The Philomath Frolic and Rodeo runs Thursday through Saturday with organizers leaning into the community’s cowboy and timber heritage while tying this year’s parade theme to the nation’s 250th birthday.
“We’re just really trying to point more towards our patriotic cowboy roots in addition to our timber heritage,” said Alyssa Collins, president of the Frolic and Rodeo board. “That’s one thing that we’re really trying to showcase more this year, which is really exciting.”
The parade theme, “Frolic in the USA,” reflects that push and connects to America’s 250th anniversary being marked nationwide this year, Collins said.
The Frolic’s organizers have gone all in with family-focused activities on Thursday. The Frolic Fish Rodeo begins at 5:30 p.m. at the rodeo grounds. Vendors will be operating, and Mutton Bustin’ returns this year. Free line dancing lessons also begin at 5:30 p.m. in the Yew Wood Corral ahead of the 7 p.m. rodeo performance.
Collins said the shift toward family programming on what has traditionally been the event’s slowest night began last year when the fish rodeo moved to Thursday.
“We took that and decided to run with it a little bit more and say Thursday we’re going to designate as our family day, to try and draw more people and have more activities that are more focused on kids,” she said.
Papa’s Pizza has come on board as a partner with personal pan pizza vouchers to be handed out to kids who attend Thursday.
The biggest change follows the rodeo — an all-ages afterparty in the Yew Wood Corral featuring a DJ, photo booth, dirty soda bar and line dancing. The adult bar will also be operating. Unlike the standard rodeo dance, the afterparty is free to attend even without a rodeo ticket.
“We’ve heard for years and years that people in the community who have been here long standing … when I was young, there used to be a whole separate area from the beer garden that kids or anyone who was under 21 could still enjoy the dance, but it was a separate fenced off area,” Collins said. “They did away with that several years ago, and we’ve heard comments year after year from community members.”
The high school cheerleading squad will run the dirty soda bar as a fundraiser for the program and for Project H.E.R., a cancer-support organization tied to the Frolic’s “Nobody Fights Alone” fundraising effort.
Mutton Bustin’ runs all three nights — Thursday, Friday and Saturday — after being dropped for several years following an accident involving a volunteer.
B Bar D returns as stock contractor and Scott Allen as announcer, both familiar names to Frolic regulars. New this year is rodeo clown Kyle Bounds, a former competitor working his first season in the role.
“He used to compete and this is his retirement from competing,” Collins said. “This is his first year of really getting into the rodeo clown scene.”
Each of the three rodeos, which are part of the Northwest Professional Rodeo Association circuit, has a 7 p.m. start time. Last year’s Friday and Saturday rodeo performances sold out.
“I anticipate that we sell out Friday and Saturday and that’s pretty normal for us,” Collins said.
Donkey races in the arena return all three nights, and the NPRA Slack Rodeo — featuring roping and barrel racing only — runs Friday at 11 a.m., free for spectators.
Long entry lines were one of the growing pains from last year’s larger crowds. This year, organizers are splitting entry into four separate lines each night, marked by a banner indicating sections, with sponsors routed through their own dedicated entrance.
“That should streamline the process of getting in,” Collins said.
Sponsorship packages have also changed, spreading hospitality tent access across different nights, in part to help manage the volume in that space.
Vendor numbers are expected to be similar to last year, though Collins said the layout on the grounds will look a little different.
This will be the second year of the new grandstands section on the west side of the arena. Organizers continue to weigh how to fund the next expansion phase on the east and north sides.
“There’s a pretty significant need for more seating, and we’re very well aware of that,” Collins said. “It’s a good problem to have, but it’s still a problem.”
The Grand Parade steps off Saturday at 10 a.m. along its usual route. This year’s grand marshal is Starker Forests, selected in part because the company is marking its 90th year in business — an anniversary it’s celebrating during Frolic weekend with its own tent, hosting employees and contractors.
Judging categories for parade entries are expanding this year, though the route itself is unchanged. It begins at Philomath High and proceeds west down Applegate Street, south on South 15th Street, west on Cedar Street and ends across across South 13th at the rodeo grounds.
The Oregon-based band, Countryfied, will play at the Friday and Saturday night dances — a change from recent years’ lineup.
“A group of us go to Pendleton every year, and saw them … totally fell in love with them,” Collins said. “They actually performed here several years ago, so they’re coming back.”
Two queen contestants are competing for this year’s court — no princess or junior princess candidates entered. Collins mentioned that one of the contestants is a Philomath native whose two aunts previously served as Frolic and Rodeo queens. The horsemanship competition runs Friday at 8 a.m., with the free-admission stage competition following at 1 p.m. at the Yew Wood Corral. The 2027 queen and court will be announced during an intermission at Saturday’s rodeo.
The weekend’s schedule also includes the Sidewalk Chalk Contest Friday at 9 a.m. in front of Philomath Community Library; the Marys Peak Search and Rescue Chicken BBQ Friday afternoon and Saturday midday; the annual fireworks show Friday at 10 p.m. launched from Marys River Park and Natural Area behind the arena; the Lions Club Pancake Breakfast, the Frolic 5K and the Philomath Car Show — all Saturday morning; and the lumberjack competition Saturday afternoon, featuring both professional and novice competitors.
Although promoted as July 9-11, the Frolic’s first activity takes place on Wednesday evening ahead of the main event with the Home Run Derby. Featuring various categories, the derby begins at 6 p.m. at Philomath High’s softball field. The Warriors program is running the event as a fundraiser, Collins said.
Cornhole tournaments, a fixture in recent years, won’t return in 2026. ‘We just didn’t have the attendance numbers,” Collins said.
Collins said organizers are still looking for volunteers ahead of the event. A volunteer meeting is scheduled for Tuesday at 6 p.m. in the Yew Wood Corral for anyone interested in signing up.
