{"id":485554,"date":"2026-10-05T08:06:21","date_gmt":"2026-10-05T08:06:21","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/485554\/"},"modified":"2026-10-05T08:06:21","modified_gmt":"2026-10-05T08:06:21","slug":"sheriffs-deputies-compete-at-annual-rodeo-in-folsom","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/485554\/","title":{"rendered":"Sheriff\u2019s deputies compete at annual rodeo in Folsom"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"The<\/p>\n

The Painted Ladies Rodeo Performers Oct. 3, 2026 at the Sacramento County Sheriff\u2019s Rodeo<\/p>\n

HALEY PARSLEY<\/p>\n

haley.parsley@sacbee.com<\/p>\n

The Sacramento-based Painted Ladies Rodeo Performers raced across the arena on horseback, American flags streaming behind them. From the stands, more than 5,000 spectators dressed for the occasion in cowboy hats, leather boots and ornate rodeo belt buckles cheered them on.<\/p>\n

Then came the sheriff\u2019s deputies.<\/p>\n

Yellow smoke and pyrotechnics filled Folsom\u2019s Dan Russell Rodeo Arena as deputies made their entrance, showing off armored vehicles and tactical gear while helicopters flew in formation overhead. Sacramento County Sheriff Jim Cooper greeted the crowd alongside the department\u2019s robotic dog.<\/p>\n

It was a dramatic opening to the Sacramento County Sheriff\u2019s Office\u2019s third annual rodeo, where law enforcement officers weren\u2019t just hosting the event. They were part of the show.<\/p>\n

\"Colored Colored smoke fills the air during an opening performance Oct. 3, 2026 at the Sacramento County Sheriff\u2019s Rodeo HALEY PARSLEY haley.parsley@sacbee.com <\/p>\n

El Dorado County sheriff\u2019s deputies Brandon Leichd and Parker Hohman didn\u2019t quite know what they had signed up for when they volunteered for the Sacramento County Sheriff\u2019s Rodeo. It wasn\u2019t until they arrived that they learned they would be competing.<\/p>\n

\u201cI found out about this about 30 seconds ago,\u201d Leichd said.<\/p>\n

\u201cHe actually thought we were doing security,\u201d Hohman chimed in.<\/p>\n

They weren\u2019t the only deputies headed into the arena. Sheriff\u2019s offices from across California came to compete in the third annual event, which featured bull riding, mutton busting and roping alongside law enforcement-only competitions, including the Sheriff\u2019s Stampede, where teams try to remove a ribbon from a bull\u2019s tail. For some, it would be a new experience.<\/p>\n

\"Sheriff\u2019s Sheriff\u2019s deputies enter the Dan Russell Rodeo Arena in armored vehicles Oct. 3, 2026 at the Sacramento County Sheriff\u2019s Rodeo HALEY PARSLEY haley.parsley@sacbee.com \"Competitors Competitors rope a cattle Oct. 3, 2026 at the Sacramento County Sheriff\u2019s Rodeo HALEY PARSLEY haley.parsley@sacbee.com <\/p>\n

For some, it would be a new experience.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019ve never been to a rodeo a day in my life,\u201d Hohman said.<\/p>\n

But he wasn\u2019t worried about El Dorado County\u2019s chances.<\/p>\n

\u201cThey seem to forget we\u2019re a rural county, and we deal with it on a daily basis,\u201d Hohman said. \u201cWe\u2019re ready to go.\u201d<\/p>\n

Sacramento County Sheriff Jim Cooper launched the rodeo in 2024 as a fundraiser for the Sacramento County Sheriff\u2019s Foundation<\/a>. It\u2019s a nonprofit to support the Sheriff\u2019s Office and foster positive relationships between law enforcement and young people in Sacramento County.<\/p>\n

Miciah Whelan of Carmichael hadn\u2019t planned on spending his Saturday night at a rodeo. But when his wife headed out for a girls\u2019 day, he was looking for something to do with his 5-year-old daughter, Eliana.<\/p>\n

Father and daughter are rodeo fans, and usually look forward to the bull riding. This time, Whelan was also curious about the deputies in the arena.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe\u2019ll see the SWAT team steer wrestling, the team event,\u201d he said. \u201cThat\u2019s kind of interesting. I\u2019d like to see what\u2019s going on with that.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"Miciah Miciah and Eliana Whelan, 5, at the Sacramento County Sheriff\u2019s Rodeo October 3, 2026 HALEY PARSLEY haley.parsley@sacbee.com
\n Related Stories from Sacramento Bee<\/p>\n


\n \"Profile
\n <\/a><\/p>\n

Haley Parsley<\/a><\/p>\n

The Sacramento Bee<\/p>\n

Haley Parsley is the acting Folsom and El Dorado Hills watchdog reporter for The Sacramento Bee. She holds a master\u2019s degree in journalism from the University of Maryland, where she was a fellow at the Howard Center for Investigative Journalism. While there, she reported on immigration policy in the state. She has previously reported in Oklahoma City.\n <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"The Painted Ladies Rodeo Performers Oct. 3, 2026 at the Sacramento County Sheriff\u2019s Rodeo HALEY PARSLEY haley.parsley@sacbee.com The…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":485555,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[32],"tags":[121,123,122],"class_list":["post-485554","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-sacramento","tag-sacramento","tag-sacramento-headlines","tag-sacramento-news"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/485554","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=485554"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/485554\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/485555"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=485554"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=485554"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=485554"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}