LAS VEGAS – When Cody Whitney thought about his first qualification to the Wrangler National Finals Rodeo, he saw more than the bright lights and the big city.
The Asher, Okla., bull rider imagined riding for the biggest bucks in the game, carrying home some serious cash from ProRodeo’s championship, where go-round winners earn more than $17,000 over the 10 days of competition.
“I fell off my fair share of times,” said Whitney, who rode just two of 10 bulls and won $17,416 during the competition at the Thomas & Mack Center in Las Vegas. “But there were some really great bulls. I had a couple of chances, had some bulls I could’ve won on. It just didn’t’ happen.”
For as frustrating as his time in Vegas was, Whitney finished with a bang, riding the bull Velvet Elvis of Four L & Diamond S Rodeo for 84.6 points on Saturday night. That was good enough for fourth place in the round and $7,188.
Whitney finished the season 12th in the world standings with $96,401 in earnings.
“It was going to be difficult for anyone to catch J.W.,” Whitney said of his good friend, J.W. Harris, who defended his world championship despite not earning a dollar in Las Vegas. “He had such a big lead that it was going to be pretty tough. But some guys definitely made a run at it.
“It just wasn’t me.”
Whitney’s sense of humor certainly got him through a rugged 10 rounds in the Nevada desert. And just like Vegas, his humor gets a little dry.
“Having a bad week is just part of bull riding,” Whitney said. “Sometimes you’re on top of the world, then you’re looking up. You just keep going.”
