MAXWELL, CA (MPG) – Colusa County’s western heritage took center stage Aug. 15 as the second annual Maxwell Harvest Festival expanded into a daylong celebration of cattle, cowboys and rodeo action.
Sponsored by Bar M Custom Meats and deli of Maxwell, the festival grew considerably from its inaugural year, beginning in the morning with a cattle drive down Oak Street before moving to team roping at the Maxwell rodeo arena.
The evening event opened with three Richter Aviation crop dusters flying over the arena, reprising a crowd favorite from the first Harvest Festival. Rodeo announcer Travis Moniz had promised the return of the flyover while previewing the event, recalling the reaction it received a year earlier.
The expanded lineup drew 30 bull riders, eight ranch bronc riders and seven steer riders. Six wild pony race entries added to the action, while the top teams from the morning roping event returned to the arena for the short round.
New this year was mutton bustin’, giving some of the festival’s youngest competitors their own turn in the arena. Moniz said about 20 youngsters entered the event.
The day also included a barbecue cookoff. Quentin Indrieri, the Northern California-based event caterer known for regional barbecue events and local competitive cookoffs, took first place with his three-man team in both tri-tip and chili. Indrieri previously took first place in the City of Colusa’s Independence Day Rib Cook-Off.
For Moniz, whose family runs an active registered cow-calf cattle operation and livestock business in Princeton, said the combination of rodeo events and community support captured something familiar about rural life.
“This brings you back to my childhood,” said Moniz, whose father Brian Moniz founded the event in 2025. “This is just outstanding.”
The festival was backed by businesses and agricultural supporters from Maxwell and throughout the region. Moniz credited that support with helping make the second annual event possible.
“We just want to say thank you to each and every one of these sponsors,” Moniz said. “If it wasn’t for them, this event would not be possible.”
Among those experiencing the festival for the first time was Sharon Ledbetter of Red Bluff, who received tickets won through the Blaze 103.5 radio station giveaway. Ledbetter said she had never stopped in Maxwell before and knew the community primarily from seeing its exit sign while traveling Interstate 5.
After spending the evening at the Harvest Festival, Ledbetter continued the experience with a visit to the Maxwell Inn.
“It’s a pretty cool event,” Ledbetter said. “I hope to come again next year.”