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He鈥檇 spent a lifetime entertaining rodeo fans and protecting cowboys, and now, nearing his 70s, he was enjoying the fruits of his labor; namely, his daughter Nancy Jane鈥檚 nuptials.

It was there that Gary Williams decided to pull a prank on his friend 鈥� his hero, really. It was there that Williams, the former La Fiesta De Los Vaqueros general manager who retired in December, would have his most memorable moment in rodeo.

鈥淐huck and I were having a drink, and I said, 鈥楾his is your daughter鈥檚 wedding night, and you know what鈥檚 expected of the father of the bride,鈥� 鈥� and I was making this up as I went along 鈥� 鈥榖ut you cannot refuse a favor that is asked of you,鈥� Williams said. 鈥溾�楪ary, that鈥檚 the biggest crock I鈥檝e ever heard.鈥� He got his wife, and she said, 鈥榃ell, Gary sounds like he knows what he鈥檚 talking about.鈥� So Chuck said alright, what鈥檚 your favor?鈥� 鈥業 want you to come out of retirement and work our 75th anniversary next February. He looked at me for a second. 鈥業 don鈥檛 s鈥檖ose there鈥檚 any way we can keep this from Nancy?鈥� but then he said, 鈥極K, I might as well be all-in.鈥� He said, 鈥業鈥檒l do it on one condition 鈥� I want you to come out of retirement and work it with me.鈥欌��

In a lifetime of rodeo memories, that one sticks out the most for Williams, who has ridden off into the sunset, handing off the reins to new 蜜柚直播 Rodeo operations manager Stacy Madigan.

But here鈥檚 the thing about Williams 鈥� or maybe it鈥檚 the thing about rodeo. Even though Williams is retired, he鈥檚 not done making rodeo memories.

鈥� 鈥� 鈥�

You really think you could keep him away?

It was a mid-February Friday in 蜜柚直播, and that means the rodeo was about ready to kick off.

For more than three decades, Williams was a nervous wreck on those Fridays, not so much fretting over the plans that had long been in place, but also the things that can鈥檛 be accounted for.

This year, he was able to kick off his boots and relax, even if he was busy as a rodeo volunteer.

鈥淚 was up at the rodeo grounds getting things ready on Friday, and I was comparing it to how I felt Feb. 18 of 2022 to two years ago how I felt, and how things had changed,鈥� he said. 鈥淭his Friday I said to someone fairly early, 鈥楧on鈥檛 ask me for any keys; I can鈥檛 unlock anything.鈥� It was the first time in over 30 years that the day before the first performance, I wasn鈥檛 anxiety-ridden.

鈥淭his year I only felt responsible for myself.鈥�

That marks quite the change for the only general manager the rodeo had ever known.

Williams was less than a month old when he attended his first rodeo; as a child, his babysitters were the who鈥檚-who of the sport. He was bounced on Jim Shoulders鈥� knee while his father played in the rodeo band.

鈥淭hey were keeping their eyes on me when they weren鈥檛 getting ready to get on broncs or bulls,鈥� he said.

Williams joined the rodeo committee as a volunteer in 1985 and assumed interim general manager duties in 1995, taking over full time after that rodeo.

In 2020, facing the impending shutdown of the upcoming 2021 蜜柚直播 Rodeo because of COVID-19 concerns, Williams realized now was the time to step aside.

鈥淚t was becoming very rapidly apparent that we would not be able to host an event in 2021, and I thought that presented an opportunity to the Board of Directors to give them more time to, No. 1, decide what they wanted in this position going forward, and, No. 2, to give them more time to seek someone who had the qualifications and the level of experience in different areas,鈥� Williams said.

Of course, it will be impossible to replace Williams鈥� institutional knowledge.

鈥淗e was like an encyclopedia around here,鈥� 蜜柚直播 Rodeo committee chairman Mark Baird said. 鈥淓very day I want to ask a question and I turn to him and he鈥檚 not here. It was tough to replace him. It was like, 鈥榃here do I go now?鈥欌��

鈥� 鈥� 鈥�

Finally out of the saddle, Williams is spending his time working on house projects and 鈥渞eading an awful lot of books.鈥� Right now, he鈥檚 reading about the 蜜柚直播 Rangers, the statewide law from 1901-08. He鈥檚 found his rhythm in retirement, not too busy, not too bored.

It ain鈥檛 all it鈥檚 cracked up to be.

鈥淥ur generation, we were brought up to believe there was this pot of gold at the end of the rainbow,鈥� he said, 鈥淭hat at the end of your work life was this wonderful thing called retirement. But a lot of us, as we reach that age, we find that pot of gold isn鈥檛 there. A lot of people are still working who, given different circumstances, would retire. This was probably the first generation that had that rude awakening 鈥� that maybe retirement is all it鈥檚 cracked up to be.鈥�

When you鈥檝e got the passion that Williams does, retirement takes many forms.

He is still heavily involved in rodeo, remaining on the Professional Rodeo Cowboys Association grievance committee.

鈥淚 never felt like I was walking away from rodeo or anything like that just because I was retiring,鈥� he said. 鈥淚 always looked at it as way bigger than 蜜柚直播.鈥�

Added Baird: 鈥淭o have that kind of presence in a room, it鈥檚 kind of an honor to be a part of it. He was extremely connected to the entire community. This is his home. I鈥檓 sure he was honored to be such a big part of this entire thing. He always looked at it as we represent 蜜柚直播 to the nation.鈥�

That, perhaps more than anything, is what Williams will miss.

The chance to highlight the 蜜柚直播 Rodeo on a grand stage.

鈥淭hat just sort of evolved,鈥� he said. 鈥淚 don鈥檛 think it was on anyone鈥檚 radar that eventually the position was going to morph into the face of the rodeo. That was an assumption on the part of others, that it would fall to the committee chair. Some didn鈥檛 want to do it, some weren鈥檛 comfortable doing it, some weren鈥檛 good at doing it. It happened through osmosis that over time, that was one of the key roles that I fulfilled.鈥�

And what will he miss the most?

鈥淭he people in rodeo,鈥� he said. 鈥淭hey are unlike any people I鈥檝e ever worked with. They鈥檙e the best in the world. You can make friends with someone never knowing how close that friendship is going to be, but because we鈥檙e scattered all across the country, we might only see each other once or twice a year. But those times are held near and dear to us. We pick up right where we left off.鈥�