Oskie Rice Arena
Oskie Rice Arena is host to the famous Maui Rodeo.
The Oskie Rice Arena was named for Ka‘ono‘ulu Ranch Manager Harold F. “Oskie” Rice, known as “the cowboy of cowboys in Hawai‘i.” A working cowboy and rodeo enthusiast, he and his friends began the Maui Roping Club in 1955, sponsoring the first Makawao Rodeo one year later. Rice donated the land for the arena, where the event is held every year.
Present-day Makawao still holds the essence of what the cowboy town used to be, but roping cattle may be one Hawaiian tradition that won’t be around forever.
“Paniolos are a dying breed,” said Herman-Louis DeCoite, president of the Maui Roping Club since 2002. The word paniolo is said to be a Hawaiianized pronunciation of the word espanol, and it was used to describe the vaquero cowboys who came over from Spanish California to teach cattle handling skills in the 1820s.
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