POCATELLO, Idaho -- After seven trips to the Dodge National Circuit Finals Rodeo and zero titles, bareback rider Bobby Mote looks intent on filling a gap in his ProRodeo Hall of Fame resume.
Well, he's got another motivation, too.
""I need a new truck," Mote said. "The one I've got is just about worn out."
The three-time and reigning World Champion won the first round of the DNCFR Thursday night with an 86-point ride on Powder River's Show Boat in Holt Arena to put himself on track for a bit of history, a big check and a $20,000 voucher for a new Dodge truck that goes to each event champion.
Mote had ridden Show Boat for 87 points and a shared round victory in the Caldwell (Idaho) Night Rodeo a year ago, won money on him again last month at Rodeo Austin and knew from the moment he drew the horse that he had a chance at the win.
"The ride tonight was pretty similar," Mote said. "He seems to veer to the left, has some direction changes and is just electric. He's all you could ask for."
The ride was enough to edge travel partner Ryan Gray by two points and paid $4,632.
Saddle bronc rider Mike Outhier was at the other end of the spectrum from Bobby Mote. Comfort-wise. He wasn't at all sure about Sutton Rodeo's Ruby. He'd never ridden the horse and what he'd seen of Ruby didn't fill him with confidence.
"Ruby broke two guys backs in the chutes by flipping over on them," Outhier said. "I knew if I got out good on her I had a chance to get a good score, but I was nervous about it."
Outhier got out of the chute just fine and put a solid ride on Ruby that earned a score of 84 points to edge Tate Owens and Jake Costello by a single point.
Local favorite Nate Baldwin, who won his second DNCFR title here a year ago, did not make the field this year but that does not mean he's not a factor here.
Baldwin loaned his horse, California, to young Great Lakes Circuit cowboy Matt Kenney and Kenney put down a 7.8-second run Thursday night to edge Joseph Parsons by three-tenths of a second for the first-round victory.
"I got up here on Monday, got on him, ran three calves on him and then it was into the rodeo," Kenney said. "I met Nate last year when I was traveling around and I actually let him borrow my horse once down in Clovis, N.M. I just called him up and said 'hey, I need a ride,' and he said 'Come on along. Anything you need.'"
It took a full family effort for Clay Cowan to claim first-round money in the steer wrestling. With his father Todd hazing and the Cowans riding sibling buckskin horses, Clay Cowan had a time of 4.6 seconds to edge 2006 World Champion Dean Gorsuch by four-tenths of a second.
Cowan's horse, Deuce, and his dad's horse, Newelly were trained by them and gave them the edge in a difficult pen.
"All of the steers were big and strong," Cowan said. "I got one of the better ones and just threw him down."
Only four of 12 bull riders managed qualified rides on Thursday night and none of them came close to bumping first-night leaders Beau Schroeder and Jesse Pohlmann out of the top spot. Their 87 point scores on Wednesday ended up paying them $4,070 each. Steve Woolsey, of Payson, Utah, had the best ride Thursday with an 80-pointer on Burns Rodeo's Extreme Force.
Nobody was able to improve on Sue Smith's arena record of 14.70 seconds from Wednesday night, either, but by the time the first round was completed, two more women had posted times better than the previous record of 14.84 set by Shelley Murphy in 2008. Christina Richman stopped the clock in 14.74 seconds Thursday and 2006 World Champion Mary Burger ended up third in 12.81 seconds.
"Last year was my first year to qualify here," Richman said, "and I won a lot of money, but hit a barrel in the Finals (when I was trying) to win the Dodge truck. I am so happy to have done so well on this run. I have a chance at winning it this year."
Texans Cody Odell and Mickey Gomez saw their 5.2-second run from Wednesday stand up for the first round win. Thursday's best team roping effort came from Coloradans Ty Blasingame and Ryon Tittel, who had a 5.5-second run to tie Matt Sherwood and Rhen Richard for second place.
The 24th annual DNCFR resumes at 7 p.m. MT tonight and will be broadcast on www.prorodeolive.
Dodge National Circuit Finals Rodeo
Holt Arena, Pocatello, Idaho
Bareback riding: First round: 1. Bobby Mote, Culver, Ore., 86 points on Powder River Rodeo's Show Boat, $4,632; 2. Ryan Gray, Cheney, Wash., 84, $3,509; 3. (tie) Joe Gunderson, Agar, S.D., and Jared Keylon, Fort Scott, Kan., 83, $2,105 each; 5. (tie) Chris Harris, Itasca, Texas, and Scott Montague, Rapid City, S.D., 82, $842 each; 7. Clint Cannon, Waller, Texas, 80; 8. Josh Shackleford, McGee, Mo., 79; 9. Kaycee Feild, Payson, Utah, 78; 10. (tie) Caine Riddle, Vernon, Texas, and Bee Jay Scott, Otley, Iowa, 76; 12. (tie) Troy Solomon, Havre, Mont., and Teddy Athan, Livermore, Calif., 75; 14. Wyatt Hancock, Taylor, Ariz., 73; 15. (tie) Danny Webb, Cottonwood, Calif., and Dustin Smith, Rome, Ga., 72; 17. Bud Munns, Snowville, Utah, 70; 18. Scotty NeSmith, Russellville, Tenn., 67; 19. Craig Wisehart, Stephenville, Texas, 63; 20. (tie) Jared Green, Socorro, N.M.; Ronald Browning, Statesville, N.C.; J.C. Smith, Aspers, Pa.; Tim Shirley, Grant, Colo., and Buck Lunak, Cut Bank, Mont., NS.
Steer wrestling: First round: 1. Clay Cowan, Highmore, S.D., 4.6 seconds, $4,632; 2. Dean Gorsuch, Gering, Neb., 5.0, $3,509; 3. (tie) Erik Johnson, Eltopia, Wash.; Ace Campbell, Livingston, Ala., and Cutter Parsons, Marana, Ariz., 5.7, $1,731 each; 6. Todd Suhn, Hermosa, S.D., 5.9, $702; 7. Kyle Whitaker, Chambers, Neb., 6.0; 8. Kyle Hughes, Olney Springs, Colo., 6.1; 9. Billy Bugenig, Ferndale, Calif., 6.4; 10. Olin Hannum, West Haven, Utah, 6.6; 11. Luke Branquinho, Los Alamos, Calif., 7.5; 12. Beau Franzen, Sidney, Mont., 8.0; 13. Hunter Cure, Holliday, Texas, 9.6; 14. Dean McIntyre, Wickenburg, Ariz., 11.1; 15. Josh Peek, Pueblo, Colo., 13.6; 16. Tom Lewis, Lehi, Utah, 14.6; 17. Stockton Graves, Newkirk, Okla., 14.8; 18. Clay Schaack, Wall, S.D., 17.2; 19. (tie) Nick Stubblefield, Choteau, Mont.; Bud Hallman, Webster, Fla.; Gregory Bennett, Lake Luzerne, N.Y.; Justin Morehouse, New Ross, Ind.; Trevor Knowles, Mount Vernon, Ore., and Darren Morgan, Fort Edward, N.Y., NT.
Team roping: First round: 1. Cody Odell, Como, Texas/Mickey Gomez, Holland, Texas, 5.2 seconds, $4,632; 2. (tie) Matt Sherwood, Pima, Ariz./Rhen Richard, Roosevelt, Utah, and Ty Blasingame, Ramah, Colo./Ryon Tittel, Pueblo, Colo., 5.5, $3,018 each; 4. (tie) Matt Robertson, Augusta, Mont./Justin Viles, Cody, Wyo., and Nick Sartain, Yukon, Okla./Jett Hillman, Jones, Okla., 5.6, $1,333 each; 6. Paul Mullins, Shafter, Calif./Todd Hampton, Chowchilla, Calif., 6.8, $702; 7. Brett Price, Faith, S.D./Paul Griemsman, Piedmont, S.D., 7.1; 8. Mark Brockmueller, Irene, S.D./Dustin Harris, O'Neill, Neb., 7.4; 9. Jay Tittel, Pueblo, Colo./Cole Cooper, Grand Junction, Colo., 11.2; 10. Jake Stanley, Hermiston, Ore./Justin Wade Davis, Cottonwood, Calif., 15.0; 11. Mike Pivetti, Hollister, Calif./Mike Christensen, Bakersfield, Calif., 19.9; 12. Brian Winn, Annabella, Utah/Randon Adams, Logandale, Nev., 20.4; 13. (tie) Carmine Nastri, Ballston Spa, N.Y./Lewis Rimes Jr, York Springs, Pa.; Darren Morgan, Fort Edward, N.Y./Casey Cox, Ft Edward, N.Y.; Derrick Begay, Seba Dalkai, Ariz./Cesar de la Cruz, Tucson, Ariz.; Cody Graham, Everton, Mo./Gabe Gwaltney, Carthage, Mo.; Ross Lowry, Summerville, Ga./Stephen Britnell, Maryville, Tenn.; Ty Smith, Edmond, Okla./Jace Crabb, Mangum, Okla.; Will Lynd, Springhill, La./Lane Salley, Belmont, La.; Riley Minor, Ellensburg, Wash./Brady Minor, Ellensburg, Wash.; Ben Ray, Bertrand, Mo./Jason Stroup, Gordonville, Mo.; Tate Dempewolf, Broadus, Mont./Charlie Lenning, Billings, Mont.; Erich Rogers, Round Rock, Ariz./Cory Petska, Lexington, Okla., and David Key, Stephenville, Texas/Rich Skelton, Llano, Texas, NT.
Saddle bronc riding: First round: 1. Mike Outhier, Utopia, Texas, 84 points on Sutton Rodeo's Ruby, $4,632; 2. (tie) Jake Costello, Newell, S.D., and Tate Owens, Platteville, Colo., 83, $3,018 each; 4. Bobby Griswold, Geary, Okla., 82, $1,684; 5. (tie) Cody Wright, Milford, Utah, and Jesse Wright, Milford, Utah, 79, $842 each; 7. Roy Johnson, Etna, Calif., 78; 8. (tie) Heith DeMoss, Heflin, La., and Jake Griffin, Powell, Wyo., 77; 10. (tie) Jesse Kruse, Great Falls, Mont.; Justin Browning, Lake Charles, La.; Elliot French, Hollister, Calif., and Frank McKay, Ontario, Ore., 76; 14. (tie) Cole Elshere, Faith, S.D.; Taos Muncy, Corona, N.M., and J.J. Elshere, Quinn, S.D., 75; 17. Lyle Welling, Crawford, Neb., 74; 18. (tie) Jesse James Kirby, Dodge City, Kan., and Wade Sundell, Boxholm, Iowa, 73; 20. Chad Alesky, Monroeton, Pa., 68; 21. (tie) Darrell Triplett, Waterflow, N.M.; Scott Miller, Hemet, Calif.; Bradley Harter, Weatherford, Texas, and David Rubel, Grantville, Pa., NS.
Tie-down roping: First round: 1. Matt Kenney, Onawa, Iowa, 7.8 seconds, $4,632; 2. Joseph Parsons, Marana, Ariz., 8.1, $3,509; 3. J.C. Malone, Roy, Utah, 8.4, $2,526; 4. Justin Scofield, St. Lawrance, S.D., 8.6, $1,684; 5. Brad Goodrich, Hermiston, Ore., 8.7, $983; 6. Trent Creager, Stillwater, Okla., 9.0, $702; 7. Skyler Moore, Mt. Vernon, Mo., 9.2; 8. Justin Maass, Giddings, Texas, 9.3; 9. Justin Thigpen, Waycross, Ga., 9.4; 10. Scott Kormos, Teague, Texas, 9.5; 11. Jerome Schneeberger, Ponca City, Okla., 9.7; 12. Chad Johnson, Cut Bank, Mont., 9.9; 13. Matt Shiozawa, Chubbuck, Idaho, 10.0; 14. Barry Blair, Ekalaka, Mont., 10.2; 15. (tie) Wes Lockard, Susanville, Calif., and Bryant Mikkelson, Buffalo, Mont., 10.6; 17. Bill Snure, Douglas, Ariz., 10.7; 18. Seth Rodriguez, Polk City, Fla., 11.0; 19. Carmine Nastri, Ballston Spa, N.Y., 12.6; 20. Jesse Egan, Gridley, Calif., 13.0; 21. Josh Peek, Pueblo, Colo., 18.2; 22. (tie) Chase Johnston, Greeley, Colo.; Tyson Durfey, Colbert, Wash., and J.R. Myers, Felton, Pa., NT.
Barrel racing: First round: 1. Sue Smith, Blackfoot, Idaho, 14.70 seconds, $4,632; 2. Christina Richman, Glendora, Calif., 14.74, $3,509; 3. Mary Burger, Pauls Valley, Okla., 14.81, $2,526; 4. Kelsi Elkins, Aztec, N.M., 14.87; $1,684; 5. Tammy Fischer, Ledbetter, Texas, 14.88, $983; 6. Britany Fleck, Mandan, N.D., 14.89, $702; 7. Tammy Bruso, Dothan, Ala., 14.96; 8. Laura Lambert, Wiggins, Colo., 15.01; 9. Janna Beam, Hallsville, Texas, 15.02; 10. Tracee Young, Delta, Utah, 15.05; 11. Theresa Walter, Billings, Mont., 15.07; 12. Tammy Whyte, Eau Claire, Wis., 15.12; 13. Brenda Mays, Terrebonne, Ore., 15.19; 14. Jana Isaac, White Swan, Wash., 15.27; 15. Lindsay Karp, Winston, Mont., 15.28; 16. (tie) Jennifer Romriell, Broadalbin, N.Y., and Bobbie Jo Bohlman, Eland, Wis., 15.34; 18. Lisa Lockhart, Oelrichs, S.D., 15.38; 19. P.J. Burger, Pauls Valley, Okla., 15.41; 20. Julie James, Pinedale, Wyo., 15.46; 21. Jewels DeNapoli, Callahan, Fla., 16.30; 22. Rachael Ross, Murrieta, Calif., 20.30; 23. Jolee Lautaret, Kingman, Ariz., 20.46; 24. Nickie Stoltzfus, McClure, Pa., 20.74.
Bull riding: First round: 1. (tie) Beau Schroeder, China, Texas, on Bar T Rodeo's Austin, and Jesse Pohlmann, Fort Scott, Kan, on Rafter H Rodeo's Hot Wired, 87 points, $4,070 each; 3. Steve Woolsey, Payson, Utah, 80, $2,526; 4. Rankin Lindsey, Hillsboro, N.M., 77, $1,684; 5. Jacob Tyner, Sacramento, Calif., 76, $983; 6. Austin Ambrose, Fletcher, Okla., 73, $702; 7. (tie) Allen Helmuth, Ellensburg, Wash.; Jake Booco, Hayden, Colo.; Dustin Jenkins, Missoula, Mont.; Shane Gordon, Fort Jones, Calif.; Craig Begay, Rough Rock, Ariz.; Tater Hins, Huron, S.D.; Justin Koon, Russellville, Ark.; Sunshine Schwartz, Anoka, Minn.; Jason Power, Franklinville, N.J.; J.W. Harris, Mullin, Texas; Travis Atkinson, Lehi, Utah; Clayton Savage, Casper, Wyo.; Shawn Waite, Prineville, Ore.; Cole Hermanson, Mandan, N.D.; Cody Buller, Glendive, Mont.; Scott Sellers, Pequea, Pa.; Friday Wright II, Moss Point, Miss., and Matt Pojanowski, Woodville, Wis., NS.
