Tops to Texas: Field cut to 10 for season-ending event in Dallas
COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. – Following the conclusion of the Ak-Sar-Ben River City Roundup last weekend in Omaha, Neb., only the Wrangler ProRodeo Tour’s top 10 contestants in each event get an extra rodeo in which to add to their annual totals.
The 2008 ProRodeo regular season – with the exception of the $550,000 Wrangler ProRodeo Tour Championship in Dallas (Nov. 7-9), the Heartland ProRodeo Series Championship (Oct. 3-11), the San Patricio Pro Rodeo in Sinton, Texas (Oct. 17-18) and the Dodge Xtreme Bulls Tour Championship (Oct. 24) – ended Sept. 30.
So for the fortunate 80, there is one extra chance to either solidify their positions within the top 15 heading for the Wrangler National Finals Rodeo, or make one last push to get there.
Several cowboys used Omaha as a means to squarely position themselves in the Top 15, even before Dallas. For example, saddle bronc rider and 2006 World Champion Chad Ferley of Oehrichs, S.D., won his event title and $16,875 in Omaha, virtually punching his Wrangler NFR ticket. Ferley entered the weekend ranked 10th in the Crusher Rentals PRCA World Standings, but only $3,000 ahead of the 15th-ranked rider.
Other Omaha champs, such as bareback riding champion Kelly Timberman of Mills, Wyo.; steer wrestling champion Luke Branquinho of Los Alamos, Calif.; team ropers Matt Sherwood of Pima, Ariz./Randon Adams of Logandale, Nev.; and tie-down roper Tuf Cooper of Decatur, Texas, already held Top 15 spots and further cemented their spots in Las Vegas.
Omaha bull riding champion Stormy Wing of Dalhart, Texas, vaulted from 23rd place to 16th, but has work left in Indianapolis and Dallas if he is to reach his first Wrangler NFR.
A trio of cowboys still vaulted into the Top 15 without winning Omaha titles, such as legendary team ropers Jake Barnes of Scottsdale, Ariz./Clay O’Brien Cooper of Morgan Mill, Texas; and tie-down roper Doug Pharr of Victoria, Texas.
The Playoffs started in Caldwell, Idaho, with the top 35 contestants from the 26-city Wrangler ProRodeo Tour and each event champion from the 2008 Dodge National Circuit Finals Rodeo. After Caldwell, the field was whittled to the top 22 from the cumulative Tour standings, Caldwell playoff champs, plus DNCFR titlists, as the top athletes headed for the second Ariat Playoff rodeo, the Puyallup (Wash.) Pro Rodeo.
From there, the top 11 in the Tour standings and each event’s champion from Puyallup advanced to Omaha.
For more information on the Wrangler ProRodeo Tour and the Ariat Playoffs, visit www.prorodeo.com.
Wrangler ProRodeo Tour Championship Qualifiers
The following is the list of contestants for the $550,000 Wrangler ProRodeo Tour Championship, presented by Texas Stampede, in Dallas, Nov. 7-9. By rule, each event’s top 10 competitors in Wrangler ProRodeo Tour points qualify for Dallas. The list is current as of Sept. 29, 2008:
Bareback riding
Steven Dent, Mullen, Neb.
Kaycee Feild, Elk Ridge, Utah
Royce Ford, Briggsdale, Colo.
Chris Harris, Itasca, Texas
Will Lowe, Canyon, Texas
Justin McDaniel, Porum, Okla.
Bobby Mote, Culver, Ore.
Tim Shirley, Conifer, Colo.
Kelly Timberman, Mills, Wyo.
Josi Young, Kimberly, Idaho
Steer wrestling
Luke Branquinho, Los Alamos, Calif.
Curtis Cassidy, Donalda, Alberta
Dean Gorsuch, Gering, Neb.
Stockton Graves, Newkirk, Okla.
Gabe Ledoux, Kaplan, La.
Ken Lewis, La Junta, Colo.
Jason Miller, Lance Creek, Wyo.
Cash Myers, Athens, Texas
Les Shepperson, Midwest, Wyo.
Wade Sumpter, Fowler, Colo.
Team roping (Heading)
Jake Barnes, Scottsdale, Ariz.
JoJo LeMond, Andrews, Texas
Riley Minor, Ellensburg, Wash.
Logan Olson, Flandreau, S.D.
Turtle Powell, Alpine, Texas
Matt Sherwood, Pima, Ariz.
Jake Stanley, Hermiston, Ore.
Colter Todd, Marana, Ariz.
Travis Tryan, Billings, Mont.
Speed Williams, De Leon, Texas
Team roping (Heeling)
Randon Adams, Logandale, Nev.
Marty Becker, Edmonton, Alberta
Clay O’Brien Cooper, Morgan Mill, Texas
Broc Cresta, Petaluma, Calif.
Cesar de la Cruz, Tucson, Ariz.
Michael Jones, Stephenville, Texas
Martin Lucero, Stephenville, Texas
Brady Minor, Ellensburg, Wash.
Cory Petska, Lexington, Okla.
Walt Woodard, Stephenville, Texas
Saddle bronc riding
Justin Arnold, Santa Margarita, Calif.
Anthony Bello, Oakley, Utah
J.J. Elshere, Quinn, S.D.
Billy Etbauer, Edmond, Okla.
Chad Ferley, Oelrichs, S.D.
Rod Hay, Wildwood, Alberta
Chet Johnson, Gillette, Wyo.
Jesse Kruse, Great Falls, Mont.
Cody Taton, Newell, S.D.
Cody Wright, Milford, Utah
Tie-down roping
Trevor Brazile, Decatur, Texas
Jeff Chapman, Athens, Texas
Seth Childers, Cameron, Texas
Tuf Cooper, Decatur, Texas
Hunter Herrin, Apache, Okla.
Jerrad Hofstetter, Portales, N.M.
Mike Johnson, Henryetta, Okla.
Josh Peek, Pueblo, Colo.
Doug Pharr, Victoria, Texas
Stran Smith, Childress, Texas
Bull riding
Kanin Asay, Powell, Wyo.
Howdy Cloud, Kountze, Texas
J.W. Harris, May, Texas
Shawn Proctor, Tooele, Utah
B.J. Schumacher, Hillsboro, Wis.
Wesley Silcox, Payson, Utah
Chance Smart, Philadelphia, Miss.
Jake Wade, Alamo, Nev.
Stormy Wing, Dalhart, Texas
Steve Woolsey, Payson, Utah
2. First Heartland Series finale set to begin
COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. – Rodeo fans in Central Texas – brace yourselves.
For the last 55 years, the Heart O’ Texas Fair Rodeo in Waco has entertained generations and brought the top names in ProRodeo to the banks of the Brazos River.
Top names will still visit Waco in October, but this year, they will compete for national honors at the inaugural Heartland ProRodeo Series Championships, Oct. 3-11.
The rodeo, which replaces the Heart O’ Texas Fair Rodeo, becomes the fourth leg of the PRCA’s already abundant championship season. It joins the Dodge National Circuit Finals Rodeo (DNCFR), presented by U.S. Smokeless Tobacco, the Ariat Playoffs of the Wrangler ProRodeo Tour and the Wrangler National Finals Rodeo.
The Heartland ProRodeo Championship is the crowning event of the Heartland ProRodeo Series, which was created to provide support for rodeos with a committee purse of $30,000 or less and launched in October 2007. The rodeo will offer a minimum prize purse of $484,000.
The nine-performance rodeo features the top 30 contestants in the Heartland ProRodeo Series standings (30 team roping teams), split into three groups and competing in back-to-back performances over the event’s first six nights.
The top four contestants (or teams) in each group, based on total money, return for the Challenge Round on Oct. 9, reducing the field to 12 in each event. The top 10 scores and times from the Challenge Round qualify for the semifinal round the following night, with the top eight qualifying for Championship Saturday. The field ultimately will be pared to a four-contestant (four team) final round and eventual Heartland ProRodeo Series champions in each event.
With such high stakes, a highly competitive rodeo is definitely in store. Young cowboys, such as bareback rider Caleb Bennett, will go toe-to-toe with the best in the business, such as three-time World Champion Will Lowe and Wrangler National Finals Rodeo qualifiers Chris Harris and Wes Stevenson.
And that’s only bareback riding. Every event is chock-full of battle-tested veterans, as well as those looking to use Waco as their springboard to the Wrangler NFR. Fans at the Heart O’ Texas Coliseum will see guys they recognize, such as Trevor Brazile, the five-time and reigning world champion all-around cowboy, and Fred Whitfield, a ProRodeo Hall of Famer and eight-time world champion.
And they’ll also see cowboys they don’t know, guys on the way up, such as team roper JoJo LeMond, tie-down roper Tuf Cooper, bull rider Jay Morrow and saddle bronc rider Curtis Garton, among others.
Wrangler NFR, NFSR personnelThe No. 13 is a lucky one for Boyd Polhamus. The reigning PRCA Announcer of the Year recently was selected to call the action for the 13th time at the 50th Wrangler National Finals Rodeo, Dec. 4-13 in Las Vegas. Polhamus, of Brenham, Texas, will be joined in the announcer’s stand by Randy Corley of Silverdale, Wash., and ProRodeo Hall of Fame inductee Hadley Barrett, of Kersey, Colo.
Corley, a 10-time PRCA Announcer of the Year, will announce at his eighth Wrangler NFR, while Barrett, his father-in-law, is a four-time PRCA Announcer of the Year with four previous Wrangler NFR selections to his credit.
Other personnel selected for the Wrangler NFR were: rodeo secretary – Sunni Deb Backstrom of Congress, Ariz.; assistant rodeo secretary – Haley Schneeberger of Ponca City, Okla.; office manager – Vickie Shireman of Elk City, Okla.; timers – Cindy Barnes of Sutherland, Iowa; Dollie Riddle of Vernon, Texas; and Terri Gay of Terrell, Texas; chute boss, timed events – John Farris of Addington, Okla.; chute boss assistant, timed events – Jimmy Powers of Sonora, Texas; chute boss, riding events – Darrell Barron of Paradise, Texas; chute boss assistant, riding events – Gary McDaniel of Southland, Texas; livestock superintendent – Ted Groene of Pahrump, Nev.; and livestock superintendent, assistant – John Barnes of Peterson, Iowa.
Selections for bullfighters and barrelmen are scheduled to be released in mid-October.
Personnel also were selected for the 2008 National Finals Steer Roping, Nov. 14-15 in Hobbs, N.M. For the ninth consecutive year, Charlie Throckmorton will announce the action. Throckmorton, of Grandview, Texas, will call the shots alongside Jody Carper of Jamul, Calif., who will make his NFSR announcing debut.
Other NFSR personnel are: rodeo secretary – Linda Alsbaugh of Alamosa, Colo.; timers – Mary Brunner of Bergheim, Texas, and Shawna Ray of Stephenville, Texas; chute boss – Art Alsbaugh of Alamosa, Colo.; and pickup man – Dan Etbauer of Goodwell, Okla.
· Road to Pocatello starts. Qualification for the 2009 Dodge National Circuit Finals Rodeo gets under way this weekend with the opening of the Dodge Turquoise Circuit Finals Rodeo, Oct. 3-5 in Las Cruces, N.M. The final rodeo of the 12 is the Dodge First Frontier Circuit Finals Rodeo, Jan. 15-17, and then the slate will be set for the DNCFR.
At the 2008 DNCFR, the stakes to win were even higher than in past years. For the second straight year, event winners not only received a one-year lease to a new Dodge pickup truck, but also received an automatic berth in the first two Ariat Playoff series rodeos in Caldwell, Idaho, and Puyallup, Wash. There, the DNCFR winners had a chance at some big paychecks and, if things went well, an opportunity to advance further into the playoffs.
Year-end winners in each of the PRCA’s 12 circuits, as well as the average winners at each circuit finals rodeo, earn a berth to the DNCFR, scheduled for April 9-11 in Pocatello, Idaho. The top 24 contestants in each event battle it out at the DNCFR for the title of national champion.
At the 2008 DNCFR, tie-down roper Matt Shiozawa, who was born and raised in Pocatello, set an arena record with a 7.4-second run in the final run to win his event title.
Other national champions were bareback rider Chris Harris; steer wrestler K.C. Jones; team ropers Justin Spence and Evan Arnold; saddle bronc rider Chad Ferley; barrel racer Shelley Murphy; and bull rider Poncho Limas.
The PRCA circuit system was created in 1975 to recognize competitors who might never have a chance to qualify for the Wrangler National Finals Rodeo. The circuit cowboys and cowgirls compete throughout the year in a designated circuit (usually near their home), and top competitors from each circuit qualify for their circuit’s finals.
NFR cowboy Tescher passes away
Tom Tescher, a two-time National Finals Rodeo saddle bronc rider who once turned down a qualification to instead spend Christmas with his family, died Sept. 25 after a lengthy illness. He was 82.
From 1956-61, Tescher, of Sentinel Butte, N.D., finished in the Top 15 of the world saddle bronc standings. He and his brother Jim both rode in the 1959 NFR in Dallas. The next year, Tom again qualified but refused to compete; he elected to celebrate Christmas with his wife and 10 kids rather than travel to a required Christmas day NFR press conference in Dallas.
Tescher was born Jan. 24, 1926, the seventh of 15 children of Matt and Antoinette Tescher. He married Lorraine Pendleton on June 20, 1946.
He was PRCA Gold Card member and an inductee into the North Dakota Cowboy Hall of Fame.
He is survived by his wife, 10 children and 22 great-grandchildren.
Upcoming PRCA Rodeos
California Circuit: Banning Stagecoach Days PRCA Rodeo, Oct. 4-5, Banning; Phelan Chamber of Commerce Rodeo, Oct. 4-5, Phelan; San Dimas Western Days Rodeo, Oct. 4-5, San Dimas
Prairie Circuit: Tulsa State Fair PRCA Rodeo, Oct. 2-4, Tulsa, Okla.
Southeastern Circuit: Northwest Florida Championship Rodeo, Oct. 2-4, Bonifay, Fla.; Leesville Lions Club Rodeo, Oct. 2-4, Leesville, La.; Williston Pro Rodeo, Oct. 3-4, Williston, Fla.
Texas Circuit: Fort Bent County Fair & Rodeo, Oct. 3-4, Rosenberg; Pasadena Livestock Show & Rodeo, Oct. 3-9, Pasadena; Heartland Series ProRodeo Championship, Oct. 3-11, Waco
Turquoise Circuit: Dodge Turquoise Circuit Finals Rodeo, Oct. 3-5, Las Cruces, N.M.
Learn more at www.prorodeo.com
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