Rumohr, from Rio Vista, Tx., corrals a bronco at Kansas' Biggest Rodeo in Phillipsurg, Kan.
Participants in the Grand Entry fill the arena at Kansas' Biggest Rodeo on Saturday, August 4, 2007 in Phillipsburg, Kan.
An army of rodeo cowboys work the chutes at Kansas' Biggest Rodeo.
Bareback riding is considered to be the most physically demanding of all rodeo events.
An estimated crowd of 6,000 attended Kansas' Biggest Rodeo on Saturday, August 4, 2007 in Phillipsburg, Kan.
A bucking bronco attempts to eject his rider during the opening event at Kansas' Biggest Rodeo.
Bareback rider Luke West stays connected to a bucking horse in the bareback contest at Kansas' Biggest Rodeo in Phillipsburg, Kan.
Cowboys line the chutes at Kansas' Biggest Rodeo as a bronco rider is helped from the arena on Saturday, August 4, 2007 in Phillipsburg, Kan.
A rodeo clown paces the perimeter of the arena at Kansas' Biggest Rodeo on Saturday, August 4, 2007 in Phillipsburg, Kan.
Cowboys warm up for the team roping event at Kansas' Biggest Rodeo in Phillipsburg, Kan. The rodeo draws thousands to Phillipsburg, nearly tripling the population of the western Kansas town.
Cowboys warm up for the team roping event at Kansas' Biggest Rodeo in Phillipsburg, Kan. The rodeo draws thousands to Phillipsburg, nearly tripling the population of the western Kansas town.
A pair of team ropers kick up dust in pursuit of a calf at Kansas' Biggest Rodeo on Saturday, August 4, 2007 in Phillipsburg, Kan.
The underbelly of a truck provides shade and shelter from passersby in the parking lot of Kansas' Biggest Rodeo in Phillipsburg, Kan.
Clay Newkirk, from Gridley, Kan., advertises glow necklaces to passersby. Newkirk and his family travel around the country every summer selling western gear.
Peyton Baldwin, right, a Kansas University senior from Gardner, works her family's mobile western storefront at Kansas' Biggest Rodeo in Phillipsburg, Kan. Baldwin spends her summers traveling around the country to rodeos and fairs selling everything from custom ropes, hats, spurs, boots and belt buckles.
Dressed as a mini cowboy, Charger, a monkey, controls the reins of Rock, a border collie, at Kansas' Biggest Rodeo. "Team Ghostriders" is the only act in the world that consists of 3 monkeys riding 3 border collies. The team made an inaugural visit to the rodeo in Phillipsburg, Kan.
Cowboys look on as a bull rider is bucked off a bull at Kansas' Biggest Rodeo in Phillipsburg, Kan.
Bull Fighter Donny Sparks leaps over a gate to avoid an agitated bull at Kansas' Biggest Rodeo on Saturday, August 4, 2007 in Phillipsburg, Kan.
A bull zones in on a fallen bull rider at Kansas' Biggest Rodeo on Saturday, August 4, 2007 in Phillipsburg, Kan.
Cowboys cheer on a flailing bull rider at Kansas' Biggest Rodeo on Saturday, August 4, 2007 in Phillipsburg, Kan.
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