EDMONTON, Alberta - The race to the 2008 Canadian tie-down roping championship is reaching fever pitch after just one round of the Canadian Finals Rodeo.
Tyson Durfey of Colbert, Wash., slid past pre-finals standings leader Steven Lloyd of Alix, Alberta, by winning the opening night of the six-round championship. Durfey, born and raised in the northwest Missouri community of Savannah, roped and tied his calf in 7.5 seconds and earned $9,619.
That moved his season total to $32,617, about $1,000 ahead of Lloyd, who had a 7.6-scond run on Wednesday night, earning $7,214.
Durfey – who wears a pink Cinch shirt during each rodeo performance in an effort to raise money and awareness in the fight against breast cancer – knows what it takes to win a Canadian Professional Rodeo Association title, having done so in 2006. In that magical season, he became the first United States resident to win a title north of the border and was followed by fellow American Lisa Lockhart when she won the barrel-racing crown.
The 2008 season marks the third time in his career that the 23-year-old Durfey has qualified for the Canadian Finals Rodeo, finishing the regular season among the top 12 in the association’s standings.
It’s the first step in a strong post-season for the Missouri-born cowboy, who in January donated a portion of his 2007 earnings to the Susan G. Komen for the Cure. He has also qualified for the Nation Finals Rodeo for the second straight year, finishing the Professional Rodeo Cowboys Association among the top 15 tie-down ropers.
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