ROBBY AND KATI JUNDT'S STORY: THE ROOTS OF SHOOT OUT ARENA

He was a champion bull rider a dozen times over who grew up in the whirl- wind of rodeo circuits in California’s Central Valley. His aunt was a chute boss and his grandfather organized rodeo events.

She was a top barrel racer, goat-tying and pole-running standout from Wyoming who could bring a crowd to its feet.

They both received rodeo scholarships to New Mexico State University, where they met and earned a top reputation at collegiate rodeos. They followed the professional circuit for prize money that sometimes came in big payouts – and sometimes just gas money – got married and had three children on a ranch in McNeal.

Call it cowboy love. But Robby and Kati Jundt weren’t done living the cowboy life.

You don’t shake out rodeo dust that’s been in your boots your entire life and walk away to become an insurance adjuster. At least not the Jundts.

They wanted their own arena to host what they felt could become one of the best-staged rodeo events in the Southwest.

Five years after purchasing a run-down, hardly used arena without seating in Tombstone, the Jundts’ Shoot Out Arena has carved a niche as a top bull riding rodeo, drawing big-name riders from throughout the West, filling the 1,100-plus coliseum-bleachers, VIP and O-Chute seating with high-caliber events four times a year.

“It’s not a career choice you make to live a rodeo life,” said Kati Jundt, who still competes in top barrel racing events. “It’s a lifestyle that chooses you because it’s been in your blood ever since you could practically walk. You don’t know a life that’s different.”

Even though the Jundts wanted an arena, finding one for a price they could afford was a different

story. Robby had once competed in the Tombstone arena, but as a top bull

riding competitor, it hardly ranked as a quality venue. “It was completely run down,” said Jundt, who was raised in a family of bull riders. “The chutes and corrals needed a lot of work, and there was no spectator seating. I grew up with rodeo arenas, so I know a thing or two about them. This wasn’t in great shape.”

But he also saw potential in the 10-acre property where the arena was situated. After some back-and-forth negotiations, the Jundts’ got their arena, along with two parking lots, one that became a dry-camper site for 51 campers. Robby immediately went to work rebuilding the chutes, corrals, fencing, building a concession stand and countless improvements. “I knew what we were getting into,” he said. “We wanted to make this sensational. We wanted it to become a rodeo where contestants didn’t get paid leftovers. We felt if we had our arena, we’d put on great events where bull riders received big payouts.”

Opened during Helldorado Days at the height of Covid, the Jundts packed Shoot Out Arena with 30 premier bull riders along with athletic bulls from New Mexico and nearby Elfrida. “I was hoping for 250 people, but we got 2,000,” said Kati. “We brought in bleachers from Willcox and Phoenix. Robby was still building things during the opening event, rigging up lighting with a generator. People came from all over because Covid had shut everything down. It was a fantastically successful opening night for two people who didn’t know what they were doing.”

The second show the following month was another packed performance. It brought in what the Jundts called a ‘godsend.”

“A Tombstone resident saw what we were trying to do, loved every aspect about it and offered to become an investor,” said Robby. “I told him there was no way I could pay him back, but he said that was okay. If I could build some horse corrals for some friends, that would be good enough. Some people just have huge hearts.”

With newfound money, the Jundts went to work creating a rodeo arena of their dreams. They cut riders’ entry fees to $60 versus the $150 to $200 charged by most rodeos, slashed overhead costs and gave bull riders big-time payouts they promised they would do from the get-go. “We’re doing this to give back to something we’re passionate about,” said Kati. “Bull riding is a business, and riders want to know how much they’re going to walk away with. We have a 40/30/20/10 split of the purse. If it’s a $5,000 purse, the first-place rider is taking home $2,000.”

After putting on monthly rodeos, the Jundts decided it was becoming too difficult to keep that pace up and scaled back to four events a year. The next one will be Oct. 18 during Helldorado Days.

“Now we have time for our lives, our ranch and our two youngest kids, who are riding horses now,” said Kati, whose oldest daughter works for a barrel racing trainer. “Our family is a big part of our lives, and it’s something we’re not going to miss out on.”

With seven sponsors, strong beer sales and a growing word-of-mouth reputation, the two kids on rodeo scholarships who never took a college business course have managed to turn a dilapidated arena into a premier rodeo event in the desert of southeast Arizona.

“It’s been quite the adventure,” said Robby. “We learned everything about running a business on-the-fly without going to business school. As rodeo competitors, we talked about doing something like this for years and said if we were going to do this right, we had to find a way to do it our way. Somehow we did, and it’s worked out, not only for us, but for everyone who loves rodeos.”