As a starry-eyed young buckaroo growing up in Cody, Wyoming—known as the Rodeo Capital of the World—Matt Tarr was beguiled by the rodeo. He loved the broncs, bull riders, and steer wrestlers. But his favorites were the rodeo clowns who risk life and limb taking hits from angry bulls and horses so riders can walk away unscathed. “When I was a kid, the rodeo clowns would take the time to talk to us and take pictures,” Tarr says. “That started the love.”
By his early 20s, Tarr had set his sights on becoming a professional bullfighter, but destiny intervened. In 2009, a clown didn’t show up at the Cody Nite Rodeo. “The guy who ran the rodeo said, ‘Hey, you wanna try this?’” Tarr says. “That’s how it began.”
Life as a professional rodeo clown is not all a barrel of laughs. It requires you to be an acrobat, security guard, and court jester all at once. “That barrel is an island of safety for those guys,” Tarr says. “If they’re in a bind, I can pick it up and go to them. I’d much rather that barrel get hit than one of my friends.”
Downplaying the inevitable slings and arrows of his vocation, Tarr has never totaled his injuries. “We don’t even really keep track, to be honest,” he says. “It just goes with the territory.”
When they’re not traversing the rodeo circuit, Tarr, his wife, Stacie, and their two kids spend their time in Hico, a town of about 1,500 residents an hour northwest of Waco. “The beautiful part of my job is I get to take them with me everywhere I go,” he says.
All these years later, there is still nowhere Tarr would rather be than the rodeo. “I’m down in the arena where you’re watching the world champions in every event,” he says, “and I get a front row seat for it.”
Tarr’s Hico Picks
Oma Leen’s
Showcasing seasonal chef-driven menus and locally sourced ingredients, Oma Leen’s is Tarr’s go-to destination for celebrations and fine dining. “The menu changes often, but I choose steak when it’s available,” he says.
Hico Mercantile
If shopping malls had existed in the Old West, they’d likely look like this conglomerate of specialty shops packed into a preserved 1895 Opera House. More than 30 artisans and designers sell goods, including décor, art, clothing, and jewelry.
Green Canoe
This outdoor hiking and fishing clothing store doubles as a popular taproom and beer garden. “There’s a big porch outside and a bunch of Texas craft brews on tap,” Tarr says. “We like to go listen to music, hang out, and let the kids run around.”
Hico Park
Perched on the banks of the North Bosque River, this 43-acre park features walking and biking trails, playgrounds, picnicking, RV camping sites, and an 18-hole disc golf course. As a bonus, Siloville, an old grain storage facility repurposed into a challenging silo-climbing sport center, is right across the street.
Punchy Vaquera
This family-owned boutique has everything a fashionable cowgirl could need—including dresses, denim, boots, and jewelry. “My wife recommended this,” Tarr says. “I don’t really go there by myself.”
