Monthly Archives: January 2012

OKLAHOMA CITY – Ash Cooper always fancied himself a world-class hockey player. That’s what little boys dream about while growing up in the Canadian province of Saskatchewan. And, truth be told, Cooper was pretty talented on the ice. “I was employed playing hockey, and at the same time, I was playing a high level of rugby,” said Cooper, an athlete turned rodeo clown who just worked the Wrangler National Finals Rodeo in Las Vegas for the first time in his career this past December. “It was a huge honor for me to work the NFR. More than anything, for me, it was representing my country. “I tried representing in hockey and didn’t make it, and I tried and rugby, and it didn’t happen. I had to settle for representing my country as a clown, but I’ll take it.” You see, Ash Cooper has an alter ego, and his name is CrAsh; he’ll be part of the 2012 Ram National Circuit Finals Rodeo, set for March 29-April 1 at Jim Norick Arena at the Oklahoma State Fairgrounds. This is where the biggest names in the sport come to show off their talents, and Cooper will be in town to provide a little comedy relief and other entertainment options as the barrelman/funnyman, The ProRodeo national circuit finale provides another prestigious championship event for rodeo-savvy Oklahoma City, the longtime host of the NFR and the Clem McSpadden National Finals Steer Roping. The 2012 event marks the second straight year the RNCFR is part of Oklahoma’s storied rodeo legacy, a place that knows what makes a true champion, even one who wears greasepaint. “I never planned on being a rodeo clown,” Cooper said. “It’s just one of those things that evolved.” The evolution began to develop when he attended the Canadian Finals Rodeo, and Cooper’s zest for the extreme was inspired by the action inside the arena during the bull riding competition. “I was looking for the roughest sport there was, and I figured bullfighting was it,” he said, explaining how bullfighters utilize their athleticism to get into the action of a bucking, spinning and twisting beast and try to get everyone out unscathed. It took a few lessons, but Cooper was hooked and quickly became an in-arena lifesaver. As the evolution continued, Cooper moved on to the world of a rodeo clown, even if he had to fit it into his personality. “The hardest part in strictly becoming a clown was losing that athleticism; I was a clown now, not an athlete,” said Cooper, the only person to have fought bulls and clowned at the prestigious Calgary (Alberta) Stampede. So Cooper did something about it, taking the traditional role of a funny rodeo clown and transitioning it into the form of an athletic entertainer. “The crowd responds just as much to something that’s a great athletic feat as something that’s funny,” he said. “What I do is just a cross between comedy and athleticism.” It’s a good mix, which is why he’s working ProRodeo’s National Championship, which will feature the top cowboys and cowgirls from the 12 regional ProRodeo circuits against one another for the prestigious national title. Contestants will compete in seven traditional rodeo events: bareback riding, saddle bronc riding, tie down roping, team roping, steer wrestling, barrel racing and bull riding. The RNCFR also is home to outstanding entertainment, and nobody realizes that any more than Cooper. “My personal preference is to just see what happens,” he said. “I like not knowing exactly what’s going on, just paying attention to what’s happening and just reacting. Maybe it’s because I’ve lived my life like that.” Maybe it’s because he always saw himself as an athlete, not so much an entertainer. “I certainly didn’t plan on it, but I’m awful glad it turned out this way,” Cooper said.

Last week I wrote about the Wright brothers doing well in Fort Worth. You can find it HERE. They’ve re-appeared in the news already, with three of the four brothers sitting in the top 15 in the saddle bronc riding world standings. Jesse Wright leads the contingent, sitting No. 2 in the world with $9,688. Cody Wright is fifth with $8,960, and Jake Wright is 12th with $4,112. The fourth player in the story, Alex Wright, is 28th in the standings, having pocketed just $1,787. I look for that to change fairly quickly. Don’t you?

‘The Wild Child’ brings high-flying fun to ProRodeo’s national championship OKLAHOMA CITY – ProRodeo’s National Championship means a lot to every cowboy and cowgirl who has ever qualified to compete for the coveted title. It means a lot to plenty of others who make their livings on the rodeo trail. Take Troy Lerwill, one of the greatest entertainers in the sport who has been named Act of the Year in the Professional Rodeo Cowboys Association six times. “I actually rate the (Ram) National Circuit Finals Rodeo right there with the National Finals Rodeo, because there’s only a handful of barrelmen or acts that get to work that thing,” said Lerwill, a funnyman who has been selected to work the Wrangler NFR three times in a storied career. “It’s very prestigious. The buckle that I wear every day and the buckle you will see on me until the day I die is the very first Dodge National Circuit Finals Rodeo that I ever won. “I won that in 2001. That was the first buckle I ever won and the only buckle I’ve ever worn. I have three NFR buckles and opening act buckles, circuit finals buckles and Coors Man in the Can buckles, but that one was the coolest thing I’ve ever gotten to do.” That’s why Lerwill is excited to be part of ProRodeo’s National Championship, where the very best the sport has to offer will be part of the tremendous entertainment package during the five performances from March 29-April 1 at Jim Norick Arena at the Oklahoma State Fairgrounds. The 192 cowboys and cowgirls in the field have earned the right to play for one of the largest purses in the sport, more than $525,000. The event provides another prestigious championship event for rodeo-savvy Oklahoma City, the longtime host of the NFR and the Clem McSpadden National Finals Steer Roping. The 2012 event marks the second straight year the RNCFR is part of Oklahoma’s storied rodeo legacy, a place that knows what makes a true champion. “Troy is one of the funniest guys out there, not just in rodeo,” said Pete Carr, owner of Carr Pro Rodeo, a Dallas-based livestock firm that will have bucking horses and bulls in the RNCFR. “I try to get him as often as I can, because he brings a whole new dimension to each show. He’s the best entertainer in rodeo because of how he handles the crowd. “Then you add his motorcycle act into the mix, and it’s just over-the-top. Everybody wants to come back the next day just to see it again.” Enter “The Wild Child,” the motorcycle daredevil that jumps a Bloomer trailer and a Ram pickup in a showcase comedy mixed with tremendous athleticism. “It’s funny every time I see it,” said Ken Stonceipher, a ProRodeo announcer who serves as production manager for the Guymon (Okla.) Pioneer Days Rodeo, where Lerwill will perform in May. “There’s just something magical in that entire act.” It comes quite naturally to Lerwill, the son of a roper who grew up going to rodeos in Utah and Colorado with his father. Though he never competed, Troy Lerwill was hooked … even if it took a few years for him to realize it. “I had a Shetland pony growing up, and I always like horses,” Lerwill said. “I roped with my dad when I was little, but I always wanted a motorcycle.” His parents realized he was pretty good at maneuvering the machine and began taking him to desert races. By the time he was 12, Lerwill was excelling at motocross. “It just evolved from there,” he said. Racing was a big part of Lerwill’s life for a long time. But at age 24, Lerwill had begun riding mountain bikes through the Utah trails instead of the motorized ones over the quick jumps and turns of motocross. Through all that, he found a new rush: Bullfighting. The rodeo arena was drawing him back. He went to a bullfighting school, and a new career was born. “I got my PRCA card in 1993,” he said. “I started doing the comedy stuff in ’95.” It didn’t take long for Lerwill to step up his game. A local stock contractor hired him to fight bulls and entertain. “I was in Evanston, Wyo., the first time I put the microphone on,” he said. “I was so damn scared that I was dry-heaving. But I got it done.” He’s gotten it done a lot in the years since. He has become one of the most sought-after acts in ProRodeo, and there’s good reason. “People just love to watch Troy, because he’s that good,” said Carr, who watched Lerwill work just two months ago during the Fort Worth Stock Show & Rodeo. “He can bring people to your rodeo to see what he can do; that’s a true entertainer.” For Lerwill, life is about reaching out to people and sharing his passion for the rodeo way of life. He may go about it in different terms than most cowboys, but there is a distinct passion involved in everything he does. “I really don’t want the Western heritage and lifestyle, and the tradition of cowboy to go away, and I want young people to enjoy it like I did,” Lerwill said. “Rodeo is a huge chunk of our history. “Even though I take a motorcycle to a rodeo and do a stunt, I hope it makes fans of people and they come back.”

Today we surprised my father- and mother-in-law for their 45th anniversary, and I believe it’s important to tell you about these two wonderful people. Not only did they raise the love of my life, but also they support us in ways that are beyond incredible. As I try to tell stories about rodeo, Rose and Raymond Frueh do many things that enable me to do so. You see, as a stay-at-home dad who works full time from home while also serving as the primary caregiver for our 3-year-old daughter, we need my in-laws to help with our children from time to time. Whether I’m on the road at an event or meeting some deadlines, they step in to assist us. It’s a tremendous relief to know someone we love, someone we trust to watch those things closest to us. Beyond that, both have taken a genuine interest in the work I do.  My mother-in-law keeps clips of my work, and my father-in-law asks detailed questions about the things I do. I’m blessed to have been part of this magnificent day. I’m more blessed to have these two wonderful, caring people in my life.

EDITOR’S NOTE: This story appears in the January issue of Women’s Pro Rodeo News. Unfortunately the interview that I had hoped to do with Lindsay Sears a week after she’d won didn’t happen, but I hope we were able to tell a good story anyway. For anyone who has ever been in the heated battle of competition, the pressure to win is incredible. To be successful, to win, is like bursting that bubble and feeling the air explode from it. For the 15 cowgirls in the field of the 2011 Wrangler National Finals Rodeo, the golden yellow chutes and blue fencing intensifies the pressure. The heat turns up as each lady prepared to take a shot at $17,885 each night and a chance to fasten a Montana Silversmiths gold buckle at the end of the 10-day marathon. Nobody, however, realized how much pressure was on a tiny blonde from Nanton, Alberta, the only Canadian in the field of 119 contestants in ProRodeo’s grand championship event, held in the Thomas & Mack Center on the campus of the University of Nevada-Las Vegas. As she sprinted around the arena each night during the grand entry, Lindsay Sears was carrying the weight of a nation fanatical about rodeo, about champions. Donning the gold buckle earned three years prior, the 30-year-old cowgirl who spends a good portion of her time near Lubbock, Texas, knew much was expected of her. But there’s so much more to the back story of a world champion. You see, Sears left Las Vegas in December 2010 with an injured horse and a ton of questions. Sugar Moon Express, an 11-year-old sorrel by Dr. Nick Bar out of Babys Blue Jeans, has been Sears’ driving force since she purchased the mare nearly six years ago. “We left here last year with my good horse, Martha, being seriously injured and not knowing whether or not she would come back and be able to compete,” Sears said. “I just have to thank all the people who have helped Martha get better throughout the year, all my veterinarians. “Everybody knows Martha, and that’s the most awesome thing about it. I’m just lucky I get to be part of her life. To have Martha is the most unbelievable thing that’s ever happened to me in my life. She’s the reason I have a career in this sport.” Martha also is the reason Sears dominated the NFR. The tandem won the average, rounding the cloverleaf pattern 10 times in a cumulative 139.50 seconds, earning $45,865 for that feat alone. In addition, they placed in eight go-rounds, including two wins – she shared the opening-round victory with front-runner Brittany Pozzi of Victoria, Texas, clocking in at 14.03 seconds; they each won $16,010 and made a statement about the race for the world title. Sears also won the seventh round, posting a 13.56 to win the go-round buckle outright. “There is no game plan,” Sears said on opening night, Dec. 1. “Every night is a new night. It’s great. It makes for our sport to be great watching.” It was great watching, with high speeds and fantastic finishes. Whether the rounds were defined by a mere 1-100ths of a second or watching Carlee Pierce and Rare Dillion clear the pattern in a new record 13.46, the 2010 Wrangler NFR was a showcase of tremendous athletic talent. “You’ve just got to know your horse and know what it takes to get it accomplished,” said Lisa Lockhart of Oelrichs, S.D., who won two rounds and finished fourth in the final world standings with $159,710, with about $79,000 coming at the NFR. That has worked for Sears, who has had some incredible wins on her main mount, including four straight championships at the tour finale in Omaha, Neb. – 2011 marked the first time in five years she and Martha didn’t leave Nebraska with the title. “You are as good as your horse is in barrel racing,” said Sears, who spent much of the year on another horse, Ima Guy Of Honor, an 8-year-old bay gelding she calls Moe. “We’re like peas and carrots. She is the one for me. If I wasn’t going to get to get on her again, I’m not sure if I wanted to continue doing this for a living. “I got to the finals on my backup horse, and Martha got to come here and be the star. She got to prove herself here in this arena again. It’s indescribable.” So is their run through the finals. After their seventh round win, Sears admitted she was a little shocked at how fast the two clocked. “Martha’s been kind of easing along all week, and I was wondering when she was going to realize we’re in Vegas,” Sears said Wednesday, Dec. 7. “She did tonight, thank goodness. “She stepped up to the plate tonight, and she felt like Martha. She felt like she’s always felt in this pen.” It was important to make a statement at that point in the championship while remaining consistently fast. “When you only have a 10th of a second between first and sixth, and some nights five-100ths, how do you even talk about that,” she said. “It’s just a blink of an eye … less than the blink of an eye.” This season marked the sixth time in Sears’ career she’s played for the biggest prize money in the game, and she likes to ride in Las Vegas. She may not play the table games or punch the slots, but she understands how things work. Early in 2011, she didn’t like her odds of winning that prestigious gold buckle, but she knows how to cash out money ahead. “In 2008, everything went perfectly,” Sears said. “This year, it was a job. It was hard work and a lot of struggles to get here, to be sitting here. I feel like I worked so much harder to win this one than I did in 2008.” Sears understands what it means to  Continue Reading »

Every year, there are a few new names in the hat for the invitation-only Timed Event Championship, a unique event that originated at the Lazy E Arena in 1985 and features cowboys competing in all five timed-event disciplines — heading, heeling, steer wrestling, tie-down roping and steer roping. This year’s list of entrants is field with world champions, from Trevor Brazile to Jimmie Cooper to Steve Duhon. Several of the cowboys earn all-around points throughout each season because they compete in multiple events at PRCA rodeos — sometimes it means a tie-down roper will team rope or include some steer roping. Two-time steer wrestling world champion Dean Gorsuch is scheduled to compete, and I love to see great bulldoggers show off their roping skills in this wonderful competition. Duhon has won a lot of money in this arena over the years, even though his focus was steer wrestling for so much of his career. Now Gorsuch will get his shot. The Timed Event Championship will take place March 2-4 at the Lazy E Arena, northeast of Oklahoma City.

If things don’t change soon, the saddle bronc riding Wright brothers of Milford, Utah, are going to take a lot of money out of the Fort Worth Stock Show Rodeo. In the first round, Jake and Spencer two pieces of a three-way tie for second place, while Jesse and Cody are in a tie for sixth. Cody, Jesse and Spencer are placing in the top eight of the second round, and all four are sitting in the money in the average, too. That’s a whale of a combination, and I hope fans will have the opportunity to enjoy them for many years to come.

EDITOR’S NOTE: This is a post for the Ram National Circuit Finals Rodeo blog, which also can be found HERE. The future of rodeo is firmly entrenched in its history. That’s why it’s so awesome that Oklahoma City is hosting another ProRodeo championship event. Great rodeo is home in the Sooner State’s capital, and with great reason. From the cattle drives that crisscrossed the territory in the 1800s to the National Finals Rodeo making Oklahoma City its home from 1965-1984, the state is rich in Western tradition. There’s a reason the National Cowboy and Western Heritage Museum is in Oklahoma City, and it’s the same reason the ProRodeo Hall of Fame in Colorado Springs has a distinctive Oklahoma flavor: Cowboy is big in Oklahoma, and so is rodeo It’s why Oklahoma is now home to the Ram National Circuit Finals Rodeo, scheduled for March 29-April 1 at historic Jim Norick Arena on the Oklahoma State Fairgrounds in Oklahoma City. Clem McSpadden would love what will happen inside that hallowed round building. McSpadden, who died in July 2008, was the voice of ProRodeo for decades. Moreover, he was the sport’s conscience who served as the NFR’s general manager in Oklahoma City. McSpadden’s passion is still felt in Oklahoma and rodeo. That might be the biggest reason why having ProRodeo’s National Championship in Oklahoma City is the right thing.

While touring the ProRodeo Hall of Fame last weekend, I came upon the exhibit featuring my friend Clem McSpadden, the longtime voice of rodeo who died in July 2008. Clem was the general manager of the National Finals Rodeo when it took place in Oklahoma City, and he was an influential member of the Professional Rodeo Cowboys Association for many years. He was an excellent communicator, whether on the microphone in Dodge City or in the halls of Congress. One of the greatest things he penned was “The Cowboys Prayer,” a wonderful piece of prose he recited countless times before events. A copy of it sits in the case near his display. I’m glad it’s there, and I wish everyone who has ever been to a rodeo would have heard Clem present it. Unfortunately, I’ve heard announcers attempt to duplicate it. I wish they wouldn’t, because nobody else can do it justice. Not only that, but the piece is copyrighted, and nobody should use it for any reason without permission by Clem’s family. It’s only the right thing to do. It’s also the legal thing to do.

It looks like the roughstock cowboys had a bit of tough luck Wednesday night at the Fort Worth (Texas) Stock Show Rodeo. Heath Ford posted the highest marked score of the night, an 81-point ride bareback riding on J Bar J Rodeo’s Pass The Hat. That moved Ford into a tie for second place in the first go-round with Frenchman Evan Jayne. Kyle Brennecke posted a 78, while Ryan Little scored 75. None of those scores are overwhelming in any regard. In fact, there are a lot of rodeos where an 81 will not win a roughstock cowboy any money. But those were the best scores in Fort Worth on Wednesday. Next on the list was bull rider Mike Lee, who posted a 74 on Diamond S Rodeo’s Brule. The top score in saddle bronc riding was Ben Londo’s 68 on J Bar J’s 251. I’m not sure what this says about things in Fort Worth, but I would hope one of the biggest and best rodeos in the sport would boast of better scores through its preliminary go-rounds. I can’t tell you why the scores are as such, because I’m not there. But I would like to see rodeos like Fort Worth, Denver and San Antonio to have great match-ups and an opportunity for outstanding scores. The cowboys deserve it. So do the fans.

It’s been a few years since I witnessed the spectacle known as the Timed Event Championship, a unique event created by the Lazy E Arena staff when it opened its doors nearly 30 years ago. The championship features 20 of the greatest timed-event cowboys in the game, even in the history of the game, competing in all five timed-event disciplines: heading, heeling, tie-down roping, steer wrestling and steer roping. It is truly a magical event, set this year for March 2-4. Thought it’s been several years since I sat in the majestic arena, I’ve worked on the Timed Event in some regard for most of the last 10 years. I’m very blessed by the opportunity I have in preparing the written information that goes into the program each year. I guess it’s just been part of my life for so long that I was caught off guard when I learned that an official with a major ProRodeo sponsor indicated he had never been to the Lazy E in early March to witness this affair. I just assumed it was a must-see for those who have been around the sport for so long. Nonetheless, I informed my friend that he needed to make the trip to central Oklahoma; the five rounds of competition over three days is well worth it.

I’ve never been inside Denver Coliseum, and the only reflections I had of the building that houses the National Western Stock Show and Rodeo were photographs of the historic rodeo throughout the years. I learned a little more today while talking with two-time barrel racing world champion Brittany Pozzi. She has won the Denver rodeo four times in the last six years, and I’m writing the recap from that event for Women’s Pro Rodeo News, the official publication for the Women’s Professional Rodeo Association. Pozzi told me the cloverleaf pattern is “crooked.” In order to understand what she meant, I found a video on YouTube that put it all on display for me. I’m glad I did, because it allowed me the opportunity to describe it in a way I hope others will understand. Crooked works, too.

A week ago, I wrote about Clovis Crane qualifying for the Ram National Circuit Finals Rodeo by winning the average titles in both bareback riding and bull riding at the Ram First Frontier Circuit Finals Rodeo. What I didn’t know at the time was that Crane also earned the right to compete in saddle bronc riding in Oklahoma City when the championship takes place March 29-April 1. You see, Zack Vickers won the year-end and average titles in bronc riding; since the RNCFR qualifiers are the year-end and average winners, Vickers’ feat called for the regional tie-breaker, which means the second-place contestant in the year-end race earns the trip to the national championship. That’s how Crane qualified for the RNCFR in all three roughstock events. Kudos to him, because it’s quite a feat. I’ll give him the edge in winning the all-around title in Oklahoma City in a couple of months.

EDITOR’S NOTE: This is a post for the Ram National Circuit Finals Rodeo blog, which also can be found HERE. Tyson Durfey left Oklahoma City last April with a nice paycheck, a new truck and a coveted title. That was a lot to take from four days of competition during the 2011 Ram National Circuit Finals Rodeo, but that’s just the tip of the iceberg. In fact, the Missouri-born Durfey used the confidence gained inside Jim Norick Arena to his benefit. What followed was a fifth straight qualification to the Wrangler National Finals Rodeo and a third title earned at the Canadian Finals Rodeo. The end result was another fantastic year for the cowboy from Colbert, Wash., who finished the 2011 season as the fifth-ranked tie-down roper in the Professional Rodeo Cowboys Association. He also won the tie-down roping in the Columbia River Circuit, which earned him a fourth trip to the RNCFR, scheduled for March 29-April 1 in Oklahoma City. Can he repeat as champion? That will be decided in two and a half months.

A lot of cowboys and cowgirls won a lot of money at the National Western Stock Show and Rodeo. None of them earned more than Seth Glause, a three-time bull riding qualifier to the Wrangler National Finals Rodeo from Rock Springs, Wyo. Glause, 23, of Rock Springs, Wyo., placed in all three go-rounds and won the average title in Denver with a three-ride cumulative score of 265 points. He won $13,764. The lion’s share of his prize money came on the aggregate title, but he won money every step of the way. Glause won the first round with a 92-point ride on Southwick Rodeo’s Phe Phe’s Secret; that was worth $3,989. His 86 was good enough for third place in the second round, and he followed that with an 87 to finish second in Sunday’s championship round. It was a great run for one of the great young cowboys in the game. “This is one of the most prestigious rodeos I’ve ever won,” Glause said. “I won the all-around here before, and Denver’s been pretty good to me. I had a good week here.”

Inside the ProRodeo Hall of Fame in Colorado Springs, there’s a beautiful display of the reigning world champions, filled with biographies of each contestant and, in some instances, other memorabilia. Filled with the 2010 titlists – it has yet to be updated with the recent winners – the one thing that caught my eye was a beautiful photograph that accompanied the display for Dean Gorsuch, the two-time world champion steer wrestler from Gering, Neb. The image is of Gorsuch’s great bulldogging horse, Pump Jack, running riderless down an outdoors arena after Gorsuch had dismounted the beautiful white horse to grapple the steer. It’s poignant in that Pump Jack died Jan. 5, 2012, after suffering an injury during a practice run. The horse suffered a shattered pastern bone and had to be euthanized. The photograph was simply a wonderful tribute to one of the best athletes in the sport, and I’m glad the photograph is part of ProRodeo’s shrine.

A little more than a month ago, saddle bronc rider Cody DeMoss had to make a tough decision during the pinnacle event of the 2011 ProRodeo season; the veteran cowboy, an eight-time qualifier, realized the pain from an injury to the upper portion of his free arm was too great, so he opted out of a good potion of the Wrangler National Finals Rodeo. He has returned to the game after his time on the IR, known in most other professional sports as a way to get a check while being sidelined by injury. Of course, there isn’t that luxury in rodeo; if one doesn’t compete, he/she doesn’t have a chance to win money. Of course, DeMoss has returned on strong fashion: He is placing in both go-rounds and leads the average with a cumulative total of 163 points at the National Western Stock Show and Rodeo in Denver. I guess if you’re going to come back from an injury, it helps curb the pain to come back on top.

I made it to the base of Pikes Peak today, the home of the PRCA and the WPRA and just a few miles north of the home of the PBR. This is the time for family, but I hope to get in some cowboy time, too. It’s only right, don’t you think. What is sad is that I’m this close to the National Western Stock Show & Rodeo, and I don’t think I’ll be able to attend. This weekend, the 2012 Denver champions will be crowned, and I wish everyone the best of luck and the safest of travels. Besides, I’m enjoying the 60-plus-degree day in Colorado Springs.

What does it take to be a world-class bareback rider? Will Lowe knows. Ten times in his career, Lowe has qualified for the Wrangler National Finals Rodeo. He’s left the Thomas & Mack Center in Las Vegas with a world champion’s Montana Silversmiths gold buckle three times. So what does he have to say? “First and foremost, you’ve got to be in shape,” he said. “It takes a lot of core muscle, plus, you have to teach your muscles to react. You can’t sit there and think about it, so you’ve got to have your muscles trained. “If you can handle your body weight, you can ride bucking horses.” That’s a great start for any young cowboy who hankers to ride bucking beasts for a living. “You’re going to need to get a good markout,” Lowe said, referring to having the heels of his boots over the breaks of the horse’s front shoulders when the animal hits the ground with his front hooves the first time. “Yes, it’s a rule, but at the same time, you’ve got to get those feet up there and get in time with it. “I hold on with my feet until it’s time to go. When they start jumping and kicking and giving you some timing to do something with, then you can spur back to your riggin’.” That style has worked for Lowe, who has more victories than most, and it can work for any youngster wanting to get to the top.

When Troy Lerwill was a fledgling clown/barrelman/bullfighter, he worked a rodeo in San Demas, Calif., just outside of Los Angeles. That’s where he kick-started “The Wild Child” act that has made him a household name in rodeo. You see, Lerwill was fighting bulls and clowing at the rodeo there for Diamond G Rodeos, where his act was a motorcycle with training wheels. He and announcer Cheyenne Pipkin were working promotion at a feed store when they noticed a small semi that was being used as a display. That’s when the idea of jumping the miniature semi came to be. That night at the rodeo, the committee had built a wooden ramp for the act. The stock truck pulled up to the arena gate, and Pipkin made a big deal out of Lerwill being able to jump this big rig when, all of the sudden, this miniature semi tractor-trailer appears alongside and cruises into the arena. Lerwill jumps the mini-truck and trailer, and the development of one of rodeo’s greatest acts was set in motion. “If I count all the things I’d done in the five years before that night, nothing made people laugh this much,” Lerwill said. “So I thought, ‘I’m on to something.’ It went from that point.” “The Wild Child” has been a major figure in ProRodeo ever since. I don’t know about you, but I’m pretty thankful that the feed store had that semi display, because it was a great gift to rodeo.

Lost in the hubbub of the Ram First Frontier Circuit Finals Rodeo is the fact that roughstock cowboy Clovis Crane won three titles in Harrisburg, Pa., this past weekend. Crane, 32, of Lebanon, Pa., won the all-around title and $9,719. More importantly, though, he won the average titles in both bareback riding and bull riding. That qualifies Crane for the Ram National Circuit Finals Rodeo, set for March 29-April 1 at Oklahoma State Fair Arena in Oklahoma City. Crane’s winnings were by far the highest total for any all-around champion at any of the 12 circuit final rodeos for the 2011 season. He joined the other First Frontier average winners, team ropers Darren Morgan and Shawn Quinn, saddle bronc rider Zack Vickers, tie-down roper Tim Naylor, barrel racer Kristine Roy and steer wrestler Joe Bell Sr. Bell, 57, is the father Joey Bell Jr., a five-time qualifier to the Wrangler National Circuit Finals Rodeo who attended college at Northeastern Oklahoma A&M in Miami and Panhandle State University in Goodwell. The First Frontier finale was one of two this past weekend to close out the qualifiers for this year’s RNCFR; the other was the Ram Montana Circuit Finals, which wrapped Sunday. Average winners were bareback rider Tyler Nelson, steer wrestler Ty Erickson, team ropers Jason Handy and John Robertson, saddle bronc rider Jake Costello, tie-down roper Dustin Bird, barrel racer Theresa Walter and bull rider Beau Hill.

The future of rodeo is strong based on a couple of things I learned today. I just watched a Facebook video from steer wrestler Spud Duvall, who posted a clip of his young son, Treagan, bailing off a toddler scooter onto a stuffed animal and grappling the “steer” to the ground. I suspect it won’t be long before Treagan is doing it in the Duvalls’ arena off a real horse onto a real steer. In visiting with Odessa (Texas) College freshman Paige Conrado, who just won the Sandhills Stock Show & Rodeo in Odessa, I learned that the Colorado cowgirls is the daughter of a couple of barrel horse trainers. You can say she was destined to be a barrel racer. As she says, “I was pretty much born on the back of a horse.” She was en route to Denver for the National Western Stock Show & Rodeo, her hometown event. I suspect she’d love to win that one even more than winning Odessa.

Bareback rider bringing gold buckle talent to Oklahoma City for RNCFR EDITOR’S NOTE: Attached is a feature story about one of the great world champions  who will be part of the Ram National Circuit Finals Rodeo, set for March 29-April 1 in Oklahoma City. OKLAHOMA CITY – Will Lowe’s resume is extensive and paints a magnificent image of what it means to be a champion. Just 29 years old, Lowe already is considered one of the greatest bareback riders in ProRodeo. He was the event’s rookie of the year in 2002, his first season to qualify for the Wrangler National Finals Rodeo. A year later, he won his first Professional Rodeo Cowboys Association world championship. In the decade since, he hasn’t missed an NFR and has added two more Montana Silversmiths gold buckles. Lowe’s legend continues to grow, and he’ll showcase his tremendous talent at the 2012 Ram National Circuit Finals Rodeo, set for March 29-April 1 at Jim Norick Arena at the Oklahoma State Fairgrounds in Oklahoma City. He earned the right to compete in the Sooner State’s capital city by winning the Texas Circuit’s year-end championship and claiming the average title with the best cumulative score at the Ram Texas Circuit Finals Rodeo, which took place in early January. “It’s a great accomplishment, especially in the Texas Circuit,” said Lowe, a Kansas-raised cowboy who moved south after graduating high school. “Texas is the toughest circuit, in my opinion. You’ve got bareback riders who have been to the NFR, and I’m really proud to be in that field. “There are some really good young kids through the Texas Circuit that are going to be really tough in the next couple of years.” The RNCFR is ProRodeo’s National Championship, where the very best competitors in the sport earn the right to play for one of the largest purses in the sport, more than $525,000. The event provides another prestigious championship event for rodeo-savvy Oklahoma City, the longtime host of the NFR and the Clem McSpadden National Finals Steer Roping. The 2012 event marks the second straight year the National Circuit Finals Rodeo is part of Oklahoma’s storied rodeo legacy. “The circuit system is such a great building tool for our sport,” said Lowe, who has qualified for circuit championship just twice in his storied career, the other occurring seven seasons ago. “This is the original extreme sport. For a cowboy that was working all day, this is what he got to do to blow of steam and show what he was worth. “I’ve always wanted to be a cowboy, and this is the most fun way to show it.” The RNCFR pits the top cowboys and cowgirls from the 12 regional ProRodeo circuits against one another in the battle for the national title. Contestants will compete in seven traditional rodeo events: bareback riding, saddle bronc riding, tie down roping, team roping, steer wrestling, barrel racing and bull riding. It is the perfect proving ground for young contestants who want to make it to an elite level, and having a three-time world champion in the mix is just further motivation for a growing youth movement. “Every time Will rides, it’s the same,” said Wes Stevenson, a seven-time NFR qualifier from Lubbock, Texas, who also travels with Lowe. “It doesn’t matter if it’s in the practice pen or for $100,000, it’s all the same.” That demeanor has carried Lowe quite well over the years, from his days riding ponies at youth rodeos. “When you turn 14, you start riding regular size horses,” said Will Lowe, who grew up in a Kansas suburb of Kansas City, Mo. “When I turned about 15 or so, I was in Oklahoma, Missouri or Iowa about every other weekend at the amateur rodeos. Even when I was on my (PRCA) permit, I was going to a lot of those amateur rodeos. There were a bunch of them fairly close, but you could make it to Oklahoma City in four and a half hours or so.” Rodeo was in his family’s blood. Not only were the kids active in the sport – Will competed in every event other than saddle bronc riding – but also the family had season tickets to the American Royal Rodeo. Even now, that hometown event is still a big part of the family’s life; Will’s older brother, Alex, is co-chairman of the American Royal’s rodeo committee. Still, Will Lowe moved onward and upward. He attended Vernon (Texas) College on a rodeo scholarship; the team won the national championship in his second year of riding bareback horses and wrestling steers – “I like to team rope, but it’s more of a hobby than a competition,” he said. He knew at a young age that he had a special talent for riding bucking horses. “With bareback riding, I always kind of excelled at it,” he said. Everyone else saw that, too. Many insiders to the game recognized his elite talent as an 18-year-old permit-holder. “Probably the biggest thing with him is his positive attitude and the thrill of winning,” Stevenson said. “I think the biggest thing I’ve seen is the father figure he is now where he is in his life, being a father himself. Everybody’s evolving, and change is inevitable. “Some people fight it, and some people embrace it. It seems like he’s embraced the changes in his life very well.” One thing that hasn’t changed is Lowe’s passion for the sport; he craves riding great bucking horses as much as he did a decade ago. “I think the main thing that’s changed is how good the livestock has gotten the last five years,” Lowe said. “Everyone’s trying to make rodeo better.” So is Will Lowe, one bucking horse at a time. RNCFR tickets are on sale now.  For more information, contact the Express-Lazy E at (405) 282-RIDE or (405) 232-GOAL.

It’s just a two-hour drive from Clint Cooper’s hometown of Lovington, N.M., to Odessa, Texas, home of the Sandhills Stock Show & Rodeo. But over the course of an 11-year ProRodeo career, Cooper has never won the January rodeo in this West Texas community best known for its high school football legacy. Now living in Decatur, Texas, like a great portion of his family, Cooper won the tie-down roping title at this year’s event. He placed in both go-rounds and earned more than $5,400. Cooper, a four-time qualifier to the Wrangler National Finals Rodeo, is one of three sons of legendary roper Roy Cooper to have qualified for ProRodeo’s championship event. Each of the past two seasons, Clint, Clif and Tuf have been part of the 15-man field in Las Vegas – this last year, Tuf, the youngest, won his first Montana Silversmiths gold buckle. Clint was the first of his siblings to qualify for the biggest event in the sport, earning a trip to the NFR in 2004. Now he wants to add his own gold buckle to the family’s trophy case. The win in Odessa is a good way to start this year’s battle for the championship.