We have a new World Champion Bareback rider! Kaycee Feild joined his dad Lewis in the PRCA record books by placing in round 9 and eliminating the other guy’s chances. Tonight is the night the rest of the World Championship races are decided and the gold buckles are handed out.
Bareback Riding
In order for Will Lowe to stay in the hunt he needed to win the round and get some help from Kaycee Feild. Lowe rode his horse for all he could posting an 87 point ride on 158 Raggidy Ann from Growney Bros. Rodeo but unfortunately for Lowe, Kaycee Feild wasn’t willing to play ball and took 4th place with an 83 point ride. Like we already said Feild wrapped up the world and has dominated the NFR but there were some other guys riding at the Finals. Casey Colletti has had a great finals and he kept it going with a win in Round 9 posting an 87.5 point ride on 191 Jessie’s Girl from Smith Harper & Morgan. Round 10 should be interesting since all the World Championship talk is over and it’s just about winning the round. Congratulations again to Kaycee Feild on winning the World Championship and joining his dad Lewis in the Pro Rodeo record books!
Steer Wrestling
Round 8 saw Luke Branquinho have some troubles and fall from the lead in the average to 3rd place in the average. Luke needed a good run in Round 9 to stay in the hunt and that is just what he did! Splitting the round with Casey Martin and Jake Rinehart with a 3.6s run wasn’t enough to move Luke back to the lead in the average but he did close up some on Shawn Greenfield and Jason Miller. Round 10 is where Branquinho, Miller and Greenfield will win or lose the 2011 World Championship! It’s a one head race now and it’s worth the ticket of admission by itself!
Team Roping
The team ropers had it together on Friday night! The winning time of 3.6s came from Chad Masters and Jake Corkill. Masters/ Corkill’s time was followed by a 3.7, 3.8 and 3.8! In the championship hunt Turtle Powell and Jhett Johnson moved to the lead in the average with a 5.0s run and a 14.0s run from Trevor Brazile and Patrick Smith. They will need to win the round and get some help from a few other teams but Clay Tryan and Travis Graves will be fighting to take the World Championship from Turtle Powell and Jhett Johnson and it should be fun watching!
Saddle Bronc Riding
The saddle bronc riding started out with the horses dumping the first 8 cowboys! After Bradley Harter got the cowboys started with a 67 point ride Jesse Wright posted an 87 point ride that was good enough to win the round! Taos Muncy who is currently leading the World Standings and being trailed by Jesse Wright scored an 82 on 290 Chuckulator from Sutton Rodeos. Taos is currently 2nd in the average behind Jesse Wright but he has a lead on Jesse in the total earnings column but not a good enough lead to wrap up the championship. Taos and Jesse will have to square off tomorrow to see who gets the gold buckle!
Tie Down Roping
Fan favorite Cody Ohl fell to ninth place in the average after he had a no time in Round 9. This eliminated Cody and leaves the race to Tuf Cooper, Matt Shiozawa and Clint Cooper. Shiozawa’s and Clint Cooper’s chances of taking the gold buckle home are pretty slim but it is still mathematically possible. The race is Tuf’s to lose but Shiozawa has been hot at times during the NFR winning two rounds so there is no reason to think he can’t pull off the upset.
Barrel Racing
Lindsay Sears is sitting in the driver’s seat when it comes to the 2011 Barrel Racing
championship. Sears’s only real competition at this point is Brittany Pozzi who would need to win round 10 and move up in the average significantly and keep Sears from taking home a check in Round 10 to win the buckle. If you had a hard time reading that sentence you can imagine the hard time Brittany Pozzi will have taking the championship from Lindsay Sears.
Bull Riding
Cody Whitney won round 9 with a 90.5 point ride but the real story was JW Harris hitting the ground and Shane Proctor making the whistle. Harris’s chances of winning his fourth consecutive gold buckle are in the hands of Shane Proctor, LJ Jenkins and Bobby Welsh who are all ahead of him in the average. If these three guys buck off and Harris rides he could win the buckle but if Shane Proctor makes a qualified ride the championship is his. We can’t wait to see what happens!
Tanya Tucker brought the National Anthem to the more than 17,000 people at the Thomas & Mack for Round 8 of the WNFR. After the country star had finished her rendition it was time for Round 8 to get started. The math may not have allowed any champions to be officially named after the round but some of the circumstances that we would have to see to keep a couple of the guys from being the champ are pretty extreme.
Bareback Riding
Kaycee Feild continues to make life difficult on the rest of the bareback riders at the WNFR. Round 8 saw Kaycee split 1st place with Bobby Mote and Clint Cannon with 83.5 point rides. Will Lowe still has a mathematical chance to be the champ but it’s going to take something crazy for Will to get by Kaycee and keep Kaycee from joining his dad on the list of PRCA World Champions. Feild is taking horses that might not be the best and using them to win rounds (five) and when you pair that with his lead in the average and current standings you can go ahead and put his name on the buckle!
Steer Wrestling
Luke Branquinho had been consistent in every round of the WNFR but Round 8 Luke had a problem that left with a time of 6.8s and no check. Jason Miller on the other hand had a run of 3.90s to win the round and move to the top of the average standings. Shawn Greenfield has also inserted himself into the race with some good finishes moving him to 2nd in the average. Branquinho has fallen to 3rd place in the average but what’s to say he can’t rebound tonight and move back to the top of the standings. This is one to keep your eyes on, it’s anybody’s race!
Team Roping
The team of Brady Tryan and Jake Long finished their run with a time of 3.7s to win Round 8. The pair isn’t sitting to well in the average so it’s nice to see them earn some checks. In the hunt for the gold buckle the average leaders had their first bad night at the Thomas and Mack but even after their round 8 problems Trevor Brazile and Patrick Smith remain the average leaders followed by Turtle Powell and Jhett Johnson who are currently the projected winners of the championship but any slip ups in the final two rounds could change that so we’ll just have to watch to see what happens!
Saddle Bronc Riding
Getting by a horse in Round 8 was an accomplishment. Several of the cowboys hit the ground early including Round 7 winner Tyler Corrington! Jesse Wright made the whistle on 278 Flood Damage from Rosser for 82 points which helps his cause in the average standings as did Wade Sundell who has to make some big moves to catch Taos Muncy and company. Taos remained at the head of the field by posting a score of 73 points. The star of Round 8, however, was Jacobs Crawley who took his first go round win and 2nd check at the WNFR aboard 238 Sundance from Flying Five Rodeo Company with an 83.5 point ride. Cody Wright’s chances for another championship are not looking good but his brother Jesse is very much in the hunt for a gold buckle but will need some help from Taos to get the job done.
Tie Down Roping
Scott Kormos’s NFR hasn’t been what he would have hoped but in Round 8 things came
together when he posted a 7.2s run good enough for the 1st place check. In the fight for the
championship Tuf Cooper placed 2nd with a 7.3s run which helps his cause especially if you consider the tough luck Cody Ohl had tonight. Ohl didn’t place with a 8.7s run but did maintain his position at the top of the average. Tuf Cooper is still the guy projected to win the title if it ended right now but Cody Ohl is still very much in the race. Cooper must match Ohl’s earnings round for round tonight and tomorrow night to stay close in the average. Cody Ohl who has had an awesome National Finals has not had the blazing fast runs he had the first few rounds. If he is going to take the title from Cooper he needs to get back on that pace for the last two rounds.
Barrel Racing
Two of the three ladies at the top of the standings hit barrels tonight hurting them in the average. Lindsay Sears was the one who finished the pattern with all 3 of the barrels still standing and a time of 13.99. Sherry Cervi and Brittany Pozzi both left the arena with times in the 18 second range. Tonight’s winner was Minnesota cowgirl Jane Melby who posted a 13.78s run to earn her second trip to the gold buckle presentation. Lindsay Sears is in the driver’s seat after Round 8 but to stay there she will have to leave the barrels standing Friday and Saturday night!
Bull Riding
The reigning champ was at it again on Thursday night. JW Harris scored 87.5 points to take the round win riding through problems with his back, left knee and a broken right foot. Harris is within less than $10,000 of Shane Proctor in the world standings and is the leader in the average after Round 8. The championship is going to come down to who can get the job done on Friday and Saturday night. It’s hard to say who the favorite is because either of these guys can make it happen on any bull they run in the chute!
The 2011 Wrangler National Finals Rodeo is half way done and if you are like me you can’t wait to see what happens in the second half! We are seeing some guys who struggled in the first couple of rounds really start getting it together and bring home some checks. While it is impossible to predict what might happen in the next five rounds it is pretty safe to say that it’s gonna be fun!
Bareback Riding
Any bareback rider wanting to get a pay check for his efforts at Monday night’s performance had to bring his “A” game. The last paying place was filled by a pair of 86 point rides from Casey Colletti and Wes Stevenson. On the high end of the score board and taking home the go round win was a 90 point ride from Ryan Gray on 125 MGM Deuces Night from Carr Pro Rodeo. The current leader in the World Standings earned a pay check with a 2nd place ride for 88 points on 109 Black Cat from Beutler & Son Rodeo. The PRCA Judges earned their money on Monday with the winning score being only 4 points higher than 6th place it took a trained eye to pick up on the small differences between a go round winning ride and a ride that doesn’t earn a check. The bareback riders are still chasing Kaycee Feild and while he may not have won the fifth round he did place second and that is not gonna be enough help for rest of the guys looking to overtake him in the standings. Feild will have to change something in a bad way for him to lose this thing.
Steer Wrestling
Several of the steer wrestlers have stepped their game up and have been making solid runs. The main problem for guys like Jason Miller and Shawn Greenfield who are having good NFR’s is Mr. Luke Branquinho who is at the head of the World Standings and the head of the average. Branquinho has thrown five steers in under 19 seconds which is making it difficult for the rest of the guys to gain any momentum. Realizing it is still early to be making predictions it is pretty safe to say that it’s Branquinho’s title to lose.
Team Roping
We saw the fastest time of the finals on Monday night when Turtle Powell and Jhett Johnson posted a 3.8s run to win the round. The current world number one team of Clay Tryan and Travis Graves finished the round in 2nd place after finishing their run in 4.00s. The average leaders after five rounds remains Trevor Brazile and Patrick Smith who’s 5.6s run didn’t earn a check on Monday night but did earn some respect from the rodeo fans due to a fantastic head catch by Brazile. After five rounds and with five more left it’s clear the Team Roping is going to be one of the more interesting races.
Saddle Bronc Riding
When you’re hot you’re hot is what we were all thinking when Jesse Wright won his third
round in a row with a 90 point ride on 221 Chugwater Blue from Burns Rodeo Company, LLC. Jesse has moved up to fourth in the world standings behind Cody Wright, Taos Muncy and Wade Sundell who are all trailing him in the super important average standings. Cody may currently be leading the world standings but he will need to pick up his efforts if he is going to fend off Taos Muncy and associates to win the gold buckle
Tie Down Roping
Cody Ohl got done in 7.5s and Tuf Cooper was finished in 7.7s which was important because round 4 did not go so well for the guys at the top of the average. While Tuf Cooper is doing what he needs to do Ohl will need some help from Cooper if he is going to win this deal. One of the hot hands among the rest of the guys is Cory Solomon who tied Ohl’s time of 7.5s to split 2nd and 3rd. The hottest hand through five rounds, however, is Matt Shiozawa who with a time of 7.4s won round 5 taking his 2nd go round win in a row. We talked to Matt after his run and he said he had been staying focused on roping and not on partying in Vegas and we believe it because the guy has been fast!
Barrel Racing
If you need to get somewhere in a hurry you should probably get some advice from Carlee
Pierce who set a new arena record in round 6 with a run of 13.46! Carlee said she had been feeling good all week but had some problems in the early rounds when she knocked down a couple of barrels. It’s safe to say that while she may not be in the hunt for the average that after her performances in rounds 4 and 5 Carlee is one of the heavy favorites to win rounds 6-10. While Carlee was the fastest barrel racer in round 6 the entire field continued to improve. The sixth place run by Christina Richman was 13.92s making round 6 the first round in which all of the paying times were below 14.00s. If this trend continues we could see another broken record!
Bull Riding
JW Harris may have waited until round 4 to take a round win but he must have liked how it felt because JW picked up another win with a 90.5 point ride on Monday night. Harris and his broken foot earned the 90.5 points with Burch Rodeo Company’s 311 Zombie Zoo. The only other qualified rides came from 2nd place finisher Jacob O’Mara with an 88 and L.J. Jenkins who posted a 79 point ride. Shane Proctor didn’t make the whistle again and will now need to make some big moves or have some luck go his way if he is to be in the number one spot after round 10.
We have an All-Around Champion cowboy and we have just finished the fourth round of the Wrangler National Finals Rodeo! Trevor Brazile wrapped up his 9th All-Around World Championship on Sunday after he placed in the team roping and Shane Proctor was mathematically eliminated when he hit the ground early in the bull riding. The All-Around race is over but some of the other races remain very hotly contested and are sure to keep us coming back for more!
Bareback Riding
When Kaycee Feild nodded his head on Sunday he was going for a record 4th National Finals Rodeo round win in a row! Fortunately for the rest of the riders Feild didn’t quite get the horse he needed to top the 87 point rides posted by Cody DeMers and Steven Dent. The bareback riders still need a lot of help if they are going to take the buckle from Field but we have just completed 4 rounds so who knows what might happen!
Steer Wrestling
Jason Miller took another round win by getting his steer on the ground in a blazing 3.3s. Following Miller was Dean Gorsuch who finally got things rolling and Luke Branquinho with 3.5s and 3.8s runs respectively. The race at the top is tight with Branquinho only 0.3s ahead of Miller for the lead in the average and about $3,000 ahead in the standings. This thing is anybody’s race and mistakes will be killer with a race this close.
Team Roping
It was a bit of a strange round in the Team Roping. The first several teams were having trouble on the heading end and several of the teams later in the round had problems on the heeling end. In the end it was Luke Brown and Martin Lucero’s time of 4.3s that took home the round win. Following Brown and Lucero with a 2nd place run was Trevor Brazile and Patrick Smith who got done in 4.3. The third place time was a 9.3 from Erich Rogers and Kory Koontz which shows that most of the teams weren’t having the best of nights. Here’s to hoping Round 5 is better for the team ropers!
Saddle Bronc Riding
While it was certainly a tough round on the team ropers it may have been worse on the saddle bronc riders who did not make a qualified ride until after 9 cowboys had hit the ground too early. Bradley Harter was the first cowboy to make the whistle by riding for 81 points on 231 Sacred Sacrifice from Cervi Championship Rodeo. Harter got the momentum going the way of the cowboys and Jesse Wright took full advantage for the 2nd night in a row by taking the go round win with an 89.5 point ride on 202 Eight Ball from Bar T Rodeo, Inc. Second place would go to the first round winner Wade Sundell with an 85 point ride on 279 Soduku from Sankey Rodeo. The world standings leader Taos Muncy put 76.5 points on the board which was good enough for 4th place and will put him splitting 2nd/3rd in the average if the race ended after round 4 but we all know that they don’t quit riding until 10 rounds are in the books so we’ll have to wait to give the gold buckle away.
Tie Down Roping
Matt Shiozawa’s 7.30s run was good enough to win the round 4 gold buckle in the tie-down roping. The last paying place had a time of 7.80s from Shane Hanchey and Clint Cooper. The times of the rounds top guys were close and fast and while Tuf Cooper and Cody Ohl didn’t win a check with their 8.80s runs they did enough to stay one and two in the average. The new All-Around Champ missed with his first loop and still got done in 14.90s! I am not sure how many people could have a run that quick after missing with the first loop and that 14.90s run could mean something big in the average at the end of the finals! The Tie-Down Roping has been super exciting and we can’t wait until round 5!
Barrel Racing
The ladies are turning up the heat as the rounds click off here in Las Vegas. Times that would have been round winners a few nights ago weren’t so great today. It took a 13.81s run from Carlee Pierce to take the round win over the still fast times of Sherry Cervi (13.90s), Lindsay Sears (13.95s) and Lisa Lockhart (13.99s). Brittany Pozzi and Sue Smith also took home checks with times just at or around 14 seconds. Lindsay Sears and Sherry Cervi are both looking fast right now at the top of the average standings with aggregate times only .06s apart.
Bull Riding
JW Harris waited until round 4 but he got a round win when he teamed up with 364 Bailey Hou from Mo Betta Rodeo for an 88 point ride. Tyler Willis who now sits at the head of the average finished the round in 2nd place by posting an 84 point ride aboard 314 Blended Skies from Burns Rodeo Company, LLC. Shane Proctor who still has a commanding lead on the rest of the field didn’t fair well in the round. He will have to get back to riding to stay ahead of Tyler Willis, Bobby Welsh and Trevor Kastner who have covered three of four bulls and don’t show signs of slowing down!
So another round of the WNFR is in the books and it did not disappoint. Several of the races are heating up but for the most part it’s still anybody’s race and that makes for some good watching!
Bareback Riding
If you are anybody other than Kaycee Feild you are probably getting worried about the
championship and the money getting away from you. Feild again was last to go and ended up with the high mark ride of 87.5. Ryan Gray brought home the 2nd place money with an 86 point ride on 129 Grass Dancer from Carr Pro Rodeo. Casey Colletti had another great ride to split 3rd and 4th with West Stevenson by putting an 85.5 point on the board. Colletti’s ride probably could have been marked a little higher if you were asking me but they don’t so he’ll have to settle for the 85.5. Will Lowe again rode his horse for 80.5 which was again outside the money. Lowe needs some horse power in the upcoming rounds if he is going to stop Field’s march toward the gold buckle.
Steer Wrestling
The steer wrestling is one of the most closely contested events at this year’s WNFR. The leader coming into the WNFR and round 2 Dean Gorsuch didn’t get a time last night which could be a big problem for his hopes for another title. Gorsuch did show the Thomas and Mack Crowd what try looked like by not quitting on his run after he missed the steer. Gorsuch ultimately got a no time but for what it’s worth he got some new fans. The star of the Steer Wrestling was again Trevor Knowles who wowed the crowd when he put the steer on the ground in 3.3s. Knowles’s confidence and his bank account are up but to get the title he will need to get around Luke Branquinho who is now the leader in the Steer Wrestling. Branquinho posted a time of 3.40s to bring home 2nd place and move him to the top of the standings. The other co-winner from Round 1 Jason Miller also placed in the round by putting another 3.90s run on the board but this time the run was only good enough to split 4th and 5th place with Stockton Graves. The moral of the story is these guys are stepping up their game and it’s going to be fun to see who comes out on top!
Team Roping
If the first two rounds are any indication, to win the Team Roping you need a 4.10s run. Trevor Brazile and Patrick Smith came out swinging early to put the 4.10s run on the board and set the pace for the rest of the teams. Two other teams had runs of 4.20s and that was as close as any team would get to Brazile and Smith’s time. Brady Tryan and Jake Long gave Brazile and Smith a scare with what appeared at first to be a 3.7s run but thanks to a broken barrier Tryan and Long ended up with a 13.7s run. The top of the standings didn’t change after tonight’s round but Begay and de la Cruz did close up on Clay Tryan and Travis Graves by putting together a 5th place run beating Tryan and Graves’s 6th place run by one spot. It will be interesting to see how the Team Roping turns out with the teams currently on top of the leaderboard not being the same teams that are at the top of the average after two rounds. Stay tuned!
Saddle Bronc Riding
Taos Muncy didn’t have a horse that could win the round but he did make the whistle and
keep his hopes for the average win going. Muncy’s 75.5 ride was important because the men in 2nd and 3rd place after round 1 both had bad nights that saw them leave the arena with no scores. Cody Wright missed the mark out and Wade Sundell came down early off of a tough to ride horse from Powder River Rodeo 273 Lipstick & Whiskey. Heath DeMoss got the crowd going when he and 264 Fraid Knot from Korkow Rodeo teamed up for what everyone thought was going to be a big score. When the judges marks came in DeMoss had to settle for an 83 point ride that could have been marked a little higher if you
asked the crowd but nonetheless was good enough for 3rd in the round. Heath’s brother Cody hit the ground early and took a good shot from Outlawbuckers Rodeo Corp.’s 268 Lunatic Party. As of now it is unclear if Cody will be able to ride in round 3 due to the injuries he suffered. The winning ride of the night came from Chuck Schmidt who along with Bar T Rodeo’s 203 Son of Sadie put 87.5 points on the board. Schmidt, after two rounds, is 3 points behind Jesse Wright and 2.5 points behind Bradley Harter for the average. Currently, Wright and Harter are in much better positions than Schmidt to go for Muncy’s number one position if things continue the same as rounds 1 and 2. As we move into round 3 of a race that is sure to just keep getting better let’s hope Cody DeMoss is able to compete and the rest of the guys stay healthy.
Tie Down Roping
He just seems to get it is what I was thinking about Cody Ohl after his run of 7.1s put him at the top of the leaderboard in the tie down roping. Ohl did a celebratory lap around the arena which got the crowd on its feet for the 6 time World Champion. Sometimes it seems that the sport could use a little more of what Ohl brings to the table. A guy who rises to the occasion and isn’t afraid to show he’s pumped when he wins! Following up Cody Ohl in the 2nd round was Tyson Durfey with a run of 7.60s and Trevor Brazile with a run of 7.80s. The top of the standings remained unchanged with Tuf Cooper and Hunter Herrin leading the way. If Cooper and the rest of the field don’t stop it this deal could turn into the Cody Ohl show! Guess we’ll have to wait and see!
Barrel Racing
Somebody said of round 2’s performance that it was more like a demolition derby than a
barrel race and for more than a couple of the ladies that was true. Almost half the field hit a barrel including Britney Pozzi who won round 1. Pozzi’s misstep could haunt her as the average is tallied since her main competition Lindsay Sears had a solid run of 14.21s to move to the top of the average after two rounds. Lisa Lockhart was the only cowgirl to dip below the 14.0s mark thereby taking the round 2 win over Angie Meadors and Jody Sheffield who posted 14.00 and 14.02s runs. The ladies that did manage to get around the pattern clean did so faster than what we saw in round 1 making what was round 1’s winning time only good for 4th place. Hopefully in round 3 the ladies have better luck getting a clean run in the books but mistakes do tend to happen when you are laying it all on the line like they are. That being said World Championships also tend to happen when you lay it all on the line!
Bull Riding
We saw the first 90 plus point ride during round 2 thanks Chandler Bownds and Robinson Pro Rodeo’s RMEF Bugle who teamed up for a 91 point ride. Bownds took the round win over an 89.5 ride from Wesley Silcox who got fouled on his first bull and had to take a re-ride option. Shane Proctor continued moving towards a gold buckle by making another qualified ride for 83 points. Not enough to place in the top few spots in the round the 83 point ride was enough to make Proctor the only guy to have ridden both bulls which could spell trouble for the rest of the field. Round 1 winner Seth Glause had a good ride going but it looked like he tightened up at about the 6 second mark and hit the ground just a little before the whistle. An interesting move was Tyler Willis’s decision to take a reride and give up a 60 point marking which would have made him one of only two men to have ridden two bulls. Willis ended up hitting the ground early which could come back to haunt him in the average but it’s hard to blame him for taking another bull and going for the win. Catching Shane Proctor is getting hard by the day but it’s not too late for someone to catch fire and make a run so let’s get to the rodeo and see what happens!
Round 1 of the Wrangler Nationals Finals Rodeo brings with it something special to all of us rodeo fans. As the grand entry started last night the anticipation was killing us because we knew we were about to see the best of the best competing at the highest level for the highest honor there is in our sport. Round one is when all of the preparation and talking comes to an end and we see some scores posted. As the next rounds click off the number of cowboys who can leave with the gold buckle quickly dwindles so the first round is an exciting night since the possibilities are endless and the speculation from rodeo fans about the race for each gold buckle around the world is going wild! Round one is in the books and so far it looks like we are going to see some great races for the World Championships which is what we’ve come to expect from the Wrangler National Finals Rodeo!
Bareback Riding
Bareback riding is a fan favorite and is always a great way to start a rodeo but tonights performance was really something and a great way to start the 2011 WNFR. The first scores that came in were a little low but they just seemed to keep going up as each cowboy nodded his head. In the end Kaycee Field extended his lead over Will Lowe by posting an 89 point score on BAR T Rodeo, Inc.’s 105 Bitter Robin. Field came into Round 1 with only about a $3k lead over Lowe but after tonight he extended that lead to somewhere in the neighborhood of $20k. Will Lowe’s 80.5 on Flying Five Rodeo Company’s 147 Spotted Mountain wasn’t good enough to get a paycheck in Round 1 but he’s got 9 more horses to get on and you never know what might happen especially when Will Lowe has a shot. Casey Colletti also got the crowd going on Carr Pro Rodeo’s 131 Black Coffee when they teamed up for 87.5. Great riding tonight and we can’t wait until tomorrow!
Steer Wrestling
The number 1 and 2 cowboys coming into Round 1 did not have very good luck tonight. Dean Gorsuch and Billy Bugenig placed 9th and 10th respectively which did not win either any money towards a World Championship. Gorsuch maintained his 1st place position in the standings but Bugenig slid to 3rd place just about $12 ahead of Luke Branquinho. Shawn Greenfield and Branquinho split 3rd and 4th place with runs of 4.20s. Branquinho and Greenfield both lost a position in the standings due to round winners Trevor Knowles and Jason Miller moves from up the leaderboard. Knowles and Miller who both ride the horse Jessie put in a time of 3.9s to take the win. Miller moved into 2nd place and Knowles now sits in 5th place. If a cowboy wants to win the Steer Wrestling he is going to need to perform each and every night because this race is very close. We can’t wait to see if defending World Champion Dean Gorsuch responds with a fast time tonight or if someone else will start their move to the top of the standings!
Team Roping
Like the Steer Wrestling the guys at the top of the standings in the Team Roping didn’t fair too well in Round 1. Arizona cowboys Derrick Begay and Cesar de la Cruz placed 9th in the round losing their lead in the Championship standings to Clay Tryan and Travis Graves. Tryan and Graves split 2nd and 3rd place with Turtle Powell and Jhett Johnson with runs of 4.30s losing the round win to Matt Sherwood and Cory Petska who got done in 4.10s. Defending World Champions Trevor Brazile and Patrick Smith placed 6th in the round with a time of 5.9s but lost a spot in the standings due to Powell and Johnson’s move up the standings from 13th to 8th. The round win moves Matt Sherwood and Petska up to 3rd place in the race for the gold buckle behind the teams of Tryan/ Graves and Begay/ de la Cruz but there is plenty more roping to do and it’s too early to count out any of the teams.
Saddle Bronc Riding
85.5 points is what it took to win round 1of the 2011 Wrangler National Finals in the classic event of Saddle Bronc Riding. Iowa cowboy Wade Sundell who posted the 85.5 on Stace Smith’s 285 Goin South came into the finals in 3rd place and remained in 3rd place after winning the round due to Cody Wright and Taos Muncy’s sizeable lead coming into the finals. Wright grabbed 5th place by putting together an 83 point ride on 261 Queenie of Korkow Rodoes which helped him chip away at Muncy’s lead. Muncy didn’t get the start he had certainly hoped for as he placed one spot out of the money with an 82 point ride on Miss Congeniality of Carr Pro Rodeo. Muncy’s lead over Wright is now at around $3,000 and Sundell is about $23,000 behind Muncy but as we all know it’s too early to tell who will have the gold buckle at the end of the 10th round. It’s sure shaping up to be a good race though!
Tie Down Roping
He didn’t win the round but Tuf Cooper did extend his lead over 2nd place with a run of 7.90s to place 5th. Cody Ohl took his 7th round 1 win at the WNFR with a run of 7.50s. 2nd and 3rd place was split by Clint Cooper and Matt Shiozawa with runs of 7.70s. The 2nd and 3rd place split moved Cooper up to 4th place and Shiozawa from 11th to 8th. After the round win Ohl is now sitting 3rd in the World Standings behind Tuf Cooper and Hunter Herrin but he will have to continue the winning ways if he is going to get by Tuf Cooper and win another gold buckle. It seems like the Tie Down roping always ends up being a great race so we are probably in for some good watching at the upcoming rounds.
Barrel Racing
The WNFR has the best cowgirls there are but for a moment last night the ladies were having some Round 1 trouble. Whether it was nerves or just the ladies going for broke we saw several barrels end up on their sides and several times in the 19 second range and it felt like the ladies were having a bit of an off night. That is until Lindsay Sears who came into the WNFR in 2nd place ran the pattern in 14.03s to move into the lead for the round 1 win and put the pressure on defending champ Brittany Pozzi. She may have been feeling some pressure but Pozzi who had to have a fast time or lose her lead in the standings didn’t show it as she rose to the occasion and matched Sears’s time to split the round win. It may have not been the best round for some of the ladies but the cowgirls at the top of the standings showed that they came to Vegas for one reason and that is to win!
Bull Riding
The first cowboy to make the whistle at the 2011 WNFR was Steve Woolsey, who posted an 84 point ride aboard 333 Twice As Nice from Five Star Rodeo but it took 86.5 from Seth Glause to take the round 1 win. Glause posted the 86.5 on Five Star Rodeo’s Gangster
and with the round win moved from 8th place in the world standings to 6th. Glause was the big winner of the night but the most important battle in the bull riding – the one for the
number one spot in the World Champonship standings centered around Shane Proctor and JW Harris. Coming into the finals Proctor had a pretty sizeable lead but Proctor was sure to know, like everyone else, the lead over the rest of the field which includes the 3 time World Champion JW Harris could evaporate pretty quickly. Adding to the drama, Proctor is coming off an injury which caused him to pull out of the PBR World Finals making his health somewhat of a question mark. Proctor answered that question on Thursday night by teaming up with Four L & Diamond S Rodeo’s 341 Crunch Time for 84.5 points and 2nd place in the round. JW Harris, who was looking to get things started off right with a score on 330 Gauteraux’s Capt Jack of Do Or Die Pro Rodeo, hit the ground early giving Proctor a little bit more cushion in the chase for the 2011 Bull Riding World Championship. Proctor’s lead in the world standings grew from about $40,000 to about $54,000 making it just a little more difficult for JW Harris and the rest of the bull riders to change the momentum and the end result before it’s too late. We’ll see if Proctor can keep it going tonight in Round 2 or if Harris, Silcox or one of the other guys can start gaining some momentum and some ground on Proctor in the standings.
The 65th Annual Will Rogers Stampede started on May 27, 2011 in Claremore, OK and RodeOutfit is always excited to attend a long running event which is sure to be a great show. The event drew top ranked cowgirls and cowboys from around the country including several world champions which when teamed up with the great rodeo livestock on hand produced some memorable runs and rides. The rodeo committee, producers, stock contractor and contract acts are all great folks who put on a heck of a rodeo. Be sure to check out the videos from the Will Rogers Stampede after your done reading!
The cowboys entered in the bareback and saddle bronc events had the pleasure of knowing when they arrived at the Will Rogers Stampede they were sure to have a good horse drawn. Dell Hall and the Rafter H Rodeo Company brought some great bucking horses to the event which made for an exciting rodeo weekend of great bronc riding. Ty Breur and Matt Bright who finished 2nd and 3rd in the bareback riding for the weekend both spoke about their rides with RodeOutfit for our Behind the Chutes Segment. The winning ride in the Bareback Riding came from Caine Riddle who posted 86 points on Cat Ballou from the Rafter H Rodeo Livestock Company. The saddle bronc riding winner was Jacobs Crawley who had a great ride for 80 points on Rafter H’s Spade. Cody Angland finished up the Will Rogers Stampede in 2nd place with 77 point rides from Doug Aldridge and Jermiah Diffee tying for 3rd place.
Trevor Brazile’s run of 8.1 seconds in the Tie Down Roping appeared to be untouchable for the first two performances. However, on Saturday night the Sunshine State’s Brad Hartt surprised everyone when he topped Brazile’s time and ultimately took home the event win. Brad told RodeOutfit he hasn’t been drawing too great lately but it looks like his luck may have just changed.
Two time world champion Dean Gorsuch got his summer started when he posted the winning time in the steer wrestling on Sunday night. When we spoke to Dean there was still one steer wrestler to go and Dean wasn’t sure his time would stick but after watching all the other runs throughout the weekend we had a pretty good idea the 3.9 second run would keep Dean at the top of the list. Dean filled us in on how the season has been going in the Behind the Barrier segment.
World Champion Mary Burger sat atop the leaderboard in the barrel racing at the Will Rogers Stampede with a 17.04 second run on Saturday. Mary told RodeOutfit her horse worked well during the run and it appeared Mary would most likely take the win but Carlee Pierce put in a 16.96 second run to edge out the rest of the field.
The bull riding on Friday night was not too exciting unless you were Dell Hall of the Rafter H rodeo company. Until Corey Navarre posted a score on what would be the last ride of the night it appeared we were watching a cowboy shutout. Saturday night started much the same way until Wade Payne moved Corey Navarre’s 68 point score down the leaderboard when he went for 80 points on 721 Hot Wheels from Rafter H. Check out the Behind the Chutes video with Wade who just recently hit the rodeo trail again after a bout with cancer. The Sunday night performance again saw some top ranked cowboys paired up against the Rafter H bucking bulls. LJ Jenkins and Austin Ambrose both posed scores of 82 points but the winning ride came from Trevor Kastner who scored 87 points on Rafter H’s Too Salty.
If you weren’t at the Will Rogers Stampede you missed a great rodeo weekend but hopefully you were able to do the next best thing and follow the RodeOutfit twitter feed. See ya’ down the road!
