TOP ALL-AROUND HANDS TO BATTLE FOR CINCH TIMED EVENT CHAMPIONSHIP TITLE
GUTHRIE, Okla. – There is one main reason the top 20 cowboys in the game look forward to the CINCH Timed Event Championship, set for March 6-8 at the Lazy E Arena.
“I think it’s the best event going,” said JoJo LeMond, a TEC regular from Andrews, Texas. “I think it’s a true cowboy’s event; a guy has got to be good at multiple courses and not just concerned with one event. Then there’s the consistency of it by running 25 head; a guy’s got to have patience to get through it.”
Dubbed the “Ironman of ProRodeo,” the CINCH Timed Event Championship features the 20 best all-around timed-event cowboys competing in all five timed-event disciplines: team roping-heading, team roping-heeling, tie-down roping, steer wrestling and steer roping. It’s a grueling test of ability, horsemanship, endurance and mental toughness.
“It shows who the more versatile cowboy is,” said Paul David Tierney, the 2014 TEC champion from Oral, S.D.; he also is a two-time runner-up. “It’s tough on your body, but you’ve got to be mentally tough to keep it all together.”
Tierney is one of just 12 men to have been crowned champion in the most unique event in rodeo. He follows in the footsteps of his father, four-time winner Paul Tierney, a ProRodeo Hall of Fame inductee and two-time PRCA world champion.
“This is special to me because I’ve been here since I was born,” said the younger Tierney, 26. “I grew up watching it and cheering my dad on.”
This year’s field will feature the top two cowboys in the 2015 PRCA all-around standings: Trevor Brazile of Decatur, Texas, and LeMond. Brazile earned his record 13th all-around gold buckle and sixth steer roping championship en route to his record 23rd world title; he qualified for the National Finals last season in steer roping, heading and tie-down roping.
“He is a top 15 contender in every event he chooses to be in,” LeMond said of Brazile, who owns a record seven TEC buckles.
LeMond earned his second straight trip to the Clem McSpadden National Finals Steer Roping, then competed at the NFR when seven-time world champion Jake Barnes suffered a serious accident while practicing just days before the finale began. LeMond was in contention for the heading world championship until the final go-round played. He won more than $117,000 in Las Vegas.
Still the West Texas cowboy credits the TEC with his two straight qualifications to the steer roping finals. “I don’t know that I would’ve ever tried any other events,” said LeMond, a four-time NFR qualifier in heading. “It was sure the guidance for a reserve world championship in the all-around. With Trevor going like he’s going, second is almost like winning first compared to that guy.”
Brazile is the reigning TEC champion, the first to earn more than $100,000 over the three days of the prestigious event; in 2015, the Lazy E doubled the winner’s earnings after years at $50,000. Brazile has earned more than $750,000 in career Timed Event earnings.
Besides Paul David Tierney, Brazile joins four other previous winners in this year’s field: K.C. Jones, a five-time winner from Burlington, Wyo.; Daniel Green (3) of Oakdale, Calif.; Kyle Lockett (2) of Visalia, Calif.; and Josh Peek (1) of Pueblo, Calif.
“The field is tough, maybe tougher than it’s ever been,” Tierney said. “They’ve got some new guys who are pretty versatile themselves.”
Like every cowboy who competes in the unique championship, there is a learning curve. Not only do they compete in all five disciplines, but they must handle all the various challenges that come their way throughout the five rounds of competition spread out over just three days in early March.
“Get a time every time you go, and don’t get in a hurry,” Tierney said. “There’s 25 head, so even if you have a problem, anything can happen as long as you keep your head.
“The name of the game is consistency and getting a time.”
He should know. Sometimes outlasting the competition in the CINCH TEC is making fewer mistakes than anyone else. It’s a much different mindset than usually occurs in rodeos all across this land, where the cowboys with the fastest times are the only ones to get paid. The key factor for those who cash in is being solid time after time and preparing for every situation that occurs.
“I think the grueling part of it physically is getting ready for it,” LeMond said. “After you’ve been there a few years and your body’s worn down, you’re kind of trained as to how to handle it.”
When it all comes together, there’s a reason the CINCH Timed Event Championship is called the “Ironman of ProRodeo.” It’s a true test of true cowboys, just the way it was meant to be when it was developed more than three decades ago.
Families will enjoy all of the activities planned for the performances. Back again in 2016, the Lazy E will host the Third Annual CINCH TEC Chuckwagon Cook-Off Competition starting Friday with final conclusion and meals open to the public for purchase Saturday afternoon.
Ticket prices are $45 for VIP, box seats $35, reserved bleachers $30 and general admission $25. Children 12 and under are free in general admission and VIP. Group and multiple performance discounts are also available. Reserved tables are NOW available in the Roper’s Cantina Suite. Contact us today. Tickets can be purchased at all Ticketmaster outlets, www.lazye.com, calling Ticketmaster (800) 745-3000 or by calling the Lazy E Arena directly at (800) 595-RIDE.
The 2016 CINCH Timed Event Championship is sponsored by CINCH, Priefert Ranch & Rodeo Equipment, Montana Silversmiths, ABI Equine, Cavender’s, American Farmers and Ranchers Insurance, Nutrena, Bloomer Trailers, MacroAir, National Saddlery, Cross Bar Gallery, Ram Trucks, John Vance Motors, Western Horseman Magazine, Spin to Win Magazine, Guthrie CVB, Made In Oklahoma Coalition, Pendleton Whisky, Smarty Roping Dummies, CSI Saddlepads, Sherwin-Williams, the Best Western Edmond and the Fairfield Inn & Suites – Edmond.
The 2016 CINCH Timed Event Championship is a Lazy E Production. For more information on the CINCH Timed Event Championship or other Lazy E events, contact the Lazy E Arena, 9600 Lazy E Drive, Guthrie, OK 73044, (405) 282-RIDE, (800) 595-RIDE or visit www.lazye.com.
2016 Contestants
Trevor Brazile, Decatur, Texas
K.C. Jones, Burlington, Wyo.
Daniel Green, Oakdale, Calif.
Kyle Lockett, Visalia, Calif.
Paul David Tierney, Oral, S.D.
Josh Peek, Pueblo, Colo.
Russell Cardoza, Terrebonne, Ore.
Jess Tierney, Hermosa, S.D.
Clay Smith, Broken Bow, Okla.
JoJo LeMond, Andrews, Texas
Cade Swor, Chico, Texas
Erich Rogers, Round Rock, Ariz.
Landon McClaugherty, Tilden, Texas
Clayton Hass, Terrell, Texas
Trell Etbauer, Goodwell, Okla.
Dustin Bird, Cut Bank, Mont.
Ryan Watkins, Bluff Dale, Texas
Rhen Richard, Roosevelt, Utah
Dakota Kirchenschlager, Stephenville, Texas
Brodie Poppino, Big Cabin, Okla.