GUYMON, Okla. – Matt Sherwood know what it takes to win.
This past December, he put the finishing touches to his second gold buckle with an outstanding performance at the Wrangler National Finals Rodeo, matching the heading world title he earned in 2006.
On Friday night during the first performance of the Guymon Pioneer Days Rodeo at Henry C. Hitch Pioneer Arena, Sherwood and partner Rhen Richard of Roosevelt, Utah, stopped the clock in 7.0 seconds. It wasn’t the best score of the night, but it did help the two to the top spot in the three-head aggregate race.
“We just did what we needed to do,” said Sherwood, of Pima, Ariz. He and Richard have a time of 21.1 seconds through three runs and lead at this stage of the game. Three performances remain.
They expect the team of JoJo LeMond and defending heeling champion Randon Adams to be tough to beat. Through two rounds, that team has a cumulative time of 12.7 seconds and just needs a run of 8.4 seconds or faster to overtake the lead.
“We’ve put a pretty good time on the board, but they’ll have a little time to work with,” Sherwood said of LeMond and Adams. “Those guys rope great.”
It was a stacked house atop the leaderboard, with the team of Clay Tryan and Cory Petska taking the third-round lead with a 6.4-second run. They were followed, in one-tenth-of-a-second increments, by Blaine Linaweaver and Richard Durham, then Jake Barnes and Richard Skelton.
Action continues at 2 and 7:30 p.m. Saturday, with team ropers, tie-down ropers and steer wrestler competing in their third rounds of competition, while steer ropers are in the fifth round and barrel racers are in their second round. The bareback riders, saddle bronc riders and bull riders are all competing in one go-round.
Guymon Pioneer Days Rodeo
Henry C. Hitch Pioneer Arena
Guymon, Okla.
May 1-3
First Performance Friday, May 1
Bareback riding: 1. Jared Smith, Snyder, Texas, on Carr Pro Rodeo’s Dirty Jacket and Brian Bain, Culver, Ore., on Carr’s Big Lights, 87; 3. Ryan Gray, Cheney, Wash., 84; 4. Steven Dent, Mullen, Neb., and Caleb Bennett, 78.
Team roping: 1. Clay Tryan, Billings, Mont./Cory Petska, Lexington, Okla., 6.4 seconds; 2. Blaine Linaweaver, Leavenworth, Kan./Richard Durham, Morgan Mill, Texas, 6.5; 3. Jake Barnes, Scottsdale, Ariz./Rich Skelton, Llano, Texas, 6.6; 4. Charles Pogue, Ringling, Okla./Casey Chamberlain, Colorado City, Texas, 6.8; 5. Matt Sherwood, Pima, Ariz./Rhen Richard, Roosevelt, Utah., 7.0.
Steer roping: 1. Trevor Brazile, Decatur, Texas, 10.1 seconds; 2. K.W. Lauer, Buffalo, Okla., 10.7; 3. Keith Swan, Vinita, Okla., 12.4; 4. Jay Craddock, Bridgeport, Texas, 13.6; no other qualified times.
Saddle bronc riding: 1. Jeff Willert, Belvidere, S.D., on Carr Pro Rodeo’s Miss Molly and Steven Dent, Mullen, Neb., on Carr’s Centerfold, 84 points; 3. Sam Spreadborough, Snyder, Texas, 82; 4. Wes Burnes, Stephenville, Texas, 80; 5. Jake Griffin, Powell, Wyo., 78.
Steer wrestling: 1. Jason Miller, Lance Creek, Wyo., 3.9 seconds; 2. Cody Cassidy, Donalda, Alberta, 4.5; 3. Gary Collins, Russell Springs, Kan., 4.6; 4. T.J. Bohlender, Canyon, Texas, 5.3; 5. Casey Martin, Gettysburg, Pa., 8.2.
Tie-down roping: 1. Randall Carlisle, Lipan, Texas, 8.6 seconds; 2. Clint Cooper, Decatur, Texas, 8.9; 3. Jim Locke, Miami, Texas, 9.1; 4. Joe Colletti, Pueblo, Colo., 12.3; 5. Cory Solomon, Prairie View, Texas, 16.3.
Barrel racing: 1. Brittany Pharr, Victoria, Texas, 17.22 seconds; 2. Britany Fleck, Mandan, N.D., 17.33; 3. Carol Chesher, Stratford, Texas, 17.60; 4. Rhonda Straw, Miami, Okla., 17.78; 5. Lacey Harris, Canyon, Texas, 17.93.
Bull riding: 1. Jason Beck, Prairieville, La., 90 points on Carr Pro Rodeo’s P.J.; 2. Austin Ambrose, Fletcher, Okla., 87; 3. Jacob Tyner, Sacramento, Calif., 86; 4. Clint Craig, Mena, Ark., 83; 5. Stetson Lewis, Tularosa, N.M., 81.
