Franks earns his 7th NFR check
LAS VEGAS – Through 18 rounds of the National Finals Rodeo, Cole Franks has been chomping at the bit in hopes of earning his first go-round victory. He was within a whisker of it Thursday night, riding Bridwell Rodeo’s Girl Crush for 87 points to finish in a three-way tie for second place. Instead, Texan […]
Proctor’s positivity reigns at NFR
LAS VEGAS – Logan Medlin has said one of the greatest aspects of roping with Coleman Proctor is the Oklahoman’s propensity to stay positive even in tough situations. The team ropers faced them two nights in a row when Proctor was unable to secure his head loop onto their steers’ during the sixth and seventh […]
Pope dances to Round 7 win
LAS VEGAS – It may have been an inside joke, but it’s turned into the tune of magic being made at the National Finals Rodeo. After he made an 89-point, seventh round-winning ride on Big Stone Rodeo’s Mayhem, bareback rider Jess Pope danced a little jig right there in the dirt. When sound director Benje […]
Struxness now rolling in Vegas
LAS VEGAS – A night after the lights went out at the National Finals Rodeo, steer wrestler J.D. Struxness flipped a switch. He placed in just one go-round over the first five nights, but he has gone back to the pay window in the opening two rounds of the second half of ProRodeo’s grand finale. […]
Franks finds the fun at NFR
LAS VEGAS – He’s a bit soft-spoken, but Cole Franks has no problem hiding the joy he is experiencing during his second trip to the National Finals Rodeo. He’s a bareback rider, and he makes a living riding bucking horses. This is the best chance he has to really cash in on his season, so […]
Aus finds his way to top score
LAS VEGAS – Athletes understand they can’t attack each opponent the same way. If a pitcher knows a batter is a fast-ball hitter, the pitcher will throw more off-speed and try to hit a target directionally. The same can be said in rodeo. For bareback rider Tanner Aus, he tries to make his spur ride […]
Beisel, Chongo ready to run
Cinch cowgirl, her horse have two go-round wins so far at this NFR LAS VEGAS – Familiarity breeds content, and Emily Beisel’s main mount Chongo is sassy and happy at the National Finals Rodeo. Despite knocking over three barrels over the course of the first six go-rounds, the two have sped their way to $82,051 […]
Cinch’s Hutchings on an NFR roll
LAS VEGAS – Cinch cowboy Tristen Hutchings new there was something special coming into the 2022 ProRodeo season. He reeled off some big wins and earned his first qualification to the National Finals Rodeo. His first night competing inside the storied Thomas & Mack Center proved to be magical, and it looked like there was […]
Hay now! Logan is riding high
LAS VEGAS – When one is raised by a rodeo legend, it’s really hard to not follow in his footsteps. Rod Hay competed in ProRodeo for more than two decades. The 1989 Resistol Rookie of the Year, he qualified for the National Finals Rodeo 20 times, the last coming in 2010. In his native Alberta, […]
Aus rocks at Round 6 of the NFR
LAS VEGAS – On the third night of the National Finals Rodeo, when nastiest bareback horses were on display, Tanner Aus made a little mistake, and it cost him. On Night 4, he made a bigger mistake and suffered a no-score, virtually taking him out of any shot for this year’s world championship. It was […]
Casper earns another NFR check
LAS VEGAS – It’s been a bit of a waiting game for saddle bronc rider Wyatt Casper. He’s done well, riding all six of his horses. He’s placed three times, albeit each paycheck was on the smallish end of the spectrum at the National Finals Rodeo, where go-round winners earn nearly $29,000 per day for […]
Franks keeps adding NFR cash
LAS VEGAS – When nickels are mixed with dimes, they eventually add up to dollars. That seems to be how Cole Franks is playing his game in Sin City this week during his second appearance at the National Finals Rodeo. He’s placed five out of six nights, so that’s good. He even finished in a […]
Smith earns NFR Mad Money
LAS VEGAS – He looks a bit battered, but if asked, Garrett Smith doesn’t seem to mind. “I’ve had some bumps and bruises (since the third round),” said Smith, of Rexburg, Idaho, competing at his fourth National Finals Rodeo. “I feel pretty good. We are sore, but when we ride bulls for a living, we’re […]
Struxness cashes during Round 6
LAS VEGAS – Steer wrestler J.D. Struxness didn’t let a bad night ruin the rest of the week, and it very well could have. He came into his fourth National Finals Rodeo in strong contention to win a world championship, but a steer escaped his grasp Sunday night. That no-time was costly, but he didn’t […]
Heisman is Proctor’s NFR star
LAS VEGAS – As an avid University of Oklahoma sports fan, Coleman Proctor knows a thing or two about the football team’s Heisman history. Since the 1950s, the Sooners have had seven winners of college football’s most cherished individual prize. From Billy Vessels in 1952 through Billy Sims in 1978 to Kyler Murray in 2018, […]
Franks adds another NFR check
LAS VEGAS – Here’s the thing about working with animals, even some of the best ever: Sometimes they don’t have their day. That was the case with Frontier Rodeo’s Gun Fire, the 2022 PRCA Bareback Horse of the Year, during Monday’s fifth go-round at the National Finals Rodeo. Cole Franks, who set an arena-record, 93-point […]
O’Connell gets his Knicks at NFR
LAS VEGAS – The Stevie Nicks most folks know is best known for her provocative voice and retro sound from her 1970s and ’80s stardom. Tim O’Connell knows a different superstar by a similar name in Macza Pro Rodeo’s Stevie Knicks, and the two matched up for the fourth time during Monday’s fifth go-round of […]
Pope knows this NFR is special
LAS VEGAS – The tears never flowed, but Jess Pope was obviously emotional when talking about one of the great champions in bareback riding. J.R. Vezain never won a gold buckle, but he qualified for the National Finals Rodeo six times, the last after he suffered a catastrophic back injury while riding a bucking horse […]
Franks rolls back into NFR money
LAS VEGAS – The bareback riders at the National Finals Rodeo went from one extreme to another in 24 hours. It’s just part of the Las Vegas experience, for most visitors, but these men are in town on a business venture. They tried their hands at the hardest-to-ride broncs in the sport Saturday night, then […]
Shadbolt snags first NFR check
LAS VEGAS – Every step of every day can be a learning experience; the stage is just bigger for an athlete competing in a championship event. Bareback rider Garrett Shadbolt is learning a few things about his sport and about himself at the National Finals Rodeo. It may feel a bit like a slow course, […]
Casper earns another small NFR check
LAS VEGAS – Saddle bronc rider Wyatt Casper is riding well, but his pocketbook isn’t showing it just yet. In four nights at the National Finals Rodeo, he has placed twice and collected just $3,886. That’s less than stellar at ProRodeo’s grand finale, which pays go-round winners nearly $29,000 per night. In both instances, he […]
Pope puts his mind to NFR test
LAS VEGAS – A night after riding one of the rankest horses in rodeo to win the third round of the National Finals Rodeo, Jess Pope got a bit of a break with Stace Smith Pro Rodeo’s Star Witness. “At this stage and at this level, everyone is supposed to ride those horses perfect,” said […]
Proctor among Round 3 leaders
LAS VEGAS – Now in his seventh trip to the National Finals Rodeo, team roping header Coleman Proctor has learned to trust himself and those special things around him. It showed during Saturday’s third go-round, when he and his heeler, Logan Medlin, stopped the clock in 4.3 seconds to finish in a tie for fourth […]
Struxness strikes in Round 3
LAS VEGAS – For some, earning the first paycheck at the National Finals Rodeo provides a sense of relief. J.D. Struxness has been through all this before. He didn’t let the fact that he hadn’t placed on the opening two nights of the championship bother him. He just went back to work and found his […]