Glen Franklin, Tie-Down Roper Hall of Famer, Passes Away at 89

Glen Franklin made a huge impact on the sport of rodeo, and now his legacy will live on through his family after he passed away on January 3rd.

Glen Franklin | Shelley Franklin Horton

The rodeo community has already lost a legend this year, on January 3rd ProRodeo Hall of Fame tie-down roper and three-time RCA World Champion, Glen Franklin passed away in his home at 89 years old. 

Glen Franklin Leaves Behind Strong Rodeo Legacy

Throughout his career, Franklin set a new bar in tie-down roping. He began competing professionally back in the 60’s and his decades-long career marked a new era for the sport.

The RCA (later named PRCA) was where he began setting records. He won several major rodeos, including Cheyenne Frontier Days (1967), the San Antonio Stock Show & Rodeo (1965, 1970), and the Fort Worth Stock Show & Rodeo (1965).

He was a champion of the National Western Stock and Rodeo show three times over (1958, 1965, 1968) and won the Grand National Stock Show & Rodeo in San Francisco, California three times as well (1957, 1961 and 1962). These championship titles go to show what a big threat he was in the arena at the height of his career. 

By 1968, he set a record for single-season earnings at $33,252 including the $1,356 won at the National Finals Rodeo where he won that year to secure his third title in four years. 

Franklin’s legacy began in New Mexico, where he grew up as an all-star athlete, even outside of the rodeo arena. He was an all-state basketball player in high school and won the state high school tie-down roping championship. After earning himself a scholarship to play basketball in college at Eastern New Mexico University, he had to choose between basketball and roping. 

He chose roping and it paid off handsomely. 

During his long career, Franklin qualified for the NFR eight times in 1959 - 62, and 1965 - 68. He took home the gold buckle three of those times (1965, 1967 and 1968) and secured an NFR average title in 1967.

A Rodeo Legacy Lives On Through His Son

After stepping out of the arena and retiring from PRORODEO, Franklin chose to teach his son all the tricks of the trade. His son, Shawn, took well to the sport of calf roping and went on to qualify for the NFR five times in his career in 1993, 1994, 1995, 1997, and 2002, proving that rodeo runs through their blood. 

In 1979, Franklin’s accomplishments in the rodeo arena helped him become part of the inaugural ProRodeo Hall of Fame. 

Franklin is survived by his wife, Jimmie Gayle Franklin; his son, Jerry Franklin; his daughters, Tamara Franklin and Shelly Horton, who was Miss Rodeo New Mexico in 1991, and her husband, Chris Horton; his son, Shawn Franklin; his sister, Doris Lee, and her husband, Bob Lee; and four grandchildren, Anna Franklin, Steeley Franklin, Cross Horton and Cassidy Horton. He was preceded in death by his father Robert Meeks, and his mother Catherine Wilson Franklin.

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