First I must apologize for not being around the last couple of weeks. Other duties made it impossible, but now I do want to spend a few minutes on what has been happening.
The Nile Invitational in Billings, Montana April 17th through the 19th saw Michael Manes win his first event on the BFTS tour. Great job, and congratulations to Manes. Billings also saw the return of everyone’s number one funny man, Flint Rasmussen. As you all must know by now, Flint suffered a heart attack several weeks ago, and it was super to see him back.
The following weekend Omaha, Nebraska was the site of the Bass Pro Shops Shootout. Brian Canter showed all who may have doubted him that he is still a force to be reckoned with, winning the event. Not to be outdone, J.B. Mauney put his mind in the game to be second.
This past weekend the men traveled to Worcester, Massachusetts for the U.S. Air Force Invitational. This was a great event with some super bulls. Cody Lambert continues to out-do himself with the bulls he chooses for these events. There were six 90-plus rides, four of which came in the Championship Round.
I want to interject here that Adriano Moraes joined the announce team, chatting with some of the riders and giving his observations. I think this could be a great addition and look forward to seeing more of what he can contribute to the team.
As for Worcester, when the dust settled it was fan favorite (I know I say that a lot, but it’s the truth!) Chris Shivers who stood above the rest. “It’s been a while since I’ve won one of these,” he said. He had the first pick in the draft and chose Buckeye, and scored 91.75 on him. This bull, owned by Silverado Rodeo Company, gave Marchi a thrill in round two when he flipped over in the chute, but Guilherme ran him back in and rode him for 90.25 points.
Chris proved once again that consistency matters, as he was on the board, best placing being fourth, rounds one, two and three, and tied for first in the short-go.
That tie was with Mauney, who is trying his hardest to overtake Guilherme Marchi and Kody Lostroh to grab the lead. Marchi was third, and Valdiron de Oliveira fourth.
And speaking of the leader of the World Standings, the ultra-consistent Lostroh suffered a major setback when he was injured in Omaha in round one. He was hit in the face and broke his nose – a minor problem by comparison. It was also determined that he tore tendons in his left elbow (his riding hand). After considering riding right handed and realizing that would not work, he now will wear a custom brace and compete in Des Moines this coming weekend. “I’m more excited about this than riding right handed,” he said recently.
It is not just Lostroh who is having to sit out events. The injury list is long: Skeeter Kingsolver has a broken right ankle, Mike Lee a re-injured right thigh, Mike White a torn rotator cuff and biceps tendon, Brendon Clark a liver laceration, contusions of both lungs and rib fractures, Shane Proctor a left groin strain, Ross Coleman strained muscles in his riding hand, and Ryan Dirteater a broken femur. And at that I have probably missed some.
The Salem NationaLease Bull of the Event was Code Blue, with a bull score of 46.50. Code Blue is owned by Walton & Wagoner/Berger & Struve.
There are two more events left until that much-needed time off period. After the bull riders go to Pueblo, Colorado the weekend of May 16th, there is a two month break. While all of the men will not sit idle, it certainly gives many of them a time to heal some wounds and get their health and strength back. It can never be said that this is a sport for wimps.
The Built Ford Tough World Standings have Lostroh hanging on to a narrow lead over Marchi and Mauney, with Zack Brown fourth, Wiley Petersen fifth, de Oliveira sixth, Ryan McConnel seventh, Renato Nunes eighth, Robson Palermo ninth, and Shivers moved into the tenth spot.
Chris Shivers rides Buckeye to victory
Andy Watson/Bull Stock Media photo
Be safe and God Bless,
Viva La Raza,
Barb.
