A Central Coast rodeo is honoring the legacy of a man many called "Mr. Santa Maria." The Jim Glines Memorial Rodeo comes to the Elks Rodeo Grounds this weekend.
Jim Glines had a dream for a long time — a college rodeo, right here at home.
"My dad, from the time I was pretty young, always thought that it was a shame that there was no [college] rodeo in Santa Maria," said his son, John Glines. "We had these incredible grounds out here, and our kids were having to go to Cuesta, or out to the valley, Coalinga, or someplace to rodeo for a college team."
Jim Glines co-founded the Community Bank of Santa Maria and was a champion auctioneer, helping raise millions of dollars for local charities and youth programs. The rodeo team at Allan Hancock College says he was instrumental in starting their program, which held its inaugural spring rodeo last year.
"In 2019, he started that funding, and in 2022, we put our first rodeo team together," John said. "His dream for a long time was to see a college rodeo right here at home in the dirt. We lost him a month before that first event happened, so this is the fruition of his dream."
Last year marked the first time a college rodeo was hosted at the Elks Rodeo Grounds. This year, the event is being called the Jim Glines Memorial Rodeo in honor of his contributions.
John Glines says there will be a brief memorial before this weekend's performances, with photos of his father shown on the video board. The arena will also feature banners honoring him.
"We're always going to honor him," John said. "This was his brainchild, this was his dream, and we're going to make sure people remember he was the one that got us out here in the first place."
Allan Hancock Rodeo Coach Tyree Cochrane says the sport carries deep roots in ranching history.
"All the events have a background in ranching and history, raising cattle and horses to do things out on the ranch, and actually have cattle for production for meat," Cochrane said. "You get to hear a little about the background and then see how the competitiveness came through."
Many of the athletes on the Allan Hancock team grew up right here on the Central Coast.
"It's awesome, I get the option to do my classes online through Hancock and still do rodeo, what I love," said rodeo athlete Sadie Grant.
"It's really the only reason I'm in school," Stamper said. As for what fans can expect this weekend, he put it simply, "It's one of those things you have to see with your own eyes."
The Jim Glines Memorial Rodeo takes place Saturday and Sunday at the Elks Rodeo Grounds, featuring events including team roping, barrel racing, bull riding, and more.
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