`SWEETHEARTS OF THE RODEO' WILL RIDE HERE

CAPE GIRARDEAU -- When Melanie Isley was a girl, her parents took her to the Longhorn Rodeo every year. And every year, she couldn't wait to see her favorite rodeo clown.

"For weeks after the rodeo, he's all I would talk about," she said.

But back then, Melanie never dreamed she'd grow up and marry a rodeo clown.

Now, Melanie, a trick rider, and her husband, Keith Isley, a bull-riding clown, both work for the Longhorn Rodeo Co.

They will perform at the Longhorn Rodeo this weekend at the Show Me Center. Shows are Friday and Saturday night at 8 p.m. and Sunday afternoon at 2 p.m.

The two, now in their early 30s, have been married for two years, and have performed together for five.

Keith has been bull riding since he was 14, but started "clowning" only after he met Melanie. She has been trick riding since she was 18.

Melanie describes her husband as shy. "But he loves to entertain people. I can tell that just by watching his act."

But Keith said his clown makeup and costume are what allow him to open up to a crowd.

"I really never wanted to be in front of a crowd," he said. "But when you have that makeup on, it's a lot easier."

At home, Melanie said her husband is quiet and reserved. "People who don't really know him think there's something wrong. He's just different at home than when he's performing."

Melanie started her rodeo career in cowgirl barrel racing. When she didn't win consistently, the travel and entry fees got too expensive. She then attended a two-week school for trick riders and, after she graduated, the owner of the school asked her to begin performing with the Wild West Show.

"It was hard work," Melanie said. "We performed two shows a day, seven days a week for four months. After it was over, I thought I'd never practice again." But she did, and more job offers followed.

People who work with the rodeo, and the fans, make up the best part of being a rodeo personality, the two said.

"Last year while we were in Cape, I was at a restaurant near Fruitland and the guy behind me started talking about the clown at the rodeo, and how much he enjoyed the act. I finally told him I was that clown, and he ended up buying my lunch," Keith said.

The two say they have made lifelong friends as a result of their careers.

"Sometimes people come backstage just to chit-chat after the rodeo is over," said Melanie. "There's a couple in Michigan who did that, and they've become like a mother and a father to us. We keep in touch."

But a rodeo career isn't all glamour, they said. Their careers mean almost constant travel at least 10 months out of each year and a lot of behind-the-scenes work.

They care for four horses and two dogs, which they take with them everywhere they go. They have a travel trailer that also serves as a home-away-from-home.

But when they're not working, home is in North Carolina.

The horses are a big part of the act. Keith explained that it takes a special kind of horse, and years of training before a horse is ready to perform at a major rodeo.

"The animals have to have a lot of patience and they can't scare easily," Melanie said. "Hanging off of a horse and standing on a horse are not natural things to them. It takes them a while to get used to it."

Some horses have their own idiosyncrasies. "We have one horse, you can take him into the arena under the lights, you can do tricks on him, put flags on him, just about anything," Keith said. "But don't get close to him with an umbrella, or he'll think you're going to kill him."

Taking care of the horses takes a lot of time and effort. But Melanie says it's an important part of the show.

"You have to he able to trust your horse, and the horse has to trust you," she said.

Most of Melanie's tricks are done while she's strapped to the horse. And she admits, it could be dangerous.

But falling off the horse isn't what she worries about. It's when the horse falls on her, which has happened four times, that she really gets scared.

"When an 1,100-pound animal falls on you, it really affects the way you feel about your work," she said."

She's thinking about leaving the trick-riding business in a year or so.

"When you start to worry about getting hurt and start to dread getting on the horse, that's when it's time to get out."