Monthly Archives: December 2015

1. Nancy Hunter, 13.62 seconds, $26,231; 2. Fallon Taylor, 13.71, $20,731; 3. Lisa Lockhart, 13.75, $15,654; 4. Taylor Jacob, 13.76, $11,000; 5. Callie DuPerier, 13.86, $6,769; 6. Sarah Rose McDonald, 13.97, $4,231.

1. Cory Solomon, 7.4 seconds, $26,231; 2. Hunter Herrin, 7.7, $20,731; 3. Caleb Smidt, 8.5, $15,654; 4. Sterling Smith, 8.6, $11,000; 5. Trevor Brazile, 8.8, $6,769; 6. Tyson Durfey, 8.9, $4,231.

1. CoBurn Bradshaw, 90 points on Beutler & Son’s Would Up, $26,231; 2. Jacobs Crawley, 88.4, $20,730; 3. Wade Sundell, 87.5, $15,654; 4. Cody DeMoss, 85.5, $11,000; 5. Heith DeMoss, 83.5, $6,769; 6. Rusty Wright, 83, $4,231.

1. (tie) Coleman Proctor/Jake Long and Derrick Begay/Clay O’Brien Cooper, 4.0 seconds, $23,481; 3. Luke Brown/Kollin VonAhn, 4.3, $15,654; 4. Erich Rogers/Cory Petska, 4.4, $11,000; 5. JoJo LeMond, 4.6, $6,769; 6. Colby Lovell/Kory Koontz, 5.1, $4,231.

1. K.C. Jones, 3.3 seconds, $26,231; 2. (tie) Trevor Knowles and Seth Brockman, 4, $18,192; 4. (tie) Ty Erickson, Nick Guy, Tyler Waguespack and Casey Martin, 4.1, $5,500.

1. Kaycee Feild, 91 points on Calgary Stampede’s Reckless Margie, $26,231; 2. Tanner Aus, 86.5, $20,731; 3. (tie) Will Lowe and Steven Peebles, 85.5, $13,327; 5. Seth Hardwick, 83, $6,769; 6. Bobby Mote, 81.5, $4,231.

LAS VEGAS – Sometimes the littlest things end up making the biggest magic. Take Winn Ratliff’s ride Sunday night during the fourth go-round of the National Finals Rodeo. The Leesville, La., bareback rider matched moves with Frontier Rodeo’s Times Up for 82 points. He placed fourth in the round and pocketed $11,000. It was his first paycheck of this NFR, his third trip to the Nevada desert for ProRodeo’s grand championship. But it was significant. He already has moved up two spots to 13th in the world standings, and he has six more go-rounds to go. This season, he has earned nearly $97,000 riding bucking horses. He won 11 rodeos, including top-dollar events in Nampa, Idaho, and Prescott, Ariz.; still, most of his earnings came from catching decent checks along the way. “Winning the Snake River Stampede (in Nampa) during its 70th anniversary was really special,” said Ratliff, who lives in Leesville with his wife, Brittany, and their daughter, Maryclaire, who was born this past May. “Then to win Prescott, with all the history behind, was an accomplishment in itself.” While Sunday’s earnings were nice, the goal each night in Las Vegas is to win the go-rounds. By doing so, cowboys will collect more than $26,000 a night. Ratliff likes his chances to do just that. Not only does the NFR feature the top 15 cowboys in the world standings, it also is the showcase for the very best bucking animals in the sport. Ratliff finished just out of the money in the opening round, scoring 79 points. He knows he has some ground to make up in the final six nights of the season, but he’s up for the challenge. On Monday night, for example, he is matched with Pickett Pro Rodeo’s Scarlet Fever, a horse that is considered one of the greatest in ProRodeo. If he continues to be matched with bucking horses of that caliber, he will be in a great position to add to his season earnings. That is what competing at the NFR is all about.

LAS VEGAS – Sunday night was supposed to be an easy night for the bareback riders at the Wrangler National Finals Rodeo. After having to tie themselves to the hardest-to-ride horses in the game during Saturday’s Round 3, the cowboys were looking forward to the fourth-round “hoppers,” the easiest-to-ride bucking equines in Las Vegas for the finale. “He did not suit that pen,” said Evan Jayne, who rode Mo Betta Rodeo’s Darth for 81 points to finish in a tie for fifth place in the fourth round and pocketed $5,500. “That horse should have been in a semi-eliminator pen, not the fun pen. “This was supposed to be the time for exposure, for showing off. Man, I had a fight. That was the toughest horse I’ve had so far out here, and that was supposed to be the easiest pen of horses.” Instead, Darth made Jayne work for an eight-second ride. Nonetheless, it marked the second time the cowboy from Marseille, France, has placed in a go-round – he finished second on Thursday’s opening night; he has now earned $26,231. “I’m known for getting by riding some of the rankest horses,” said Jayne, the first European-born qualifier in NFR history. “The rank pen is usually where I shine, but, man, tonight I wanted a hopper. I was ready for a break.” He won’t get one for a few days. Monday’s pen of bucking horses are the most electric in the game, with highest scores of the season being posted on the group of animals that appear in the fifth and 10th go-rounds. It’s a good time for the cowboy to become comfortable with the high-paced action that is Las Vegas. “My nerves are finally coming down for me,” said Jayne, whose season earnings are $129,251. “This is just another rodeo for me now, really. Tonight I was just loose behind the bucking chutes.” Jayne first fell in love with rodeo as a child growing up in France by watching videos of the NFR. Even as a youngster, he knew he wanted to be a ProRodeo cowboy. He moved to southeast Texas during his junior year in high school through the foreign exchange student program. He has lived in the United States ever since pursuing his dreams, attending Sam Houston State University on a rodeo scholarship. While in Texas, he took advantage of the sport’s popularity in the Lone Star State. He made numerous appearances at the Mesquite (Texas) Championship Rodeo, which was televised regionally at the time. “Mesquite was how I paid the bills when I was in college,” he said. “I drove up there every weekend. I was entered in bareback and bronc riding, and I remember driving back every time thinking, ‘Man, I should just move up near Mesquite once I’m done in school. “I live in Rockwall now, just 15 miles from the Mesquite Arena, and I go there once a year. Still, Mesquite is my home, and I ride better in that arena than I ride in any other arena.” He hopes that changes to the Thomas & Mack Center. He sits fifth in the world standings, so that gold buckle is well within reach. That’s just part of his rodeo dreams.

1. Joe Frost, 85.5 points on Andrews Rodeo’s Bell Ringer, $26,231; 2. Caleb Sanderson, 83, $20,731; 3. (tie) Kody DeShon and Clayton Foltyn, 82, $13,327 each; 5. Sage Kimzey, 81, $6,769; 6. Cody Teel, 73.5, $4,231.

1. Sarah Rose McDonald, 13.71 seconds, $26,231; 2. (tie) Lisa Lockhart and Cassidy Kruse, 13.85, $18,192 each; 4. Taylor Jacob, 13.89, $11,000; 5. (tie) Callie DuPerier and Nancy Hunter, 14.03, $5,500.

1. (tie) Cade Swor and Sterling Smith, 7.2 seconds, $23,481 each; 3. (tie). Marty Yates and Tuf Cooper, 7.4, $13,327; 5. Monty Lewis, 7.5, $6,769; 6. Caleb Smidt, 7.7, $4,231.

1. Rusty Wright, 85.5 points on Flying Five Rodeo’s Sundance, $26,231; 2. Zeke Thurston, 85, $20,731; 3. Isaac Diaz, 83.5, $15,654; 4. Jacobs Crawley, 83, $11,000; 5. Taos Muncy, 81.5, $6,769; 6. Chuck Schmidt, 80, $4,231.

For the fourth straight go-round, a cowboy from the Navajo  Nation earns the round title at the Wrangler National Finals Rodeo. Aaron Tsinigine won Rounds 1 and 3, and Derrick Begay has won Rounds 2 and 4. 1. Derrick Begay/Clay O’Brien Cooper, 3.6 seconds, $26,231; 2. Trevor Brazile/Patrick Smith, 3.8, $20,731; 3. Clay Tryan/Jade Corkill, 4.1, $15,654; 4. JoJo LeMond/Junior Nogueira, 4.2, $11,000; 5. Erich Rogers/Cory Petska, 4.3, $6,769; 6. Clay Smith/Paul Eaves, 4.4, $4,231.

1. Dakota Eldridge, 3.3. seconds, $26,231; 2. Seth Brockman, 3.6, $20,731; 3. Baylor Roche, 3.7, $15,654; 4. (tie) Ty Erickson and Tanner Milan, 3.8, $8,884; 6. Blake Knowles, 4.1, $4,231.

1. (tie) Steven Peebles, on Rodeo’s Scarlet Belle, and Kaycee Feild, on J Bar J’s Pass the Hat, 84 points, $23,481 each ; 3. Clint Laye, 83, $15,564; 4. Winn Ratliff, 82, $11,000; 5. (tie) Evan Jayne and Seth Hardwick, 81, $5,500.

LAS VEGAS – Even bad experiences come with great lessons. Those lessons have come in handy for team roping header Coleman Proctor of Pryor, Okla., who has been helping partner Jake Long with the care of Long’s top horse, Colonel. “Jake’s good horse has an abscess, and I’ve had quite a bit of experience with that,” Proctor said. “Jake had to use his backup horse (Friday) night, but he got Colonel back” for the third round. “Carmen, my good horse, has had some abscess problems, so I’m helping Jake with caring for Colonel. We’re packing his foot every night and giving him the best care we can. We rely on our horses, so you have to do all you can to take care of them.” It helped the dynamic team that has been roping together since they were youngsters. Proctor and Long stopped the clock in 4.6 seconds on Saturday night to finish third in Round 3, collecting $15,654. That pushed Proctor’s season earnings to $95,783; he is now ninth place on the heading money list with seven rounds remaining in ProRodeo’s year-end championship. “It’s huge, because we broke the ice,” he said. “We’ve caught all our steers, so it’s been a good start. We won $15,000, and we still have time to go after them. Now it’s time to go get that gold buckle.” In rodeo, money not only pays bills and expenses for competition, dollars equal points. The contestants in each discipline with the most money at the conclusion of the Wrangler NFR will be crowned world champions and will be awarded the prestigious Montana Silversmiths gold buckle. But the 10-day finale features only the very best in each event, so the competition is stiff. Proctor and Long finished one-tenth of a second out of the money in the opening round, then they suffered a five-second penalty on Friday night by catching just one of two hind feet. “The first round, I took an extra swing, and that cost us from getting a check,” said Proctor, who attended Northwestern Oklahoma State University on a rodeo scholarship. “In the second round, the rope popped off my saddle horn. I was hoping to set the table a little better for Jake. “Jake had to pull off a heck of a heel shot to allow us to get a time.” That’s what teammates do. In fact, Proctor has enlisted the help of another teammate, Tiffany Wagner, who is in Las Vegas to help take care of Proctor’s horses. “Jake had told me that I needed to have someone to take care of my horses,” he said. “She came out last year and helped me, and we had a good finals. It helped calm my nerves to have somebody out here who had been here before. I’m really excited she came back to help.” It all adds up to a winning combination. “My horse is working great, and I’m very confident in where we are,” Proctor said. “I have the best partner in the world and a great horse. Good things are fixing to come.”

Bull rider Reid Barker suffered a fractured scapula and fractured rib when he was stepped on by his third-round bull on Saturday night. Barker, who earned his first qualified ride of the Wrangler National Finals Rodeo with a 74-point ride on Pete Carr Pro Rodeo’s Lonestar, slid off the bull just after the qualifying ride. The bull then stepped on Barker’s upper back. He is listed as out by the Justin Sportsmedicine team.

Bareback riding: 1. Steven Peebles, 86.5 points on Andrews Rodeo’s Cool Water, $26,231; 2. Clint Laye, 84, $20,731; 3. Austin Foss, 80, $15,654; 4. Clint Cannon, 79.5, $11,000; 5. (tie) Will Lowe and Seth Hardwick, 79, $5,500. Steer wrestling: 1. Clayton Hass, 3.6 seconds, $26,231; 2. Ty Erickson, 3.8, $20,731; 3. (tie) Nick Guy, Kyle Irwin, and Hunter Cure, 4.1, $11,141 each; 6. Seth Brockman, 4.3, $4,231. Team roping: 1. Aaron Tsinigine/Ryan Motes, 4.0 seconds, $26,231; 2. Chad Masters/Travis Graves, 4.5, $20,831; 3. Coleman Proctor/Jake Long, 4.6, $15,654; 4. JoJo LeMond/Junior Nogueira, 5.2, $11,000; 5. Erich Rogers/Cory Petska, 6.1, $6,769; 6. (tie) Matt Sherwood/Travis Woodard and Clay Tryan/Jade Corkill, 9.3, $2,115 each. Saddle bronc riding: 1. Cody DeMoss, 84 points on Summit Pro Rodeo’s Big Fork, $26,231; 2. Jacobs Crawley, 83.5, $20,731; 3. Jake Wright, 83, $15,654; CoBurn Bradshaw, 82.5, $11,000; 5. Chuck Smidt, 81.5, $6,769; 6. Isaac Diaz, 80.5, $4,231. Tie-down roping: 1. (tie) Caleb Smidt and Tyson Durfey, 7.5 seconds, $23,481 each; 3. (tie) Marcos Costa and Timber Moore, 7.7, $13,327 each; 5. Hunter Herrin, 7.8, $6,769; 6. Monty Lewis, 8, $4,231. Barrel racing: 1. Taylor Jacob, 13.77 seconds, $26,231; 2. Cassidy Kruse, 13.8, $20,731; 3. (tie) Fallon Taylor and Carley Richardson, 13.83, $13,327 each; 5. Sarah Rose McDonald, 13.84, $6,769; 6. Lisa Lockhart, 13.94, $4,231. Bull riding: 1. Cody Teel 86.5 points on Pete Carr’s Classic Pro Rodeo’s Lineman, $26,231; 2. Sage Kimzey, 84.5, $20,731; 3. Reid Barker, 74, $15,654; no other qualified rides.

1. Cody Teel 86.5 points on Pete Carr’s Classic Pro Rodeo’s Lineman, $26,231; 2. Sage Kimzey, 84.5, $20,731; 3. Reid Barker, 74, $15,654; no other qualified rides.

1. Taylor Jacob, 13.77 seconds, $26,231; 2. Cassidy Kruse, 13.8, $20,731; 3. (tie) Fallon Taylor and Carley Richardson, 13.83, $13,327 each; 5. Sarah Rose McDonald, 13.84, $6,769; 6. Lisa Lockhart, 13.94, $4,231.

1. Cody DeMoss, 84 points on Summit Pro Rodeo’s Big Fork, $26,231; 2. Jacobs Crawley, 83.5, $20,731; 3. Jake Wright, 83, $15,654; CoBurn Bradshaw, 82.5, $11,000; 5. Chuck Smidt, 81.5, $6,769; 6. Isaac Diaz, 80.5, $4,231.

LAS VEGAS – If it takes a village to raise a child, then it takes a talented team to create success in steer wrestling. Kyle Irwin of Robertsdale, Ala., knows that as well as anyone. That’s why he leans heavily on Tyler, Barbara and Sketch, the keys to his success during the National Finals Rodeo. On Saturday night, all the pieces worked together well with a 4.1-second run during the third go-round. “I knew he was good,” said Irwin, who placed in a three-way tie for third place, earning $11,141 in the process. “They were actually faster on him in Omaha (Neb., in September), but to split third, fourth and fifth … I’ll do that every round.” So will his partners, hazer Tyler Pearson of Lousiville, Miss., and Pearson’s team of horses: bulldogging mount Sketch and hazing horse Barbara. “It’s because of that man and those two horses that I’ve been able to get here and to have any success here,” Irwin said. Anytime the Alabama cowboy can make money during ProRodeo’s championship event, it’s a success. He has placed in two go-rounds and has pocketed nearly $32,000. That’s not a bad three days of work. “I feel like I got a good start,” he said. “He took off and ran, and I feel like I made a pretty good run. Of course, you can go through and nit-pick it, but I’m not going to. I’m happy with that.” After posting a quick run on opening night, Irwin slipped a bit on Friday with a 5.7-second run. He opted for a little change, maybe for appearance, maybe for his psyche. “The past few nights, I bulldogged with my belt on,” said Irwin, who attended Western Oklahoma College and Northwestern Oklahoma State University on rodeo scholarships. “It might sound kind of stupid, but tonight I took it off because, well, I’m going to work; I’m going to get comfortable. “Last night I was kind of calm, but I like to feel nervous, to feed off that, so tonight I had more of a go at it.” He’s averaging more than $10,000 per night during the year-end championship. That’s a great wage. “It’s a great start,” said Irwin, who sits fourth in the world standings with $118,458. “I just told myself, my batting average would be 66 percent right now; I’ve run three steers and placed in two rounds. If in every three rounds I place in two of them, I’ll be very happy.”

1. (tie) Caleb Smidt and Tyson Durfey, 7.5 seconds, $23,481 each; 3. (tie) Marcos Costa and Timber Moore, 7.7, $13,327 each; 5. Hunter Herrin, 7.8, $6,769; 6. Monty Lewis, 8, $4,231.

1. Steven Peebles, 86.5 points on Andrews Rodeo’s Cool Water, $26,231; 2. Clint Laye, 84, $20,731; 3. Austin Foss, 80, $15,654; 4. Clint Cannon, 79.5, $11,000; 5. (tie) Will Lowe and Seth Hardwick, 79, $5,500.