Flanked by Miss Teen Rodeo Kansas Faith McMannis, left; Dodge City Roundup Rodeo president Steve Deges, second from left; and Miss Rodeo Kansas Rebecca Shea Thornton, right, Coleman Proctor poses with the 2026 champion steer roper buckle.
(PHOTO COURTESY OF COLEMAN PROCTOR)
Coleman Proctor, a former Dodge City Roundup Rodeo all-around champion, has earned the first buckle and $5,000 bonus of this year’s rodeo with Tuesday’s steer roping title
“Man, my horse worked great,” Proctor said of Gambler, which is owned by Southern Ranches. “One of the things I talked about yesterday was that I needed to finish and execute. That’s what I hadn’t been doing, and I really thought a lot about it on that three-hour drive over here (Monday from Abilene, Kansas).”
Proctor, a nine-time National Finals Rodeo qualifier in team roping heading from Pryor, Oklahoma, placed in just one round but finished with a three-run cumulative time of 33.8 seconds to win the championship. His new buckle will stand alongside the 2024 Roundup all-around buckle, but it’s is first single-event title in Dodge City. He also won $3,748 on top of the bonus.
“It’s also a big deal because (Tuesday) was also my Aunt Sherry’s birthday,” Proctor said, referring to Sherry Robinson, who lives in nearby Cimarron with her husband, Gaylon.
Proctor and the other steer ropers competed Monday in Abilene, then made the venture west to rope Tuesday at Roundup Arena. He spent the evening with family and enjoyed a game of pitch with his aunt, uncle and Kevin Foraker, a fellow competitor and longtime friend.
“Uncle Gaylon and I kept our winning streak going,” Proctor said, referring to the card game.
He will return to Dodge City to team rope Saturday with heeling partner Travis Graves. Proctor is not among the top 50 just yet in the steer roping standings, but he is 26th in heading. He’ll need to finish the regular season among the top 15 if he hopes to return to the NFR for a 10th time. His focus, though, is on perfecting all the fundamentals to his roping.
“I’m going to go home and work on some things with my heading,” Proctor said. “I think we’re right there on the verge of something great.”