Jasper heritage rodeo officials are calling this year’s event a success, but are asking the community for more help to keep the event running smoothly.

Drawing somewhere between 800 and 900 visitors a night to the rodeo, the small handful of volunteers running the show were pressed to stay on top of the duties required to keep the event running smoothly, according to officials.

Stephen Pavlov, vice-president with the rodeo, put in seven 15-hour days with the rodeo. He said the committee is experienced enough to keep the show running without a hitch, however more labourers are required.

“It ran smoothly. The people on the board know their jobs very well. It’s the worker bees we’re really short of,” Pavlov said. “We could use more. Next year we need more help with traffic control and removing the structures.”

For example, only two volunteers showed up to remove all of the steel poles and dirt at the Jasper Activity Centre following the end of the rodeo. The job took about 48 hours to complete, and the volunteers ran out of time to finish the job. Pavlov said a few more volunteers would have made the job go by much quicker.

“We only need a crew of six. But it’s hard to get people to commit,” Pavlov said. “But somebody has to take the steel down. It’s heavy work.”

He’s puzzled why more people aren’t helping as much as they used to. Many of the volunteer positions required are those that don’t involve watching the actual rodeo, such as parking lot duty.

“People don’t have the spirit of volunteerism,” Pavlov said.

Rodeo attendance was higher than many years, Pavlov estimated, and he praised the Strathcona riders for adding a new element to the festivities. The riders were sponsored by the local legion and the fire department. Pavlov also said the town was integral in helping out with this year’s event.

The rodeo is also gaining high praise with the cowboys on the circuit. Of the 600 rodeos in Canada and the United States, the Jasper Rodeo ranks in the top 50 for prize money. It also ranks among the top 12 in Canada.

“The cowboys say we have a really good show. We’re still holding our own,” Pavlov said. “The visitors I spoke to were very happy. We put on a professional rodeo.”

As for next year, which will be the 20th official Jasper Heritage Rodeo, Pavlov said he’d like to see more production values put into the rodeo. This was also the first year the rodeo was able to use their new arena groomer, which Pavlov said really helped the terrain.

“With the dirt being 40 years old, it needs to be taken care of. We’ve added sawdust and sand. It’s on par with mini Northlands... We’re always looking to upgrade infrastructure,” he said.