By Josh Hall (Twitter: @Vancan19)

Dedicated rodeo fan killed in Ponoka crash remembered fondly

Oct 29, 2018 | 4:15 PM

The man who died in a crash earlier this month near Ponoka is being remembered as a fervent supporter of the Alberta rodeo scene.

Darrell Paulovich was tragically killed in a three-vehicle collision on the QE II Highway on the night of October 12 as he was travelling home to Edmonton from the Foothills Cowboy Association Finals at Westerner Park in Red Deer. He was 46.

The youngest of four boys, Paulovich became well known in rodeo circles over the last few years as an ardent fan and supporter. In 2017, he put on 23,000 kilometres attending seventy rodeos and 100 performances, according to his brother Darcy.

Paulovich had the upcoming Canadian Finals Rodeo in Red Deer on his calendar, too.

“We were in the saddle club when we were younger, we broke horses for our neighbours and friends, raised saddle horses and boarded horses. Darrell was on a horse when he was four years old,” says Darcy, adding Darrell was his idol.

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“He moved down south to be with his big brother and wanted to haul cattle for a living. That was job he loved for the rest of his life.”

The Paulovich boys grew up in North Star and went to school in Manning, two small communities about three hours north of Grande Prairie.

Twenty-one years ago, Darrell was in another crash near Kindersley, SK while hauling cattle back to Alberta from an auction in Saskatoon. The collision left him a quadriplegic, paralyzed from the chest down. Despite his injuries, he drove himself to and from all the rodeo events he attended.

“He loved the rodeo and the lifestyle. Going to these rodeos, he made an ungodly amount of friends,” Darcy continues. “But he wasn’t out there for personal gain. He was out there to cheer on the cowboys and wish good luck to the rodeo queens, and whether you were amateur or not, he’d cheer you on the same way. It didn’t matter if it was a little jackpot rodeo, a circuited rodeo or a college rodeo.”

The Wildrose Rodeo Association in Barrhead previously presented Darrell with a gold card so he could attend events free of charge, as thanks for his continued support.

In the wake of Paulovich’s death, many have expressed their condolences while others have taken action in order to ensure he is remembered.

The Canadian Intercollegiate Rodeo Association has announced it will be offering the Darrell Paulovich Memorial Award annually. The award is worth $1,000 and will go to a contestant who shows resilience and dedication to the sport of rodeo.

There will also be commemorative stickers bearing Darrell’s image handed out during CFR – an initiative taken by rodeo photographer Covy Moore.

The Canadian Professional Rodeo Association will also honour Darrell during its Night of Champions event at the Sheraton hotel on Monday, Oct. 29.