Monthly Archives: December 2023

LAS VEGAS – Saddle bronc rider Wyatt Casper has been looking for his opportunity to show off. He got it during a special Wednesday morning performance of the National Finals Rodeo, riding Legacy Pro Rodeo’s Jitter Bug for 85 points, good enough for fifth in the sixth go-round, worth just shy of $8,000. “That horse gives you every opportunity to spur every jump and doesn’t have a trick to her,” said Casper of Miami, Texas. “It’s one of those rounds where you just get to let loose and have some fun.” He’s having a good time, but placing higher would give the Oklahoma Panhandle-raised cowboy a little better feeling. Through six rounds, he’s placed three times and earned $34,763 – $10,000 of that came as a bonus for being an NFR qualifier. Meanwhile, go-round winners are earning nearly $31,000 per night. The difference between his ride and the four men who earned more money in the morning session? While his horse was straight down the arena, the other four had mounts that offered a few more tricks. Scores are based on a 100-point scale, with half coming from how well the horse bucks and half from how well the cowboy rides in rhythm the bucking motion. “You can dang sure separate those horses that are a little more showy than the ones that don’t have anything to them,” Casper said. “I knew I’d be pretty close to getting a check. You can do that in most of these pens. You can pick out who’s got the strongest horse and who’s got the bottom of the pen. Even though it’s the NFR, there’s still a top and bottom to those pens.” The morning performance came because the opening night of the NFR was canceled after the deadly shooting last week on the UNLV campus. Contestants competed twice. There were two performances Wednesday to allow for the cowboys and cowgirls to still be part of all 10 rounds. It seems like a lot to get on two broncs in one day, but it’s just a different feel because of the magnitude of the NFR. During the summer run, contestants will make multiple rides or runs in the same day. “Usually over the Fourth of July, we try to enter Red Lodge, Montana; Cody, Wyoming; and Livingston, Montana, in the same day,” he said. “You’re also driving pretty fast to get to all those rodeos, and that’s three in a day. That’s a full day, so it’s nice to have a break between the two rounds here.”

LAS VEGAS – It’s been six years since Mason Clements made his National Finals Rodeo debut, and his first year was his best year. Until now. Through Wednesday morning’s sixth round, Clements has placed four times and earned more than $85,000 in the process. He won Sunday’s first round, then nabbed paydays the next three, including an 86-point ride on Stace Smith’s Risky Business to finish in a three-way tie for third place in the special performance. That was worth $13,042. “It’s been really fun, really awesome,” said Clements, a four-time NFR qualifier from Spanish Fork, Utah. “It’s cool to see it all come together, and you’re trusting exactly what you’ve been hard the last few months, then to see it start shaping up and paying off. That’s what I worked my butt off for the last few months is to feel this good in the middle of the NFR.”   How well? He has ridden six horses for a cumulative score of 513.5 points and is first in the aggregate race. Should he still be there by the time the championship ends Saturday night, he’ll add a $78,747 bonus for winning the average title. All that helps him as he battles for rodeo gold, the buckle presented to world champions. “I had written down that I wanted at least three round wins, and with being at the top of the average now, I’ve got a good foot on that going into the next four rounds,” he said. “My goal is to stay on top. It’s going to pay the winner no matter what. A gold buckle is what I’m chasing and, what the numbers are right now, it obviously feels good to see it and gives me that confidence. “I’m still nodding my head every night to win the round. That’s my goal … keep winning the round. If it helps me get the average win, that’s even better. An NFR average win is pretty badass, too.” Clements has earned $211,281 this season and has more chances to cash in. With go-round winners pocketing nearly $31,000 per night, he has a big chance to continue to cash in. If he gets on big-time buckers like Risky Business more often, he’ll put himself in position in a hurry. “It’s always exciting to get on a horse you’ve seen before but never rode,” Clements said. “You watch how guys ride him and how he reacts to the caliber of guy that gets on him. You want to make it how you ride, but you’re still taking bits and pieces of it, collaborating and making it your own when you get a chance. “It’s always back to the basics every time, whether its something I’ve been on or one that I know but haven’t.” His mindset is helping Clements make big money in Las Vegas. He’s been through all sorts of experiences at the National Finals Rodeo, and his mental approach is what is helping him find success in 2023. “I really enjoy hunting, and one of the things I do to stay in shape is hunt,” he said. “You’re doing a lot of walking, and in Utah, the Wasatch Front gets pretty steep in some spots and makes it interesting, and you get a pretty good workout. It’s also what helps keep me sane.”

LAS VEGAS – It doesn’t take long to turn everything around when things go right at the National Finals Rodeo. Tanner Aus has been in this situation before. He’d placed only once heading into Wednesday morning’s special performance, but he changed his perception on his week with an 87-point ride on Flying U Rodeo’s Little Red Hawk to share the sixth-round victory. To top it off, Little Red Hawk was his second of the morning; his first didn’t have a good day, so he made the most of his re-ride. “That first horse (Four Star Rodeo’s Rand The Man) is a great horse, but it didn’t have the trip it usually does for whatever reason,” said Aus of Granite Falls, Minnesota. “I was very thankful for the opportunity for another one, and I was going to take it no matter what it was. When I saw it was Little Red Hawk, I was pretty excited. “That’s a horse I’ve been on a few times, and I’ve been anywhere from 85 to 90 points on it. I knew it was a shot, and luckily I’ve got good friends. I went to strap on my rigging, and by the time I had my glove on, Tim O’Connell had my rigging pulled, so that was awesome. It was an awesome morning.” For sharing the round win, Aus collected $27.487 and pushed his NFR earnings to nearly $50,000. He is 12th in the world standings with $167,785. He’d hoped to cash in more than twice so far, but he’ll take all he can get. He doesn’t allow missed opportunities affect how he handles his business. “For me, it’s just getting back to the room with the family and recharging,” Aus said. “It’s easy to get discouraged here because the go-rounds happen to be back to back, but if you get stressed or if you get down on your luck and get in your head about it, it’s not going to help you at all. “You’ve got to always think about that 10th round no matter how the nine days before that goes. It’s a $100,000-added rodeo every day, and you’ve got a chance at $30,000 if you show up and do your job.” The morning performance is unprecedented a the NFR; the opening show was cancelled after the shooting on the UNLV campus last week, so in order to still conduct 10 rounds, organizers made plans for the special edition that featured only a few thousand fans – mostly friends and family members of the contestants – and was not open to the public. “I’m thankful the NFR continues to be at 10 rounds even with the tragedy that took place and the first round being canceled,” he said. “I think it’s the best-case scenario for the contestants, and I’m thankful to be part of something that’s never happened before, but the atmosphere this morning was unreal. It’s maybe a little bit less lights, a little less pyro, but it seems like the focus is so much more on what happens on the dirt.” He will get on his seventh horse Wednesday night and battle for the big bucks again. There are four more chances to earn more Las Vegas money. “Winning at the finals is what it’s all about,” Aus said. “Standing out in a pen that has guys that are here, that’s makes me feel rank, and that just has to do with my peers showing up ready to ride and having it be as tough as it’s ever been.”

Fundraising event to give portion to Montero Foundation LAS VEGAS – Rodeo is not only wildly fascinating and action-packed; it’s driven by passion. Cowboys play the game because of the rush they get and the people they meet. Bareback riders are the warriors, the men who wedge their specially designed gloves into a rigging that is strapped tightly to a bucking horse that issues pain on every jump and kick. The men band together like a fraternity of sorts. They share a kindred spirit and a dream of winning rodeo’s most cherished trophy, a Montana Silversmiths gold buckle. Whether they’re from California or Quebec, they have a bond, one they enjoy together at rodeos across North America. They’re not just old friends; they’re part of a unique family of athletes. Trenten Montero was a big part of that mix and shared that spirit with many others since he first set out in ProRodeo 11 seasons ago. Well-liked and gifted by God to do something he loved, Montero’s “goofy” nature was infectious. He died in August from injuries he suffered when a horse fell after a bareback ride, then rolled onto the cowboy. He was 31. Fellow bareback rider Mason Clements and others came up with the idea of the Trenten Montero Foundation, which was founded to assist cowboys and their families that are affected by career-ending injuries or death. Money raised will be put toward families’ necessities at a time when they may be devastated with the situations that can come up. The Cowboy Entrepreneur Foundation is conducting a fundraising at 7 p.m. Friday at the Westgate in Las Vegas in conjunction with the National Finals Rodeo. Money raised during its “Straight From The Horse’s Mouth” singer/songwriter showcase will be divided among three charities: Trenten Montero Foundation, Justin Cowboy Crisis Fund and the Working Ranch Cowboy Association Crisis Fund. “This is going to be a great event to help with funding for these groups, and we are thankful to be part of it,” said Clements, a four-time NFR qualifier from Spanish Fork, Utah. “All three of these foundations are pretty awesome. “There are some pretty cool auction items that will be part of it. NFR average champions and world champions will be putting their chaps, their boots, their vests. Wyatt and Reagan Bloom have donated trips to Hawaii. Those shirts that all the bareback riders wore on Memorial Night to honor Trenten are going to get cleaned, and everyone’s going to sign them, and they’re going to up there. There are a handful of steer wrestlers that will sign their blue shirts and have them in the auction.” The Trenten Montero Foundation has also enlisted in a QR code to help direct potential donors to its portal. All funds will be put toward the families that need them. “I’ve got people asking me all the time where they can donate,” Clements said. “It’s their NFR chaps. It’s their NFR riggings. (Fellow bareback rider) Caleb Bennett is going to give one of his jackets, and we’re all going to sign that. “That’s what rodeo is about, and how much we support each other. It’s going to great causes, and it’s going to be a heck of an event.”

LAS VEGAS – When a bolt of lightning fires, it can send shockwaves. Reigning world champion bareback rider Jess Pope got to experience that with Macza Pro Rodeo’s Stevie Knicks. The dark sorrel mare provided enough electricity to help produce an 88.5-point ride and push Pope to a third-place finish in Tuesday’s fifth round of the National Finals Rodeo. “She’s been around forever, and I’ve wanted to get on her so many times,” said Pope, 25, of Waverly, Kansas. “You can be the most amount of points on Stevie Knicks. I’ve been next to her name – (one spot from being matched via random draw) – four times, and it finally landed on mine this time. It was everything that I dreamed it would be.” The fifth and 10th rounds feature the top bucking horses and the bulls in the game. Each grouping is called the TV pen, which dates back to a time when only the final round was aired on national broadcasts. “It was a really tough bareback riding,” said Pope, who was bested by Oklahoman Jayco Roper and Californian Clayton Biglow, who shared the top spot with 89.5-point scores. “That’s our TV pen, and there are the best horses in the world in that pen. We put 20 of those together, and they are the highest-marked horses all year. “Stevie Knicks feels like a stick of dynamite going off underneath you. I’ve been on maybe one other horse my whole life that felt like her. She’s small and compact with the way she hits the ground and gets up in the air and uses her whole body. She extends her feet to kick and to move. It’s just a different feeling. She’s an amazing athlete. She’s a small horse that bucks like a big one.” He has placed in four of five rounds so far and has earned just shy of $70,000 since arriving in Las Vegas. It was the third time he’s placed third, which is worth $18,325. He has moved up four spots to sixth in the world standings with $196,975. The only round in which Pope hasn’t place came Monday. He was 81 points on Championship Rodeo’s Vegas Confused, and the bottom spot in the payout was 2.5 points higher. “They were second on that horse in the ninth round last year,” he said. “Just like people, everyone can have an off day, and she had an off day. There’s still a lot of money to be won out here. I’m very confident in my riding. I feel really good, and I feel strong. “I’ve got a new trainer, (fellow bareback rider) Caleb Bennett. He’s been training me for just under a year. I had asked him for a lot of advice throughout the last year, and I decided I was going to put my faith into him to be able to make sure I was in tip-top shape; he’s done an excellent job.” It’s paying off. The three-time NFR average champion is in position to repeat. He is fourth in the aggregate standings, just five points behind leader Mason Clements of Utah. Making rides like he did Tuesday can be beneficial by the time the curtain falls Saturday night. “That horse is very steep,” Pope said. “There were three or four jumps in the middle of the arena that I was tucking my chin, looking down at the ground rather than getting to see her head because she was breaking over her front end so hard that it really wants to throw you over the front. I was able to bear down and get through it.”

LAS VEGAS – When the best broncs in the world are featured at the National Finals Rodeo, everyone expects big moments and even bigger scores. Saddle bronc rider Wyatt Casper was in the mix, riding Calgary Stampede’s Xena Warrior for 87.5 points to finish in a tie for fourth place in Tuesday’s fifth round. That was worth $10,401 and provided the kind of boost he needed. “Honestly, I was surprised for that score to even get a check,” said Casper of Miami, Texas. “These TV pens that we put together are always pretty jam up. It was a lot of fun.” Reigning world champion Zeke Thurston won the round with a 91-point ride; there also were rides of 89.5 and 88.5 to better Casper. Still, it’s a solid score for a cowboy who is hoping to keep scratching toward the pay window. “It’s always nice whenever you can draw a Calgary horse in any round,” he said. “I know quite a bit about Xena. I got on him in Arlington (Texas) and won a round on him, so I’ve had a little bit of good history with him. I was pretty excited.” His previous ride on the Canadian horse came in the ninth round of the 2020 NFR, when the event took place at Globe Life Field because of COVID restrictions. They were 88 points three years ago, so the tandem remains consistent in how well they perform together. So far, he’s placed just one other time, finishing sixth in Sunday’s third round. “This week’s been good, but it’s been tough,” Casper said. “I’ve been having to learn a little patience. I’ve been trying to make something happen, and it doesn’t always work out. You just try not to let it go to your head and just keep doing your job.” His job is riding bucking horses, and he’s pretty good at it. The 2016 intercollegiate champion while at Clarendon (Texas) College has qualified for four straight NFRs. “My mental game is pretty good,” he said. “I lack it sometimes; I was getting pretty irritated the first four rounds, and I’ve just had to keep reminding myself that it’s a marathon, not a sprint. I just need to be patient, and one will run under me that’s going to buck and give me a chance. “I feel like I’m riding good. In fact. I feel like I’m riding better this year than I probably have at the last two finals. I’m still happy. I feel like I’m still in a good place. It just hasn’t happened, and some stuff you can’t make happen, especially in bronc riding. “There’s been two horses that I’ve had to bear down on, the second round and the fourth round. I felt really good on the other two. It’s just finding rhythm and drawing the right horses. That’s a big part of it.”

LAS VEGAS – When the official secretary posted the draw for Tuesday’s fifth round of the National Finals Rodeo, J.D. Struxness knew he had a big opportunity. He capitalized on it, posting the fastest steer wrestling run of this year’s championship by stopping the clock in 3.3 seconds to win $30,706 and earn another Montana Silversmiths go-round buckle. “We saw these steers in the second round, so we knew that the steer was pretty good,” Struxness said, noting that he visited with his hazer, NFR veteran Matt Reeves, about the draw. “We really liked him, and we talked about our game plan, then we executed it about perfect tonight.” It has to be that way to be just three-tenths of a second off the arena record, which was posted by Steve Duhon in 1986 and Bryan Fields in 2001. “That’s the best run I’ve made this week,” he said. “We knew we had a good steer, and we needed to hit the barrier and just rock down and get the nose hard. It seems so simple, but it’s hard sometimes. We got it done tonight.” He has executed well through the first five rounds. He’s placed four rounds, and in the one round he didn’t, a broken barrier for not giving the steer its appropriate head start negated a round-winning run. He has earned $88,747 since arriving in the Nevada desert and is now second in the world standings with $211,144. Struxness attended Missouri Valley College in Marshall, Missouri, then transferred to Northwestern Oklahoma State University, where he won the intercollegiate championship in 2016. A month later, he won the prestigious Cheyenne (Wyoming) Frontier Days title, and that helped catapult him to his first NFR While in Las Vegas that December, he won at least a share of four go-rounds and finished fourth in the world standings. He returned the next year, then came back in 2019 and 2022. His last buckle was from the fourth round in 2017. “It’s been a while since I won a go-round here,” said Struxness, a five-time NFR qualifier from Milan, Minnesota. “My mindset has changed a little bit. With having my girls, it became about making sure we make money out here, so you can’t cut loose as much as those first two years. “That was a little different for a while. That’s how life goes; you work through it all. We got back and got with the people we need to be with this year and got ourselves ready and prepared. We’re back firing and back ready to go again.”

LAS VEGAS – Coleman Proctor is no stranger to the nuances of the National Finals Rodeo. “It’s funny how you win money here once or win a go-round, and things just come back in your favor,” he said after Monday’s run of 4.3 seconds to finish fourth on Night 4 of team roping with his heeler, Logan Medlin. “It’s nice to get on a roll. “I didn’t do a very good job of scoring,” he said, referring to starting on time when the steer is released. “I missed the barrier pretty good. I had a steer I really liked, but I just didn’t trust myself scoring, and I missed the start a little bit, which then made my shot harder. (The steer) squared off, giving my partner a good shot to heel him.” The result was a second straight night of earning money; he and Medlin won Sunday’s third round after two no-scores to open this year’s championship. Since they arrived in Sin City, they have each earned nearly $54,000 – $10,000 of that came from bonuses they received for their qualifications. “Any time you’re trying to win a go-round at the National Finals, you can’t be as late as I was,” said Proctor, an eight-time NFR qualifier from Pryor, Oklahoma. “I was very fortunate that being late at the barrier just cost us winning a round instead. I’m glad to still get some money out of it. “It’s funny, because a guy can get out here to thinking about, ‘Oh, man, fourth,’ but yet I still won $13,000. Winning that kind of money the week of the Fourth of July is a pretty good Fourth, and you travel a lot further and have to beat a lot more guys for that kind of money. There’s just so much money in Vegas that it can skew your thinking a little bit. I’m certainly glad to be rocking and rolling.” They’re pushing toward the top of the world standings. Proctor is fifth on the heading money list with $187,071 and still has six rounds in which to collect Las Vegas money. “Any time you can get a check against the top 15 in the world, you’re doing a great job,” he said. “I was excited. I made a bobble, and I still cashed in for $13,000. “My roping feels really good. Everything’s felt good. My mental game feels great. I’m in a good place mentally every time I walk into the (roping) box. Physically I feel really good, and my horses feel great. What’s carried both me and Logan through the first few rounds was the preparation we’ve put into this. I mean, you come out here, and you dream of having the week that Clint Summers and Jake Long are having, but you have to take what you get.” Summers and Long have won three of the four rounds. Proctor and Long have been friends since childhood and even roped at the NFR together. There’s a bond they will always have, and seeing Long have so much success is good for Proctor’s soul. “Obviously it looks right now like Clint and Jake have a pretty good grasp on things, but you never know how it’s going to play out,” Proctor said. “I know how hard he’s worked at this, and I’m thrilled with the week they’re having, but we’re going to keep doing everything we can do to run them down.”

LAS VEGAS – In the grand scheme of the National Finals Rodeo, a sixth-place finish is better than most of the 15 in the field, but it’s small in comparison to round winners’ share of nearly $31,000. For bareback rider Dean Thompson, his 83.5-point ride on Cervi Championship Rodeo’s On Your Own was just what he needed, and that $4,963 will come in handy. “It’s a new rodeo every night,” said Thompson, 21, a first-time NFR qualifier from Altamont, Utah. “I learned that before tonight, but I do think that after the first round and the second round and the third round – especially the third round – I realized that it’s a new round every night. That’s the best part of it.” While he scored points in the opening two rounds, he placed down the list with a pair of 77s. He wasn’t able to muster a score in Round 3, which was his first attempt at riding in the eliminator pen at the NFR. By bouncing back Monday, and he finally exhaled a little bit. He also received a boost from veteran NFR tie-down roper Cory Solomon. “He said, ‘This is the craziest game I’ve ever watched happen; I’ve seen guys go five rounds in a row not winning a dollar and come back and win the last five rounds,’ ” Thompson said. “That hit me so hard to realize that literally every single night is a new opportunity.” He also received a jumpstart from the Golden Circle of Champions event that took place earlier this week; it raises awareness about pediatric cancer. “When you see something like that, you realize this is just a game,” he said. “This isn’t like a young person fighting for their life. This is a game with a lot of money, but it doesn’t compare.” Bareback riding is the most physically demanding event in rodeo, but there are no equal lines to children who are trying to be healed by medicines that make them sick. Families also suffer, so Thompson is happy to offer his platform to help draw more eyes to those who need support. When he nodded his head Monday night, he had that on his mind while finding out a little more about On Your Own. “I realized he was not a guarantee in this pen of horses,” Thompson said, noting that the fourth and ninth-round bareback horses are supposed to be the easiest ones in Vegas to ride. “He’s got a wild factor to him, and those that have a wild factor make it tough; they can be great and you can be 90 points, or they can be too wild and just fall around and you can be 80, or even 77 again. “He jumped out there, and I counted that changed leads eight times in eight seconds. He was just a fun little horse. His changing leads was really a big confidence boost. I feel great, and I feel ready.”   That’s key. Confidence drives consistency, and that’s how winners are developed. “It’s crazy how fast our brains tries to tell us we forgot how to play this game,” Thompson said. “I’ve been doing this all year long, but to come in here and sin some money, it’s a great stress reliever. I feel ready for the next one.”

LAS VEGAS – J.D. Struxness may have stumbled a bit during the third round of the National Finals Rodeo, but it didn’t keep him down. He rebounded with a 3.9-second run during Monday’s fourth go-round to finish second, earning $24,268. In all, he has earned $58,041 since arriving in Las Vegas. He is still very much in contention to win the world championship, and he’s not letting the circumstances that occurred Sunday bother him. “That steer just didn’t leave as sharp as the videos they showed,” Struxness said of his broken barrier, which penalized him 10 seconds; instead of winning the round in 4.1, he finished out of the money with 14.1. “That can happen out here, but you can’t back off the barrier because you don’t want to get to the other end of the arena.” Steers are given a head start, and the barrier system allows for that. By breaking the barrier, Struxness didn’t allow the steer the appropriate advantage. The penalty is sharp and pointed, but he is still in position to continue a hot streak he’s show. In his first four rounds, he’s placed three times. “That was just a little glitch in the game plan, but we were able to come back (Monday) and take advantage of what we had,” said Struxness, a five-time NFR qualifier from Milan, Minnesota. “Hopefully we’ve got things kicked back in the right direction.” It was a big round for the NFR alumni from Northwestern Oklahoma State University. Struxness, who became the school’s first intercollegiate rodeo national champion in 2016, was only bested by Bridger Anderson, who won the college title three years later. “That was a good night for old Northwestern,” Struxness said. “Bridger did a heck of a good job. I didn’t know that steer was as electric as Bridger made him look.” The Minnesota cowboy was wrapping his career when Anderson arrived on campus, so the two became close. They remain that way, with Struxness offering a bit of advice for the relative newcomer; Anderson is at the NFR for the second time. “I don’t ever want to get in the way, because we’re both in the top 15 and know what we’re doing, but I will just give him a few friendly words of advice. “The steer I had (Monday) was on the better half of the pen, so I was happy to have him,” he said. “I went out there, and I felt like we just did our job. I was able to pick up second, and we’ll just keep chipping away through the week.” He has confidence in himself and in Crush, his bulldogging mount owned by fellow NFR competitor Ty Erickson. “Crush worked really well,” Struxness said. “We broke the barrier (Sunday), but we’ve been fast for four straight.” Now, he’ll have five more days to build on his run in Las Vegas. “Having a good start the first half of the finals is awesome,” he said. “I did it the opposite way last year, and it felt like at the end you’re just scratching and clawing. This year, we are in a good spot, and we just keep climbing along, so we just need to keep doing our job and keep throwing steers down and let it all play out.”

LAS VEGAS – The training he received at the College of Southern Idaho in Twin Falls provided the perfect foundation for bareback rider Mason Clements. He’s built upon it and has been one of the top cowboys in the game since. A four-time National Finals Rodeo qualifier from Spanish Fork, Utah, Clements rode J-Bar-J Pro Rodeo’s Gronk for 85.5 points to finish in a three-way tie for second place in Monday’s fourth go-round. After not finding success on the first two nights of ProRodeo’s grand finale, he’s earned nearly $50,000 in two nights. He won the third round, then added $18,490 the next performance. He’s moved up five spots to sixth in the world standings with $185,362. “Winning the round (Sunday) was a special night,” he said. “I get the go-round win, and I got to bring my brand new little girl, my wife and my family on the South Point stage for the buckle presentation. I was just trying to soak it in as much as I could.” That provided a little motivation and a lot of momentum as he continues to battle during the week. He didn’t know a lot about the horse he had in the fourth round, though. He asked others, and he got a good indication of what he needed to do. “He made a big rear out, and I could really squeeze my feet, and then gave me the opportunity to look down the mane and see exactly where I wanted to put my spurs every time,” Clements said. “On that second jump, we were just tapped off and in time with each other. You really get to turn your toes out and look at exactly where you’re going to put your spurs every time. “At this point in my career, I can see it and feel it. That’s one of those horses that you can really clean up some things in your riding, do some work to clean up your form and your riding. It’s really fun, and I get to do it for quite a bit of money at the NFR.” It goes back to the fundamentals he learned when he first started riding bucking horses. He was able to build on one big ride and hopes to continue to put forth those types of scores through the remaining six go-rounds. “When you make a good ride, especially in (Sunday’s) eliminator pen, you know you’ve got all the confidence in the world,” Clements said. “You step in those iconic yellow chutes and see all the lights and the smoke go up, and you look out and realize that what you’ve been doing all year long is paying off and you’re where you need to be doing what you chose to do.” The life of a rodeo cowboy isn’t easy. Men travel tens of thousands of miles a year in order to ride bucking horses for a living. They’re gone from home, which is especially tough now that Clements has a wife and daughter there waiting on him. Only the top 15 earn the right to play the game in Las Vegas, and Clements was on the outside looking in until the final day of the regular season. He won the title at the Cinch Playoffs Series Championship to earn nearly $29,000 and earn his return trip to the City of Lights.   “When you’re driving down the road, the tank is low, you’re in the middle of nowhere and you’re tired, but you’ve got two more hours to go before you can lay your head down, being here drives you,” he said. “Then you realize when you get here that’s what you get to do and one go-round can take you from the bottom of the pack back to the top.”

Cinch NFR qualifiers recount the day of the UNLV shooting It was a typical Wednesday, the day before the start of the National Finals Rodeo. One-hundred-nineteen contestants were at the Thomas & Mack Center with family members and friends, rehearsing for the event’s grand entry. Shots rang out in the Frank and Estella Beam Hall, just a couple of buildings away. A gunman, identified by police as 67-year-old Anthony Polito, was the alleged mass assailant, killing three UNLV faculty members and injuring another. Campus officials and police responded quickly; cowboys, cowgirls and others were quarantined inside the arena for their safety while first responders took action.  “Hats off to Randy Corley and everybody that was there announcing, because they did a really good job of conducting us,” said Cinch saddle bronc rider Kade Bruno, 23, a two-time NFR qualifier from Challis, Idaho. “They didn’t come right out and tell us there was an active shooter, but they said there was a situation outside.” “They hustled us into the tunnel and were asking us to get in the arena,” said Cinch steer wrestler Jacob Talley, 32, a five-time NFR qualifier from Keatchie, Louisiana. “They were pretty vague about what was going on, but we all started looking up on the news and family started calling asking if everybody was OK. “Once you realized what was going on, you’re worried about the people outside. You didn’t even know where it was or how close it was, but it breaks your heart for the people outside that somebody was doing what they were doing.” The emotions were high, but both cowboys and most of the others in the building remained calm. There was fear of the unknown, but they tried to handle the situation as best as they could. The 119 NFR contestants took the traditional photos and were going about the business that they could. “We were just going to grand-entry practice, and a lot of us were still sitting outside waiting to get started, and they called everybody in,” said Cinch tie-down roper Kincade Henry, 21, a two-time NFR qualifier from Mount Pleasant, Texas. “You could see the choppers flying around, and there was an alarm in the background, but I honestly didn’t think anything of it until they asked us to come into the arena. “We took event group pictures and all that stuff, and everybody was just hanging out for about an hour and a half. A buddy of mine was walking around looking out the windows, and he saw the SWAT team pull up.” SWAT officers entered the building and cleared it, but there were some intense moments inside the Thomas & Mack for everyone involved. Once armed enforcers made their way around the 18,000-seat arena, the emotions escalated. “Me, my girlfriend, my sister and my driver all jump on the arena dirt, and people are kind of scattering, and that’s when I realized this might be real,” Henry said. “It got pretty intense fast.” Minutes later, they were told to exit the arena, where officers helped everyone walk back to the stalls, which are west of the arena but still on the UNLV campus. “When they brought us inside, they told us it would be only about 20 to 30 minutes, but it was pretty scary,” Bruno said. “The shooter wasn’t in the Thomas & Mack, but just knowing what was going on outside and we were just stuck in there was pretty nerve-wracking. We were just hoping and praying for the best and that everybody was alright.” Because of the shooting, UNLV closed operations for the rest of this week. That forced the cancelation of Thursday’s opening performance. Boards from the PRCA and Las Vegas Events met Thursday morning to decide how to handle the NFR. The first round took place Friday night, and an additional performance that will not be open to the public will take place at 10 a.m. Wednesday. A moment of silence was held prior to the opening night. “I wasn’t sure how they would handle that,” Bruno said. “I know they wanted to avoid weekends; there’s an NFL game this weekend, so they didn’t want to try to have another round over that. I think they handled it probably the best they could. Ten o’clock in the morning is pretty early to get up and ride broncs, but we’ll make it work. “We’re just thankful at the end of the day we’re going to have 10 rounds and that it could have been worse. Our thoughts and prayers go out to the families affected, but we’re happy to have 10 rounds.” “I’m happy with the way they handled it,” Henry said. “The family members and friends of the people that lost their lives and all the students deserved a break and deserved the recognition for what they’ve been through.” There is a great deal of emotion in and around Las Vegas this December. Flags are flying at half staff around this city. Lives were lost, hearts are broken, but people are resilient. The National Finals Rodeo will continue and with it, a piece of Americana will be shared with the world. “It’s different, but at least we get to compete 10 times,” Talley said. “It’s bad for what happened, and you don’t want to take away from the families and the people that lost someone close to them. It’s a bigger situation than us just getting to rodeo. “It’s just my opinion, but people that do that want to take over and try to create fear. I believe the best thing that could have happened was still have a rodeo Thursday night and to show that there are crazies in the world trying to hurt people, but we’re not going to give into that fear.”

LAS VEGAS – There are a lot of thrills that come with competing at the National Finals Rodeo. It’s the world’s richest rodeo, with go-rounds paying nearly $100,000 for 10 performances. Bridger Anderson is getting to experience many of them in his first NFR at Las Vegas; his first qualification came in 2020, when the finale took place in Arlington, Texas, because of COVID restrictions. On Monday night, he wrestled his steer to the ground in 3.5 seconds, the fastest run so far at this year’s championship, to win the fourth round. That was worth $30,706. He also was presented his Montana Silversmiths go-round buckle at the South Point Casino and Resort during a special ceremony for winners each night. “I’m looking forward to getting that buckle and talking on that stage,” said Anderson, the 2019 intercollegiate bulldogging champion from Carrington, North Dakota. “It’ll be great getting all the family on stage and introducing them.”   He won his national title while competing at Northwestern Oklahoma State University, which was well represented in the money. Fellow steer wrestler J.D. Struxness, who won his intercollegiate crown in 2016, finished second, and header Coleman Proctor finished fourth in team roping. “When I first got down there to Alva, I lived with J.D., practiced and rodeoed with him,” Anderson said. “It’s cool to be able to compete against a lot of the Northwestern bulldoggers that went down there, too; they were the ones I used to get beat by.” He knew he had a solid opportunity when he arrived at the Thomas & Mack Center just by looking at the steer he had drawn. “I knew he was going to be great,” he said. “That steer wants to sit down a little bit and throw his head back at you. He kind of caught Will Lummus in the first round, and I had everybody telling me what I needed to do.” Anderson and his hazer, NFR veteran Clayton Hass, made a game plan, and then they went to work. Hass was riding a horse named Metallica, owned by Tyler Pearson, and Anderson was riding his own horse, Whiskers. “We executed the plan the way we wanted, and I knew we had a good shot at it,” said Anderson, who pushed his NFR earnings to $53,583 and his annual salary to $139,094; he is 11th in the world standings, three spots up from where he began last week. “Whiskers is firing, feeling great, and Clayton is doing a great job. We couldn’t ask for anything better.”

LAS VEGAS – On his way to Las Vegas a week ago, Leighton Berry started showing flu-like symptoms. By the time he arrived, his fever was high. Body aches and other nastiness came. He still wasn’t feeling well when the first round began Friday night. He wasn’t much better Saturday, Still, he placed in both rounds. He started feeling like himself Sunday, just in time for the eliminator pen of bareback horses. “We got about six or seven hours into our 18-hour drive – I can usually drive all day and all night, and when you’re driving to the bright lights of Las Vegas, you’re just wanting to get there,” said Berry, 24, a four-time National Finals Rodeo qualifier from Weatherford, Texas. “It’s just me and my lady, and I usually don’t have her drive too much. “I ended up noticing I was running a fever, so she drove more than normal. We got out to Vegas, and I instantly just started trying to pump medicine in me.” His health and his mentality are even better after posting an 87.5-point ride on Frontier Rodeo’s Painted Smoke to win Monday’s fourth go-round. That was worth $30,706. All told, he’s earned just shy of $50,000 during the first four nights in Las Vegas. That’s pushed his season earnings to $206,751, and he sits third in the world standings. “It’s awesome to get a go-round win here,” Berry said. “It really boosts your confidence moving onto the next round, especially when you’ve got the ones you dream about coming up the next day. We’re fixing to get on a lot of horses in the next five days.” That’s true. Because the opening round was delayed a day after the shooting on the UNLV campus last week, the sixth go-round will take place Wednesday morning; the seventh round will occur at its normal time that night. That means all contestants in the field will compete twice that day. “We’ve got our hands full, so to get some momentum rolling before all that and before the TV pen (Tuesday) helps me feel like I’m on top of the world. I’ve finally got some strength in my body and a clear mind and a full heart,” Berry said. “In the E pen, I finally had some strength, but I didn’t quite have the dancing partner I wanted. “Tonight, I was feeling normal, feeling like I had the dancing partner that I would pick a million times over.”    Painted Smoke is a powerful palomino paint from Frontier, the Oklahoma-based firm that is the eight-time and reigning PRCA Stock Contractor of the Year. “That horse gave me everything I expected and more,” he said. “Just watching that horse, I know he leaves the box hard, and I know he kicks hard for 10 seconds. You don’t have to worry about that horse weakening. When you come to the NFR and you get the One-Pen horses (the easiest-to-ride broncs at the NFR), you’re looking for that horse that’s going to start and finish strong. “When I had my name next to the paint horse, I just knew I was damn sure going to have a chance, and I knew I just needed to keep my chin down and set my feet and do my job. When things are on your side, they’re on your side, so we’re just going to keep that momentum rolling.”

LAS VEGAS – Whether it’s on a football field in Pendleton, Oregon, or a baseball diamond in Arlington, Texas, or t a basketball arena in the City of Lights, Jess Pope will ride bucking horses anywhere. On Sunday night, he rode Championship Pro Rodeo’s Meat Cracker for 84.5 points to finish sixth in the third round of the National Finals Rodeo. He is three for three so far at the NFR, and the $4,953 he pocketed for that ride pushed his Sin City earnings to $51,602; he is fifth in the world with just shy of $180,000 on the season. “It’s always a hard round,” Pope said, referring to the eliminator pen of bucking horses that are featured in Rounds 3 and 8. “Everyone’s sore from the first two. These will jerk it out of us. These are the hardest horses that we can put together. They’re the horses nobody wants to get on.” It was also Memorial Night, where qualifiers who have died are remembered. One was Trenten Montero, who was killed in a rodeo accident in the arena this past August at the age of 31. All 15 qualifiers reflected on his passing and the kind of human being he was. Montero qualified for the 2019 finale. “I’m wearing blue for Trenten,” said Pope, the reigning world champion from Waverly, Kansas. “If there was a bareback rider who didn’t have a tear in his eye after that opening, I’ll be shocked. It was really hard to try to come back from that. “I was the 11th guy out, and you’ve still got to try to gather yourself back up. You’re also getting on the baddest bucking horses in the eliminator pen. You have to try to go from that to being in killer mode. It’s tough. It takes a very mentally strong human, and with those guys were all out before I was, I’m impressed with how mentally strong they are.” A good mental approach is important in rodeo, whether the cowboys are getting on the hardest-to-ride broncs in the business or traveling overnight from one rodeo to another. It’s a cornerstone to why Pope has been so successful, especially when he arrives at the NFR. He’s a three-time and reigning average champion – as a four-time qualifier, he doesn’t know what it’s like not to win the aggregate title. With seven rounds remaining, he’s a long way from grabbing a fourth. He has ridden three horses for a cumulative score of 254 points; he’s just a half point behind the average leaders, Wyoming cowboy Cole Reiner and Utahan Mason Clements, the latter of whom won the round. Pope was content in having a solid ride on a bronc he knows well. “That horse has never had the same trip twice,” he said. “You just never know what she’s going to do. I was pretty nervous to get by that one, because of how small she is and how big I am. She definitely bucks; she’s really fast, and you’ve got to be doing everything fully correct to make it happen.”

LAS VEGAS – At the National Finals Rodeo, momentum can swing in either direction. It’s trending upward for steer wrestler Stephen Culling, who grappled his animal to the ground in 4.3 seconds to finish in a tie for second place during Sunday’s third round. That was worth $21,296 and pushed his Sin City earnings to nearly $34,000 in three days of work. He also has the fourth-fastest cumulative time on three runs. All told, his season earnings have risen to $137,799. He is 10th in the world standings. “I wanted to get a good start, and I knew I had a pretty good steer,” said Culling, 30, of Fort St. John, British Columbia. I got a good start, and the steer was just laid up toward (hazer) Tanner (Milan) just a little bit. Tanner did a good job of getting in position and getting him picked back up. It just strung me out just a hair, and I was scrambling for a second. “The steer was great, and I managed to pull a little bit of a check.” Actually it was a pretty good check, a nice chunk of change for a few seconds of work. Competing at the NFR for the first time, the cowboy who attended Western Oklahoma State College and Northwestern Oklahoma State University on rodeo scholarships is learning about the championship as he goes. Milan offers a bit of help. In addition to being the hazer and owning the horse Culling is riding, he has some inside information to share when necessary. The mount is Eddie, the 2023 Steer Wrestling Horse of the Year. Having that kind of equine power under him is also a blessing for Culling. “Riding Eddie and having Tanner on the other side is huge,” Culling said. “Tanner is riding that great horse, Kirk, which is owned by Matt Reeves. It’s a great combination. I never think twice about having Tanner over there. He puts more confidence in me than anything, and he’s been there for me pretty well from the get-go when I started. “Tanner’s helped me out for forever, and I’m just pretty awed to get the opportunity to get to travel with them and rodeo with them and have a guy like Tanner standing in your corner. That’s huge for someone’s confidence.” There are 60 steers for the bulldoggers in Las Vegas, and they have been separated into pens to try to give each of the competitors as even of a chance to win as possible. Sunday’s pen was the stronger set of steers. The cowboys will run them again in the sixth and ninth rounds. “We knew they were going to be a little stronger, but they weren’t as strong on the run as we were thinking,” he said. “They were just a little bit wild on the ground, and there was a little bit of everything that showed up.” Culling has had some big wins in his career, including the title at the 2022 Ponoka (Alberta) Stampede. By sharing second place Sunday, he caught the biggest one-run paycheck of his career. “I’ve won quite a bit out of Ponoka, but this one has a little different feel to it,” Culling said. “We get to do it seven more times to make it more exciting.”

LAS VEGAS – Bridger Anderson has found his rhythm at the National Finals Rodeo. After suffering two no-times to kickstart ProRodeo’s grand championship, he bounced back with a 4.7-second run to finish fourth in Sunday’s third go-round, pocketing $12, 877 and earned some well-timed momentum in Las Vegas. “It’s not the way we wanted to start the finals, but we were getting good starts,” said Anderson, 25, of Carrington, North Dakota. “We had one that ran (in the third round) and maybe missed the barrier a little bit, but we got him caught and got him mucked down to break the ice.” It’s his first payday competing at the NFR in Las Vegas. His first qualification to the championship came in 2020, when the finale took place in Arlington, Texas, because of COVID restrictions. He’d spent a lifetime dreaming about running steers inside the Thomas & Mack Center, the 10-day event’s home since 1985. He’s been faster than he was Sunday and won a lot less money at rodeos across the country, and he had to beat a lot more than the top 15 cowboys in steer wrestling to do it. Round 3 featured the strong pen of steers, so being among the leaders was a big deal. “We’ll take every dollar we can get,” he said. Riding his horse, Whiskers, with veteran Clayton Hass hazing on Tyler Pearson’s Metallica offers Anderson a bit of comfort. Hass has competed at the NFR before and is one of the top hazers in ProRodeo. “Hass is amazing, and Metallica is arguably one of the best haze horses ever to do it,” he said. “I’m pretty confident in the team we have out here.” He’s also secure in his own abilities and his mental approach. That came in handy after his early struggles. “The first two nights are regardless of what we’re doing now,” Anderson said. “The starts are fast enough at this rodeo that there’s no different game plan other than to try to blow the barrier out and make a good run. You’ve got to beat 14 guys for ($30,706) every night. It’s the best rodeo, and each night is better than any other rodeo. “We go all year to get here, so take it one night at a time. Whatever happened last night is irrelevant. We just keep rolling, and hopefully we can get a little momentum as long as it’s going good.” They key to success in any athletic endeavor is to remain mentally strong. “You have to take the positives,” he said. “When you get to Vegas the first time, it’s really tough to get the start. I feel like we did a good job of that, even the first two nights. We decided that as long as we get good starts and the horses keep working good like they have been, they’re not going to be able to starve me forever. I just try to do the best I can.” He has seven more go-rounds to make it happen.

LAS VEGAS – Every cowboy who makes a living in rodeo keeps plenty busy. They travel extensively just to make a living, covering tens of thousands of miles a year going from one rodeo to another. They only make money when they finish better than most in the field. First place is always the goal, but third-place pays well, too. Mason Clements stacked the deck for himself this year, though. After fellow bareback rider Trenten Montero died in August after being involved in a wreck in the arena, Clements joined others in mourning his friend, then he sought a way to ease the pain for those closest to those lost. “The Trenten Montero Foundation is for the cowboys that sacrifice everything,” said Clements, a four-time National Finals Rodeo qualifier from Spanish Fork, Utah, who sits on the organization’s board. “It’s to take care of the families that are so devastated by career-ending injuries and, obviously, death, like what we just experienced with Trenten sacrificing that in the arena. “We all got together around the IHOP table in Ellensburg (Washington) and said it was time for a change; it’s time to have more resources available. When things like this happen, it shouldn’t take months and months for a family to be squared away with everything they have to do. They should have time to grieve and not worry about what’s coming and how they’re going to handle it. They need time to be with their families and then they need psychological help and other resources that could be available to them.” During Sunday’s third go-round, rodeo celebrated Memorial Night and honored those former NFR qualifiers and other dignitaries close to the championship. It was quite fitting that Clements won the round, scoring 88.5 points on Frontier Rodeo’s Breaking News to pocket $30,706. It was his first payday of this year’s finale. “I truly don’t have any words for that,” he said. “That one was for Trenten Montero and his family to remember his name. That’s also for the Golden Circle of Champions, all those kids that have been diagnosed with cancer and have to fight for their lives every day. My heart goes out to them. It makes walking in here for the eliminator pen tonight much easier.” An adjustment to his equipment also helped. He made a rigging change Saturday, and a brand-new rigging needed to be broken in. One ride did it, and he was set up for success Sunday. “You prepare for this for two months, and your equipment should be the last thing you’re thinking about when you get here,” Clements said. “I finally found what I needed as far as a rigging goes. Coming into tonight, it was alright; that took care of the issue, and it felt much better. It showed in my ride, because I can move my feet that much faster and go that much harder.” It even worked in the eliminator pen, the set of horses known for being the hardest to ride.   “When I dream of riding bucking horses, I dream of those kinds of horses, the dragons, the eliminator pen, because one wrong you will make you look silly, and you’re at the mercy of the horse at that point,” he said, who won the fourth NFR go-round of his career, the first since 2018. “You will not get any opportunity to get it back once it’s taken on these kinds of horses. It’s important to get that first punch.”

LAS VEGAS – When cowboys arrive at in Sin City, they know the competition will be tough. Only the top 15 contestants in each event qualify for the National Finals Rodeo, so it’s a showcase of the sport’s elite from that year. Now in his fourth trip to the championship, Wyatt Casper understands that well. “I’ve been riding well, but I just needed something to happen,” he said. That came Sunday night, when he rode Corey & Lange Rodeo’s Diamond Fever for 85.5 points to finish in a tie for fifth place in the third go-round. It was his first time in the money since the rodeo began, and it offered a bit of relief. “It took until Round 3, but we finally got a paycheck,” said Casper of Pampa, Texas. “Yeah, we’re excited. Anytime you can get a check out here. It feels good.” There are more than 600 PRCA rodeos across the country, and winning most of them would offer a smaller payday than the $6,438 he collected in Las Vegas. It’s a significant amount of money for one eight-second ride, but it pales in comparison to the $30,706 that goes to each night’s winner. The NFR offers an impressive payout, issuing nearly $100,000 per day for 10 nights. By earning money on the third day of competition, Casper pushed his yearly income to just shy of $160,000. He is 12th in the world standings. “I felt like I was riding good the first two nights,” said Casper, 27, of Miami, Texas. “We’re just going to carry it over into these next couple of rounds. You want to get the good draws and show what you can do.” Sunday’s battle with Diamond Fever was a rematch. The two danced across the Thomas & Mack Center floor at the 2021 NFR, and Casper was 84 points. He didn’t earn any money that night, so there were a lot of positive steps over time. “I wouldn’t say I was really excited about drawing him,” Casper said. “It’s not really a horse that fits my style. I’m a bigger guy, and he is a little bitty thing. I’m still glad it all worked out.” The ride also boosts his confidence. Originally from the tiny community of Balko, Oklahoma, he will have his biggest battle at this NFR during Monday’s fourth round. He will be matched with Championship Pro Rodeo’s Tickled Pink, which is part of the eliminator pen, the hardest-to-ride broncs at the NFR. “We’re going to cross our fingers and hopefully draw of the better ones out of that pen so we can make some points,” said Casper, the 2016 intercollegiate champion at Clarendon (Texas) College. “You just want to stay aboard and hopefully get to the South Point.” The casino and resort on the south side of The Strip is rodeo central during the NFR and hosts the nightly Montana Silversmiths Go-Round Presentation. Nightly winners will be awarded buckles and celebrated on stage. It’s where every contestant in the field wants to be on any given night, and it’s another attractive feature to competing on ProRodeo’s biggest stage.

LAS VEGAS – Coleman Proctor has done this dance before. He and his partner, heeler Logan Medlin of Tatum, New Mexico, suffered no-times in the first two go-rounds of the National Finals Rodeo. It’s frustrating and disappointing, but it’s also part of the sport. They didn’t dwell on it. In fact, they built off it. They posted a 3.7-second run to win the third round team roping, and each pocket $30,706. It was a much-needed night of success for the cowboys that are roping at their third straight NFR together. “When you miss the first ones, the pressure’s definitely off,” said Proctor, an eight-time qualifier from Pryor, Oklahoma. “That’s absolutely not how we drew it up in our heads, but that’s how the cookie crumbles somethings. If you’re going to rodeo for a living, you’ve got to learn to be mentally tough. “I told my wife this morning that I’m just going to lean on the fact that we’re as prepared as I’ve ever been coming here. The horses are better than they’ve ever been, and Logan and I are more mature and understand our run. I know that we’re going to get tapped off at this place. The Thomas & Mack can mount so much pressure on you.” By bouncing back so fast, Proctor moved up to fourth in the heading world standings; he has earned $174,194 so far this season, and he has seven more rounds to capitalize on the world’s richest rodeo. He is less than $15,000 behind the No. 1 man on the money list, Nelson Wyatt. “Your whole year is wrapped up into this week, and you don’t want to let anybody down,” he said. “You want to do a great job, and when it goes in the wrong direction, it’s easy to start searching for answers. I told my wife that I was going to be the definition of tenacious about staying with our plan. We’re ready. We practiced really hard for six weeks. We wanted to come out here and battle for a gold buckle, and it’s absolutely still in sight.” Rodeo can test anyone’s mental fortitude, and it’s especially true in team roping. It’s the only event where cowboys must rely on a partner to succeed. They travel the rodeo trail together, and their relationships can be affected by that in a multitude of ways. “Logan and I are always there for each other,” Proctor said. “Neither of us ever expects the other one to miss. It happens. Logan Medlin is the best heeler in the world, and he’s got the best horses. We’re a great team.” Medlin isn’t the only one on the team that’s well-mounted. Proctor has a lot of faith in his horse Heisman, a 15-year-old bay gelding. “Heisman’s been so great here about getting me out of the barrier with a chance to win some money,” Proctor said. “Every time I’ve rode him, I’ve always had a chance, and he does a great job of maneuvering the left wall, the tight conditions here. He gives my partner a chance to set his rope down fast. “Heisman is the big reason why I’m so successful in this building. I’m so excited to be getting to ride him for the next six days.”

LAS VEGAS – While he gets all the glory when things go right and takes the blame when they don’t, J.D. Struxness isn’t competing alone this week. He has a large team that supports him, but also he has a handful to help him, including Ty Erickson, who owns Crush, the horse Struxness is riding, and Matt Reeves, who is hazing while riding his horse, Kirk, an 11-year-old sorrel gelding. That bond is working well so far at the National Finals Rodeo. Struxness placed for the second straight night with a 4.1-second run to finish in a tie for second place during Saturday’s second round. “I thought the steer I had (Saturday) was just OK, but I was able to place on it,” said Struxness of Milan, Minnesota, now living in Perrin, Texas. “I didn’t think 4.1 was going to place that high, but that’s how everything worked out. “The horses worked good. There are a few things to do to clean up the run, but we didn’t make too big of mistakes, so we were able to sneak in there for the money. We’ll take two rounds in a row. His run on Night 2 was worth $21,296 and pushed his season earnings to $156,169. He sits fourth in the world standings and is continuing to build momentum. Part of that is studying his run with an objective eye to decipher what he may do a little better the next time to stop the clock a few ticks faster. “You’ve got to celebrate the victories,” he said. “Then you’ve got to make sure that you pick apart what you did so you can be ready if you run across that situation again and try to capitalize on it a little better. You’ve got to be a bit picky on yourself but not too picky that you drive yourself into the ground.” When the times come that he nods his head to start his run at the Thomas & Mack Center, he knows he can trust his team. Over the few weeks prior to the NFR’s start, Erickson, Reeves and Struxness trained together to make sure they were all on the same page once they arrived in the Nevada desert. “Matt has a nice horse over there, and he does a good job out here in Vegas,” Struxness said of Reeves, an eight-time qualifier who won the 2019 NFR average champion. “We spent a couple of weeks practicing together. We’ve got a feel for each other, know the situations, and I know he’s going to be right there and read us pretty good. “It’s working out well so far, so hopefully the horses and everything keep working like they do. If that happens, it could be a good week.”

LAS VEGAS – While most people come to this shiny, desert town for fun and frivolity, reigning world champion bareback rider Jess Pope considers it a business trip. He’s definitely doing his job inside the Thomas & Mack Center during the opening two days of the National Finals Rodeo. He has finished third two nights in a row, with his most recent coming after an 84.5-point ride on Rafter G Rodeo’s Ankle Biter. He earned another $18,325 and pushed his NFR earnings to $46,650 – all contestants also receive a $10,000 qualifying bonus. “The nice thing about rodeo is you don’t always have to win first,” said Pope, 25, of Waverly, Kansas. “A guy can’t win first all the time, but you kind of stay under the radar when you’re second or third, and it still pays a ton of money, especially out here.” Pope has pushed his season earnings to nearly $175,000 and has moved up five spots to fifth in the world standings with eight nights remaining in the 2023 campaign. “It’s pretty amazing,” he said. “It’s something a guy works hard for all year, so it’s really nice to be able to get here and get rewarded for it. I got a lot of confidence out of my first-round ride. I’ve been off since October first. I got on two practice horses since then, so it’s always a little nerve-wracking to get on the first one. “It feels good to get it knocked out, and now you just get into a routine and go to work. You ride it and enjoy it while you can.” In addition to his world title a year ago, Pope has won the last three NFR average titles. After just two nights, he is in the aggregate race. It’s way too early to be concerned with that. With go-rounds paying nearly $31,000 to each day’s winners, there are great opportunities to cash in.   Round 3 will feature the hardest-to-ride bucking horses in the game, the eliminator pen. Tensions rise, because the bareback riders realize they’ll be matched with an animal that likes to fight. Las Vegas is the perfect place to host that kind of bout. “You’re always excited getting on, and now we’re going into the eliminator night tomorrow,” Pope said. “That’s always an exciting night.”

LAS VEGAS – Just looking at Big Stone Rodeo’s Fired Up, Richmond Champion felt the nerves creeping up. “He’s kind of intimidating,” said Champion, a bareback rider from Stevensville, Montana. “He looks like there’s a lot going on, but Caleb (Bennett) told me today, ‘Dude, that horse feels so good. He’s fast, and it feels like there’s a ton going on underneath you, but it feels good.’ ” Champion trusted his eye test and chose to just grit his teeth and handle the fight the horse was about to provide. He was a bit stunned when the animal started bucking. “Caleb was right, and that’s exactly what he was,” he said. “He was a big empty, wild jump, and then he was just really fast and hits funny, but he sends your feet. I was trying to be really quick to keep up with him, then all of the sudden, the whistle blows and you’re like, “Whoa, what just happened?’ ” He and Fired Up matched moves for 84 points and finished in a tie for fourth place in Saturday’s second round and pushed his NFR earnings to nearly $27,000 in two days – that money also includes a $10,000 bonus every contestant receives for qualifying. Champion has moved up two spots to 13th in the world standings with $138,527. “I’ve got nothing to lose this year,” he said. “I’m just having fun, and I want to climb that ladder and see what I can do in 10 days.” He missed last year’s championship after having neck surgery in March 2022; neck injuries are a common predicament for bareback riders. He’s been back to work all year, but he made sure to take care of his health to ensure his place among the elite cowboys in the game. “I’m definitely feeling a little tighter through my shoulders today, but that’s very normal for this stage of the NFR,” said Champion, now at his eighth NFR. “I’ve felt way worse here after Day 2 than I do right now. I’m feeling good, and I’ll get a little movement tomorrow beforehand, and then it’s bring on the buckers.” The third round of bareback riding features the eliminator pen, the hardest-to-ride bucking horses in ProRodeo. The intensity changes a bit amongst the top 15 cowboys, because they know they will be in for a heavyweight bout. He’ll work up a little sweat and prepare his mind and body for the fight ahead. Most of all, he’ll enjoy the day with his wife, Paige, and their son, Forrest, who just turned 3 months old. “We finally got him to the point where he’s not supper fussy and it doesn’t take too much to put him to sleep,” said Champion, who has helped calm his baby boy by walking around his Montana house. “Those 40-mile walks a day drastically dropped off at home, then you feel like you’re walking 40 miles around here. “It’s still an awesome experience.”

LAS VEGAS – When Tanner Aus was a little boy, he watched his dad ride bareback horses and thought about how much fun it would be to follow in those footsteps. In the years since, he’s been one of the very best in the game, having qualified for ProRodeo’s championship event, the National Finals Rodeo, eight times. At 33, he still loves what he does and has fun doing it. Such was the case with his 84-point ride on Korkow Pro Rodeo’s Dixies Gravy to finish in a tie for fourth place in Saturday’s second go-round. “That’s really fun to have a horse that you’ve got a chance on and to be able to place amongst the competition that’s here,” said Aus of Granite Falls, Minnesota. “It’s as tough as it’s ever been for as long as I’ve been coming here, so, yeah, I’m happy.” He earned $10,401 and pushed his earnings to $140,297. Most importantly, he earned a round paycheck and gained a bit of momentum heading into the final eight nights of the rodeo season. “I knew that horse was kind of wild, and the last few videos I saw of her, she was very consistent,” he said. “She had a couple of big switch-ups, and then at about six seconds, she picks a spot, leaps high into the air and tries really hard. She looks flashy.” Aus is among the top 15 bareback riders in the world standings. In the mix are three world champions and other cowboys that make up dozens of NFR qualifications. “The energy in our locker room is good, and everyone’s wound up,” said Aus, the 2012 intercollegiate bareback riding national champion while attending Missouri Valley College in Marshall, Missouri. “We’ve gotten to get on our 2 Pen horses and our 3 Pen horses. We’ll have the eliminators tomorrow, and it’s a little bit of a different atmosphere in there.” The 100 broncs in bareback riding are separated into five pens, and the third round will feature the hardest-to-ride in the game. They are the type that can build fear in men who ride them. The nerves are amped up, and that makes for a quieter, less-jovial gathering in the locker room at the Thomas & Mack Center. “It’s not like we’re seeing horses we’ve never been around before,” he said. “It’s just a little more serious, and it seems like after that round, the tension eases a little bit. Bareback riding is the most physically demanding event in rodeo. Cowboys wear gloves with binds in them, then wedge their riding hands into a rigging that is strapped tightly to the animal. Every jump, kick and wiggle is felt. Cowboys can get sore in a hurry. “You get back into that rodeo shape after around Round 3, and you’ll be a little bit sore,” Aus said. “Barring any major injuries, you just fall into the rhythm of it, and everything starts to move pretty easy.” Aus is finding the right beat at the right time, and he’s hoping to make it roll at the world’s richest rodeo.