Submitted Photo Feek Tooke took part in the 1968 National Finals Rodeo in Oklahoma City. He was there to receive an award for Sheep Mountain, a champion rough stock horse he raised. Feek would ride out of the arena, award in hand, and die from a heart attack just outside the gate.

The revealing new documentary about one of rodeo’s most influential bucking horse bloodlines, Feek’s Vision, made its Montana debut in May and is making its way into North Dakota theaters in June.

In the 1930s, rancher and rodeo stock contractor Feek Tooke, of Ekalaka, Montana, foresaw the end to the availability of wild horses as rodeo stock and envisioned a program for breeding horses with a strong propensity to buck. Amid skepticism, Feek pursued his vision, realized success and forever changed the future of rodeo. Recognizing the significance of Feek’s story, Documentary Filmmaker Ken Howie (Special Cowboy Moments, Hardship to Freedom) of western North Dakota was compelled to create a film that would capture this important rodeo history to be enjoyed by generations of rodeo fans and horse lovers, as well as enthusiasts of equine genetics.

With narration by National Finals Rodeo Color Analyst and former rodeo competitor Butch Knowles, rodeo champions such as Larry Mahan, Deb Copenhaver, Clint Johnson, Dan Mortenson, and Ty Murray share stories and historical details about the Tooke Bucking Horses and their profound impact on the sport of rodeo. Legendary stock contractors Harry Vold, Cotton Rosser and Mel Potter (Rodeos, Inc.), Matt Burch (Burch Rodeo), Sparky Dreesen (J Bar J) and Powder River Rodeo’s Franzen family share their testaments to Tooke bred horses, many still winning titles today. Traveling thousands of miles to capture original footage, Howie brings revered rodeo legends to the screen, sharing memories of their matches against Tooke bred horses in the arena.

Feek’s eldest son, Ernest Tooke, was instrumental in the Tooke Bucking Horse operation, before and after his father’s death in 1968. An exceptional and entertaining storyteller, Ernest’s willingness to sit down with Ken on camera is compelling. A reserved man, Ernest felt comfortable enough with Ken to welcome him into his inner circle and, in so doing, laid the essential groundwork for this important record of rodeo history.

Ernest’s grandson, Toby Tooke, family historian and consultant on the film, commented on the relationship between Ken and Ernest. “I know from day one Ken has felt pressure for this project to be accurate, fun, and tell the story. From the beginning, I made Ken aware how tough Ernest was to please. I think he took that as a challenge and is striving for perfection. Ken is fully aware how big of a fan Grandpa was of his work with Special Cowboy Moments…he always said, ‘the right people, at the right time, to tell the right story.’ And now we have the most anticipated rodeo documentary in recent history on our hands.”

Feek’s Vision will be presented in theaters across western North Dakota, starting in June. It will be shown a number of times at the North Dakota Cowboy Hall of Fame in Medora. For more info, including a list of currently scheduled screenings, visit feeksvision.com.

Tess Howie is editor of The Cowboy Chronicle, the official newsletter of the North Dakota Cowboy Hall of Fame, and museum curator of the N.D. Cowboy Hall of Fame Center of Western Heritage & Culture in Medora. She and her husband, Ken, produce films that capture and share the stories that comprise North Dakota’s ranch and rodeo history.