Tour’s triple threat: Nampa, Salinas, Salt Lake City offer points this week as Tour winds down
For the second time in the past three weekends, the Wrangler ProRodeo Tour plays host to multiple stops as the 26-city schedule heads into its final three weeks. Cowboys and cowgirls will seek to improve their rankings in the Tour standings at the Snake River Stampede in Nampa, Idaho; California Rodeo Salinas; and the Days of ’47 Rodeo in Salt Lake City.
The Snake River Stampede, which offers a total purse of more than $350,000, starts July 15 for the first of five nightly performances scheduled for 8 p.m. MT in the indoor Idaho Center. The six-performance rodeo, which also has a matinee show on July 19 at 12:30 p.m., concludes with the final round on July 19 at 8 p.m. The Stampede traces its roots back to the Nampa Harvest Festival, which first was staged in 1911.
For the eighth year in a row, the Wrangler ProRodeo Tour makes it way West to California Rodeo Salinas. The rodeo annually ranks as one of the most lucrative with a total payout nearing $300,000. Action from Salinas, located just off the central California coast about 100 miles south of San Francisco, starts at 6 p.m. PT on July 17 for the first of two evening shows. Both weekend performances, including the culminating final round on July 20, are set for 1:15 p.m.
On July 16, the Days of ’47 Rodeo in Salt Lake City, which runs through July 24, gets under way. The rodeo, which pays a generous $12,500 of added money in each event – an increase of nearly $2,000 – consists of six performances over the next week. The first six, July 16-23, start at 7 p.m. MT at Energy Solution Arena. The last performance on July 24 is scheduled to begin at 4 p.m.
Stroh, Miss Congeniality team for Vernal win
Two-time Wrangler National Finals Rodeo saddle bronc rider Shaun Stroh made the most of his opportunity, riding reigning and two-time PRCA Saddle Bronc of the Year Miss Congeniality for 90 points and the victory at the Wrangler ProRodeo Tour stop at the Dinosaur Roundup Rodeo, July 9-12 in Vernal, Utah.
Stroh, of Dickinson, N.D., who qualified for the Wrangler NFR in 2004 and 2005, moved up three places to 18th in the Crusher Rentals PRCA World Standings after collecting $6,206 for the ride on the legendary Powder River mare, who also won the PRCA’s top title in 2005.
All-around cowboy Josh Peek extended his lead atop the tie-down roping standings after earning the two-head average title in Vernal. Peek, of Pueblo, Colo., roped and tied two calves in 15.8 seconds and winning $4,552 in the process.
ProRodeo rookie bull rider Douglas Duncan continues to excel during the lucrative summer season. Duncan, of Huntsville, Texas, fresh off his second-place finish last weekend at the St. Paul (Ore.) Rodeo, did one better in Vernal with a rodeo-winning, 91-point ride aboard D&H Cattle’s No. 415, good for $6,249.
Other Vernal winners were: bareback rider Cody DeMers of Kimberly, Idaho, 86 points on Burch Rodeo’s Pinball Wizard, $5,408; steer wrestler Gabe Ledoux of Kaplan, La., 7.6 seconds on two head, $6,160; team ropers Turtle Powell of Alpine, Texas/Travis Graves of Jay, Okla., 9.4 seconds on two head, $4,034; and barrel racer Annesa Self of Valley View, Texas, 16.89 seconds, $4,029.
Hall of Fame welcomes newest class
COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. – The ProRodeo Hall of Fame celebrated the colorful careers of 10 rodeo legends July 12 at the 2008 induction ceremonies at the headquarters of the Professional Rodeo Cowboys Association (PRCA). The Class of 2008 included 1979 World Tie-Down Roping Champion and 1980 World Champion All-Around Cowboy Paul Tierney; 1993 and 1995 World Champion Team Roper Bobby Hurley; the late 1987-88 World Champion Steer Roper Shaun Burchett; 2001 World Champion Saddle Bronc Rider Tom Reeves; the late legendary stock contractor Feek Tooke; longtime rodeo entertainers Leon and Vicki Adams; famed bucking horse Trails End; competitor, pickup man and judge Duane Howard; and the late Buddy Lytle, a longtime professional judge.
The ProRodeo Hall of Fame Selection Committee voted unanimously to officially induct the 16 Professional Rodeo Cowboys Association rodeo committees that had been previously honored with special recognition by the PRCA and ProRodeo Hall of Fame.
The rodeo committees inducted were: the Buffalo Bill Rodeo (North Platte, Neb.); the Calgary (Alberta) Stampede; California Rodeo Salinas; Cheyenne (Wyo.) Frontier Days; the Dodge National Circuit Finals Rodeo (Pocatello, Idaho); the Grand National Rodeo, Horse and Stock Show (San Francisco); the Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo; La Fiesta de los Vaqueros (Tucson, Ariz.); the National Western Stock Show and Rodeo (Denver); the Pendleton (Ore.) Round-Up; the Pikes Peak or Bust Rodeo (Colorado Springs, Colo.); the Reno (Nev.) Rodeo; the San Antonio Stock Show and Rodeo; the Southwestern Exposition and Livestock Show (Fort Worth, Texas); the West of the Pecos (Texas) Rodeo; and the Prescott (Ariz.) Frontier Days – the World’s Oldest Rodeo.
A crowd of more than 1,000 witnessed the ceremony at the ProRodeo Hall of Fame, which inducted its first class in 1979 and is celebrating its 30th anniversary this year.
Ledoux ‘busts’ loose in Colorado
Steer wrestler Gabe Ledoux tied for the two-head average title at the Pikes Peak or Bust Rodeo, July 9-12 in Colorado Springs, Colo., for his second victory of the weekend.
Ledoux, of Kaplan, La., turfed two steers in 8.4 seconds, good for $5,108. He shared the title with Les Shepperson of Midwest, Wyo., who earned $4,247.
Ledoux also won steer wrestling honors at the Dinosaur Roundup Rodeo in Vernal, Utah, and earned $11,268 between the two events.
Brothers Clint and Tuf Cooper finished 1-2 in the final tie-down roping standings after two rounds. Clint, of Decatur, Texas, won the title with a total time of 15.9 seconds, good for $5,403. Tuf, also of Decatur, Texas, finished four-tenths of a second off the pace. Both are sons of eight-time world champion and ProRodeo Hall of Fame member Roy Cooper.
Other champions in Colorado Springs were: bareback rider Jake Halverson of Amarillo, Texas, 87 points on Harry Vold’s Hypotnic, $6,149; team ropers Garrett Tonozzi of Fruita, Colo./Kinney Harrell of San Angelo, Texas, 10.8 seconds on two head, $3,048 each; saddle bronc rider Anthony Bello of Oakley, Utah, 88 points on Harry Vold’s Elvis, $6,398; bull rider Casey Baize of San Angelo, Texas, 88 points on Bad Company Rodeo’s Love Shack, $7,733; and barrel racers Delores Toole of Manter, Kan., and Nellie Williams of Cottonwood, Calif., 17.33 seconds, $4,439 each.
Reno champs win in Casper
Bull rider Clayton Foltyn and bareback rider Kaycee Feild, who claimed recent victories at the Reno (Nev.) Rodeo, returned to the winner’s circle this weekend at the Central Wyoming Fair and Rodeo in Casper.
Foltyn, of El Campo, Texas, who won Reno’s Dodge Xtreme Bulls Tour title on June 19, had the top-scored bull ride in Casper, an 85 aboard Cervi Championship Rodeo’s Wizard that was good for $6,958.
Feild, the reigning college national champion bareback rider, followed his Reno Rodeo victory with another in Casper after riding Beutler Brothers and Cervi’s Mighty Mary for 83 points and earning $5,693.
Team ropers Travis Tryan of Billings, Mont., and Michael Jones had the top time on two head in Casper, earning $3,190 after roping two steers in 10.3 seconds.
Other Casper champions were: steer wrestlers Tyler Pearson of Louisville, Miss., and Hunter Cure of Holliday, Texas, 3.7 seconds, $4,262 each; saddle bronc rider Sam Spreadborough of Snyder, Texas, 80 points on Cervi Championship Rodeo’s Time Zone, $5,843; tie-down roper Jabe Herring of Alvin, Texas, 8.8 seconds, $3,980; and barrel racer Annesa Self of Valley View, Texas, 17.01 seconds, $5,434.
Ohl starts rally in Sheridan
Cody Ohl, the five-time World Champion Tie-Down Roper who also won the all-around crown in 2001, won his specialty at the Sheridan (Wyo.) Rodeo last weekend, putting a charge into his season that he hopes to complete at his 14th Wrangler National Finals Rodeo.
Ohl, of Hico, Texas, entered the weekend ranked 20th in the Crusher Rentals PRCA World Standings. But after roping and tying two calves in 19.4 seconds, Ohl earned $3,532 and moved into 18th place.
Another timed-event cowboy seeking a major summer rally is 11-time Wrangler NFR steer wrestler Todd Suhn of North Platte, Neb. Suhn, a University of Wyoming graduate who was ranked 48th in last week’s standings, won the bulldogging crown in Sheridan and earned $4,377 after downing two steers in 8.8 seconds.
Other Sheridan champions were: Steven Dent of Mullen, Neb., 87 points on Sankey Rodeo’s Wagon Ho, $4,147; team ropers Cody McMinn of Caddo Mills, Texas/Travis Woodard of Stockton, Calif., 9.5 seconds on two head, $5,309 each; saddle bronc rider Jesse Kruse of Great Falls, Mont., 86 points on Sankey Rodeo’s Wizard, $4,318; bull rider Cody Hodges of Omaha, Texas, 85 points on New West Rodeo’s Slayer, $4,339; steer roper T.K. Tillard of Douglas, Wyo., 46.6 seconds on three head, $3,715; and barrel racer Annesa Self of Valley View, Texas, 17.07 seconds, $3,967.
Upcoming PRCA Rodeos
Badlands Circuit: Corn Palace Stampede Rodeo, July 17-20, Mitchell, S.D.
California Circuit: California Rodeo Salinas, July 17-20, Salinas
Columbia River Circuit: Fort Dalles Pro Rodeo, July 17-19, The Dalles, Ore.; Clatsop County PRCA Rodeo, July 18-19, Astoria, Ore.
First Frontier Circuit: Painted Pony Championship Rodeo, July 16, 18, Lake Luzerne, N.Y.; Delaware State Fair Pro Rodeo, July 17-18, Harrington, Del.; Allegheny Mountain Championship Rodeo, July 17-20, Kellettville, Pa.; Cowtown Rodeo, July 19, Woodstown Pilesgrove, N.J.
Great Lakes Circuit: Franklin County Fair PRCA Rodeo, July 16, Hampton, Iowa; Green County Fair Pro Rodeo, July 16, Monroe, Wis.
Montana Circuit: Great Northern Stampede, July 17-18, Havre; Marias River Stampede, July 18-19, Shelby
Mountain States Circuit: Steamboat Springs Pro Rodeo Series, July 18-19, Steamboat Springs, Colo.; Deke Latham Memorial PRCA Rodeo, July 19-20, Kaycee, Wyo.; Cheyenne Frontier Days, July 19-27, Cheyenne, Wyo.
Prairie Circuit: Kansas’ Largest Night Rodeo, July 16-19, Pretty Prairie, Kan.; Woodward Elks Rodeo, July 16-19, Woodward, Okla.
Southeastern Circuit: Catoosa County Fair & Rescue-Charles B. Davis Memorial, July 18-19, Ringgold, Ga.
Texas Circuit: 37th Annual Bryan Breakfast Lions Club PRCA Rodeo, July 17-19, Bryan
Wilderness Circuit: Snake River Stampede, July 15-19, Nampa, Idaho; Days of ’47 Rodeo, July 16-18, 21-24, Salt Lake City, Utah; Ogden Pioneer Days Rodeo, July 19, 21-24, Ogden, Utah
Canada: Taber Pro Rodeo, July 18-19, Taber, Alberta; Moose Mountain Rodeo, July 19-20, Kennedy, Saskatchewan
Learn more about the PRCA at www.prorodeo.com
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