Very few people can say their horse shares bloodlines with their role model, but that’s exactly the case for Cheyenne Semmel. Her mare MP One Day Hayday, Sylvia for short, is a first-generation daughter of Dinero just like Hailey Kinsel Lockwood’s mare, Sister. “Sylvia is really fun to ride; I feel like she keeps me safe. She has quite the personality though, she can be really sassy but is also super sweet,” said the Woodward, Oklahoma, barrel racer, pole bender and ribbon racer. Cheyenne has ran Sylvia for just over a year and a half. Sylvia was a step-up horse for Cheyenne between the OKJHSRA’s fall and spring season.
She started out junior high rodeo on Duke, another great mount. In 2018, Duke and Cheyenne were the NBHA OK 07 Youth 3D Champions and won the NWOJRA year-end barrel saddle. The following year followed suit, but this time with Sylvia; Cheyenne once again won the NWOJRA year-end saddle, the Young Guns barrel saddle and tied for first in the NBHA District 7 Youth 1D and 2D Open. “I was really proud and felt accomplished when I won the state championship in the NBHA youth, but I also am proud of myself when people talk about me being kind both inside and out of the arena.”
Cheyenne is simply thankful every day that God blessed her with good horses, the ability to rodeo and all the people who have helped and encouraged her. That’s something Cheyenne said she also admires about Haley. “I’ve learned that you don’t always win, but good things will still come out of it. You can learn from your mistakes and you always have the opportunity to do well next time.” These are all lessons Cheyenne has learned from first-hand experience, but she has also watched her parents – Lacey and Jason – lead by example. “My parents always help me work on my events and they encourage me. I’m very thankful for them. My dad always hauls me to rodeos and my mom helps me with horses at home.” Cheyenne’s sister – Callie, 8 – is also an avid rodeo competitor. “It’s fun to see how much she has grown and the difference between us; how she is good at one thing and I am good at another.”
Working hard and having fun go hand-in-hand for Cheyenne. Learning how to make adjustments when something isn’t working proves to be a challenge for this 12-year-old, but she’s working hard at learning from her mistakes and using them to her advantage. “I just really want to work hard and have fun. I practice as much as I can, but sometimes I just ride around for fun. I like to spend quality time with my horses.” Just like her fellow OKJHSRA competitors, Cheyenne hopes to make it to nationals next year as an 8th grader. “The competition in the OKJHSRA is very tough, so it makes me push myself a lot harder. I also have lots of fun and love all the people I meet.” Although Cheyenne enjoys all the rodeos, her favorite is in Thomas, Oklahoma. “I just like having fun with my friends and I really like the shaving cream fight we always have there.”
This Woodward Middle Schooler aspires to one day become a physical therapist. “One time I hurt my knee and I had to go to physical therapy for it. I want to do something that helps people, but I am not very good with blood. I decided physical therapy was the way to go.” Cheyenne got her first pony at just 2 years old and got led around the barrels at the local round-up club. At about the same time, Cheyenne took up dancing at the local studio. She continues to dance in tap, jazz, lyrical and ballet to this day. Of course, rodeo is her favorite sport, but Cheyenne enjoys mixing it up between rodeo, basketball and dance.
Blog
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OJHSRA Meet the Member: Cheyenne Semmel
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CSHSRA Meet the Member: Ella Zonneveld
“Sometimes we’re tested not to show our weaknesses, but to discover our strengths.” This quote speaks to the challenges and obstacles that Ella Zonneveld, a 17-year old junior, has endured and her decision to push past the obstacles and continue rodeoing which is one of her passions.
After a life-changing accident when she was fifteen that totaled her truck and trailer, but thankfully spared her horses, Ella’s life has been filled with multiple surgeries, including one to repair cracks in her skull that were causing cerebral spinal fluid leaks. Since the accident, her activities were restricted for two six-month periods to enable healing. Riding her horses was definitely off limits.
While living with daily headaches and endless rounds of physical therapy, rodeo has been a “huge, huge lifesaver” for Ella who vows she “would do anything to do it” as it is a motivator and a source of hope.
Ella, a home-schooled junior, and the youngest of four children born to Linda] and Ernie, lives on ten acres outside of Berthoud, Colorado. Mom keeps the household running smoothly and Dad works as a Materials Operations Supervisor at Xcel Energy. She has competed every year since the wreck, scheduling her surgeries after the rodeo season ended. Though Ella explained “2019 wasn’t the best season because my horse and I weren’t synching up that well,” she went into the state finals ranked fourth in the barrel racing. Then her horse ducked the second barrel, knocking her out of qualifying for the national high school finals. Past achievements include qualifying for nationals in her eighth-grade year in barrels and breakaway roping. In 2018, Ella was sitting at fourth in the state, but didn’t accomplish the outcome she was hoping for. This season, she’s currently ranked eleventh in barrels and eighth in goat tying in the CSHSRA and is hoping for a good comeback after her last surgery. “I’m very excited for the spring rodeos” and she’s using sky-high motivation, along with the physical therapy, to get her body ready to give her all.
Synchronicity may be an overused word but it fits where Ella is with her competition partners, Legs, a 14-year old barrel racing horse who was trained by her sister, Ava. “Legs is solid all around horse and I can do anything off him.” A big teddy bear of a horse aptly named Teddy, whom Ella trained as her goat horse,rounds out the Zonneveld rodeo equine team.
Though she’s focusing chiefly on barrels as a high-schooler, Ella has posted some great times goat tying with Teddy who “loves it so much he pushed me to love it more. It’s so essential to find the right horse that helps you to keep doing the best you can.”
Traveling to rodeos and competing in new arenas gives Ella a thrill. She likes Eagle in particular, especially the dance, and finished in the top ten in all three rounds at Cortez last year. Leaving home is something Ella would like to do for college and given her familiarity with the practice, she thinks she’d like to study physical therapy. “I want to help people get better and go higher in life.” It’s a matter of doing the work and staying positive.
Based on her goals, Linda focuses Ella’s studies on science, including anatomy and physiology. Though Latin is usually described as a “dead” language, Ella has embraced learning it because of her interest in the medical field and she finds it helpful in knowing the roots of the English language. “Once you start understanding the roots of the language, then everything else is easier.” Given this context, it isn’t surprising that Ella enjoys listening to all kinds of music. “I must have music in my life,” she claims.
The Zonneveld kids are no strangers to hard work. Ella works part time at the local Chili’s in Loveland, Colorado. “If I didn’t work then I couldn’t rodeo,” she explains, “it helps with entry fees and keeping the horses shod.” Her parents taught their brood that if they wanted to do something, they have to work.
Ella also loves being an aunt! She didn’t think she would, but once she got to hold her big sister’s brand new baby last fall, she fell in love with Hazel. Not that she’s ready to have any of her own. At seventeen, Ella has lots of other worlds to conquer. And she is ready.
Every year since 2017 gets Ella closer to a new normal. A positive mental attitude and her faith keep her from getting down and staying in a bad place. And Ella Zonneveld has too much going for her to stay in a bad place. Now, if only she could get her braces off.
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NMHSRA Meet the Member: Natalie Larabee
At 16 years old, Natalie Larabee is the youngest of four – Emily, 25, Morgan, 20, and Lindsey, 21. She’s also the only one of her siblings who got serious about rodeo. “When I was little I can remember always going to small rodeos with my family. My dad has always owned horses and roped a little, but nobody in my family has ever competed at the level that I do. It’s something that I have explored on my own,” said the 16-year-old. And the level Natalie is talking about just so happens to be nationals. In the 8th grade, she took 8th in the nation in the goat tying. As a sophomore, Natalie is looking to get back to one of the biggest stages of high school rodeo.
“A week before state last year, at a local rodeo, I was getting some runs in when my breakaway horse kicked me in the knee.” Sitting third in the state, all Natalie had to do was tie clean and she would punch her ticket. “I drew a really good goat, but my knee was really bad and I fell during my run.” Natalie missed nationals by only two points. After state finals, Natalie didn’t rodeo or play sports while letting her knee heal properly. “I just had to realize it wasn’t about winning, it was about the process of getting there. Sometimes I lose focus of the bigger picture of rodeo.” As a five-event athlete, Natalie has a lot to capture her attention.
Sitting third in the state for goat tying, Natalie is hoping to recreate her first trip to nationals. “That was one of my favorite trips ever. My whole family got to go, even my grandparents from Nebraska came up.” Eight days in a horse trailer with her entire family and parked right next to her teammates was heaven for Natalie. Meeting people from all over the globe was just a fringe benefit. “I really love the environment of rodeo and how it is based a lot on faith. Everyone is so friendly too.”
It was a couple of friends that got Natalie into rodeo in the first place and they have only continued to bolster her decision to make it her main priority as a sport. This New Mexico transplant now lives in Midland, Texas, but continues to rodeo in her home state with the NMHSRA. It’s her friends that Natalie misses the most about her hometown. “New Mexico is a lot smaller than Texas, so we are really tight. I’ve roped with most of my friends my whole life.” Natalie only recently started team roping at more than just jackpots. Learning the ropes of her other four events – barrels, poles, goat tying and breakaway roping – from scratch set her up for success. “I’ve always known how to team rope and done it with my friends, but once you get in the arena to be serious about it the game changes some.”
Dan and Cheryl, Natalie’s parents, have learned a lot about rodeo right alongside their youngest daughter. “My dad has always been a coach for one sport or another. He knows how to break things down for me so I can understand them better. And he’s really good at focusing on the little things that make a big difference.” One of those details is follow through in roping. Natalie compares it to the follow required for a nothin’ but net free throw. “Rodeo has really made my mom and I get close. We both have a special love for it, so we have learned it all together and that’s been cool.” Still undecided between becoming a veterinarian or breaking into the world of business, one thing is for sure: Natalie doesn’t plan on leaving rodeo in the wake.
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Keep Your Eyes on God
“For if we are faithful to the end, trusting God just as firmly as when we first believed, we will share in all that belongs to Christ.”
Hebrews 3:14 NLTWhen we don’t see the answers we are looking for right away we can begin to wonder. It’s easy to begin to doubt when we don’t see change right away. We may begin to question God when we don’t think he’s listening to our prayers. We may have the tendency to throw the towel in if we keep asking without results. But, what does God tell us to do?
In Hebrews 3:14 we see that when we have faith to the end, trusting God like when we first believed, we will get all the Jesus has. What does Jesus have? I can’t count or list all that we will receive with Christ but I can name a couple big ones.
First of all, he shares a throne with God, in heaven (Ephesians 1:20). He has the power to perform miracles and hand out blessings and he says we will do greater works than he (John 14:12). Another would be the power to resist the devil (James 4:7). Lastly, we get to share God by abiding in Jesus and him in us (John 15:4).
By having faith and trusting God we get to spend eternity in heaven. We get to witness, call, and perform greater works than Jesus did, which we read about in the New Testament. We get the living power to resist temptation and the evil one while we are on this earth. And lastly, since God lives in Jesus, and we invite Jesus to live in us, we get to tap into all that God has to offer us, unlimited, anytime, anywhere!
What’s the catch you may ask? You’ve tried and it doesn’t seem to turn out this easy? Just go back to Hebrews 3:14. We must keep believing, trust God, and stay faithful to the end, just as firmly as when we started believed.
For example, take my story for instance. Sept. 22nd, 2018. Pasadena Rodeo, horse has just flipped on me. I can’t feel my legs and no matter how hard I try to move them they won’t move. My back is broke at t9 and t10 and my spinal cord is damaged leaving me paralyzed from the waist down. I prayed right there, believing for a miracle. I believed I would wake up the next morning and be healed. That night I believed full heartedly that I would walk out of the hospital.
The next morning I wake up. 5 hours of surgery later. Rods and screws put in my back. Fused from t8-t12. Still can’t feel or move my legs. I keep praying and believing. Now I believe in the first 3 months I’m going to walk. 3 months go by. Still hardly any movement.
I start praying and believing in 6 months I will walk. I rehab extensively everyday. 3-5 hours a day 5 days a week. Visualize moving. Visualize walking. Visualize running with my kid. Visualize riding. Sept. 22nd rolls around. I jump a level on all my tests but I’m still bound to this chair. I’m unable to lock my knees and stand on my own yet. I can’t bare my own weight yet. I can crawl but other than that I can hardly move or control any leg movements yet.
It starts to wear on me. Am I ever going to get what I asked for that very first instance after my wreck? Is the hard work I’m doing going to have any results? Here it has been almost 1 ½ years and I’m still trying. Still looking for alternative medicine. Still trying to have an ear to hear God’s calling on my life. Still listening for his guidance on where to go.
I’ve battled wondering. I’ve doubted. I’ve struggled with questioning. There’s been days I wanted to throw the towel in and just get used to life in a chair, move on, and figure out what’s next.
But that’s not the cowboy in me. I still have this burning desire to keep going. Knowing that we receive what we ask for (Matthew 7:7). Knowing that the best is yet to come (Jeremiah 29:11). Knowing that my breakthrough is right around the corner (Psalms 116:1-2).
I’ve decided no matter what I am going to keep believing. Keep trying. Keep seeking. Keep knocking. And keep asking. Sure, some days are hard. That’s alright. We are only human. But, by believing and keeping our faith we have access to a God that is far bigger than our problems. He loves us enough to call us his sons and daughters. No matter how big or how small he wants to be apart of it. And, he wants to give us the miracle we are asking for.
All we have to do is remember how much we believed the very first time we asked. No doubts. No wonders. Full hearted faithfulness. Trusting in God’s timing not our own. And hold on to this belief and trust with firmness until the end.
No matter what we see or don’t see. Hear or don’t hear. Keep your eyes on God. Hold on to your faith, trust, and keep believing knowing that you are going to get your breakthrough!“My thoughts are nothing like your thoughts,” says the Lord. “And my ways are far beyond anything you could imagine. For just as the heavens are higher than the earth, so my ways are higher than your ways and my thoughts higher than your thoughts.”
Isaiah 55:8-9 NLT““What do you mean, ‘If I can’?” Jesus asked. “Anything is possible if a person believes.””
Mark 9:23 NLT -
Featured Athlete: Beau Peterson
Beau Peterson loves her 5 Star Equine products, and they have served her well.
The Council Grove, Kan. cowgirl has put them to good use, too, as she is a Kansas State High School Rodeo champion in the breakaway roping and goat tying (three titles in each event), and the pole bending (once).
And, at the College National Finals Rodeo, she tied with Mia Manzanares as the 2019 National Inter-Collegiate Rodeo Association goat-tying champion (25.1 seconds on four head).
As sophomore at Panhandle State University in Goodwell, Okla., Beau is studying biology, and after earning a bachelors in the subject, will go to nursing school. Her aim is to be a CRNA – a certified registered nurse anesthetist. She enjoys learning how the body works and helping people. “I think it’s fascinating,” she said. A CRNA usually works regular hours and few weekends, which is also appealing to her, as is the pay.
As for 5 Star Equine products, Beau loves the saddle pads and has been using them for several years. “They’re such a great quality,” she said. “They last forever, if you take care of them.” She cleans hers frequently. “Some saddle pads get hard from dirt, sweat and hair,” she said. “They are easy to clean and if you take care of them, they last a long time.”
Every week she uses the sponge that is sent with them, and, in a circular motion, wipes them down. “The hair comes off pretty easy. If your saddle pad is really bad, you can hose it down with a power washer and let it dry.” She never lets them get that dirty. “I do the sponge every week or so and it really gets the hair and dirt off and keeps them from getting hard.”
Her horses love them, too. “Being wool, (the horses) don’t get sore.”
She also uses 5 Star Equine front boots. “I like them. They are a unique style and have the double tabs. After you cross them once, it’s really easy to seal them for extra support. I just think they’re a nice set of boots.”
For the goat tying, she rides a six-year-old mare named Missy who was purchased last year from her sister’s boyfriend, who started her in the heeling. “He let me ride her, and I’ve loved her ever since. She’s so willing to learn and has made everything so easy. She’s so quick, she’s fun to tie goats and breakaway on.” Missy is her backup breakaway horse.
For the breakaway, she rides a thirteen-year-old gelding named Hustler, a bay she’s owned for seven years. He has improved her roping. “My breakaway has grown with him and through him. He’s just been awesome, and he was an awesome horse to start out on. He’s solid for me, he scores like a rock every time, and gives me the best shot. He’s true, every run.”
Barbie is her barrel horse. Owned by Marc and Kim Harland, the seven-year-old bay has made Beau a better barrel racer. “I haven’t been much of a barrel racer, but the few years I’ve been doing it, they’ve kept nice horses under me, and she’s been fun to ride.”
For the past two years, Beau has won 5 Star Equine Products’ social media contest, winning the most votes in the college division.
For fun, when she has spare time, she likes to watch Grey’s Anatomy. She and her friends like to get out the cards and play pitch, too.
She has an older sister, Michaela, who lives in Dodge City. Beau sometimes spends weekends with her sister.
She currently leads the goat tying in the Central Plains Region, is fourth in the barrels, and sixth in the breakaway. She is also leading the all-around race and is on Panhandle State’s Dean’s list.
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PRCA CEO George Taylor interview
PRCA CEO George Taylor interview airing on Cowboy Channel
COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. – George Taylor, CEO of the PRCA, gave an inside glimpse to The Cowboy Channel about the affect the COVID-19 pandemic is having on PRCA rodeos and ProRodeo in general.
“It really changes the way you do your work and how everything has begun to evolve,” Taylor told The Cowboy Channel via video interview, March 30. “We got a call last Wednesday night (March 25) at about 5 p.m. when the governor (of Colorado) announced and asked everybody to stay home starting (March 26) at 6 a.m. We were scrambling to figure out how we could carry on business with as many people as possible from our home offices (in Colorado Springs).”
Taylor also addressed the impact COVID-19 has had on the PRCA season.
“The way things are currently going, we think we are going to be fine, but we plan for a number of scenarios,” Taylor said. “Those scenarios would be what happens if we start May 1? What happens if we start June 1, July 1? Then things really start getting crazy if you move that out another 30 days. Thirty to 60 days we can handle pretty easily in partnership with our athletes and all of our members, but when you start getting out 120 days, it really changes the picture to be sure.”
Taylor also discussed the possibility of the PRCA season extending beyond Sept. 30, the final day of the regular season.
“Right now, I would say there isn’t anything that you don’t think about,” he said. “What we like to say is we hope and pray for the best and we plan for the worst. We have to be thinking about all those scenarios, how they play out and how to make all this work.”
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Back When They Bucked with Florence Hughes Randolph
Early Day Madison Square Garden Cowgirl
When searching for information about rodeo history, it is not unusual to be diverted in my quest to find a cowgirl or cowboy with unusual and interesting experiences other than rodeo. My attention goes directly to that person. Florence Hughes Randolph is just such a person. Her experiences just have to be re-told!
Cleo Alberta Holmes was born to John and Mary Holmes in Augusta, Georgia in 1898. She didn’t like her name and let it be known. Her father, in jest, called her Florence instead. The name stuck and when she began her career it was Florence, not Cleo or Alberta, that she chose to call herself.
She spent as many days as she could with her grandfather, on his cotton plantation, making rounds. She rode behind him on a mule. When she began riding alone, at age 13, she wasn’t satisfied with the mules. She rode horses instead, and eventually persuaded her mother to let her travel with a circus equestrian family as an apprentice.
She loved the excitement of the Colonel King’s IXL Ranch Wild West. She practiced with tutors, did the hard work she was also asked to do, and watched others, to learn, as they practiced their specialties with horses. She became a trick and Roman rider and a trick roper. A few years later, 1915, the troupe disbanded and Florence was free to do what she wanted.
Florence – Courtesy of granddaughter, Madonna Pumphrey Florence never grew very big. She was four feet six inches tall and weighed all of 90 pounds, but her experiences had allowed her to gain so much confidence during those years she formed her own show. She named it ‘Princess Mohawk’s Wild West Hippodrome’. The group grew to sixty people, which in addition to the performers, included cooks and crew to set up and tear down. Often they traveled with other shows and carnivals. It lasted several years until a disaster struck in Kentucky. The bleachers collapsed on opening night and numerous spectators were injured. Florence lost everything!
There was no time to waste, she had to earn some money! She joined the Barnum & Bailey Circus. While there Florence learned resinback riding from May Wirth, a well-known specialist in that endeavor. She learned much from this fine lady, including how to turn a backward somersault from one horse to another. Florence’s ability to perform could amaze and excite the audience.
Meanwhile, between circus engagements she began to enter rodeos as a bronc rider and trick rider to try and win money. It took awhile to prove herself in rodeo as she was known as a ‘wild west gal’. In 1919 she heard of the rich purses offered at the Calgary Stampede and hungry for money she headed that way. Florence entered the three mile Roman standing race. The winner would receive the Prince of Wales Trophy and a silver mounted saddle. She was the only woman entered against eight men. When it was over she had won, the only woman to ever win that event. Plus the Prince of Wales trophy she won a silver-mounted saddle worth $1,500. She quickly sold the saddle to Edith Sterling, a silent movie actress. She needed the $1,500 much worse than the saddle.
After this Canadian win she had confidence galore, and began entering all the big rodeos, such as Cheyenne Frontier Days, Pendleton RoundUp, Chicago and Fort Worth. Florence competed under the last name Holmes, Hughes, King, Fenton and Randolph, and occasionally as Princess Mohawk. Florence married a bronc rider named Angelo Hughes who was killed in an automobile accident at Mexia, Texas four months later. Suddenly she had to support herself plus support her mother and two younger sisters.
When a Phoenix rodeo ended she went to Hollywood to visit friends. While there she was encouraged to double for Shirley Mason, a movie star. Florence would get two or three hundred dollars for doing risky horse riding chores, that actors refused to do for movies, such as riding horses over cliffs. She also posed as a Mack Sennett bathing beauty. But the desire to rodeo won out. Back in Texas she threw her saddle behind an open cockpit of a Curtiss bi-wing at Love Field in Dallas and took off in to the air to promote the Dallas Dunbar Rodeo.
Her first New York competition was Tex Austin’s 1923 Championship Rodeo at Yankee Stadium. She entered all three cowgirl events – Bronc Riding, Trick Riding and Relay Racing. Later in life she was quoted as saying, “I didn’t win all the time, but I got my share of the prizes most of the time.”
Florence – Courtesy of granddaughter, Madonna Pumphrey The rough and tumble world of rodeo did cause Florence to experience some bad spills. In Houston a bronc named ‘Dumbell’ fell on her and she was dragged to safety by world champion Bob Crosby. At the Shrine convention rodeo in Washington D. C. a notorious bronc named ‘School Girl’ turned a somersault and landed on Florence, who was declared dead, but after going to the hospital by ambulance she came back to ride again! Once, when she was taken to the hospital after a serious accident, Ruth Roach went with her. Florence had been unconscious and was coming to when she heard the doctor tell Ruth that she would never walk again. Florence bolted, got up and ran out, heading to the front door, with the doctor and Ruth after her, when she realized she was only wearing a sheet! One of her most embarrassing moments.
In 1924 Florence was asked to go with the Tex Austin entourage to London, England, to compete in Wembley Stadium, the first rodeo ever held in England. It was a 14 day trip by ship with the cowboys and cowgirls, and the stock. The Prince of Wales, who by then was the Duke of Windsor, took a group of competitors to supper after one performance. He had remembered Florence when she won the Prince of Wales Trophy at Calgary five years earlier and was fascinated by her. Later he escorted her to Buckingham Palace to be presented to his parents, George VI and Queen Mary. He also took her to view the crown jewels of Great Britain.
In 1925 she met Floyd Randolph of Ardmore, Oklahoma, who was judging a rodeo at Dewey, Oklahoma. He also furnished stock for the big rodeos, including 200 head of horses and steers for the first Madison Square Garden rodeo. They were married at Newkirk, OK later that year. They went on to the next rodeo since there was no money for a honeymoon. Florence’s desire to win at the Garden caused her to have an arena made, to the same dimensions as Madison Square Garden, at the Randolph ranch near Ardmore, Oklahoma. Regardless of the weather Florence could be found working out in the arena every day of the year.
She also made and designed her own costumes. New ones were made for each season. Sometimes as many as sixteen costumes or more were made yearly. Many were made out of satin and when they wore out she would rip them up and make satin quilts from the fabric.
Florence had several horses she trained for trick riding. The most famous was “Boy” a five year old that she bought completely untrained. During his training Florence lost two teeth to his wild ways, but she and husband Floyd finally got him settled down. “Boy” and Florence were featured at many rodeos. At one of their Madison Square Garden performances a representative of ‘Ripley’s Believe it or Not’ discovered ‘Boy’ had a clear map of the United States on his right side. Believe it or not, Florence had never noticed it before. In Philadelphia they were invited to a Rotary Club gathering and ‘Boy’ traveled by elevator up sixteen floors in the Bellvue-Stratford Hotel. She had him wear special made rubber boots so he would not slip on the tile floors.
The SesquiCentennial in Philadelphia, 1926, is where she won her first All-Around cowgirl trophy. It was presented to her by Jack Dempsey, the well-known boxer of the era. All together she had won $6,000 there with wins in bronc riding and trick riding. She moved on to the Chicago rodeo and won the same two events there.
Madison Square Garden rodeos were held in late October or November. Through the years the New York rodeo became bigger and bigger, with standing room only at times. Florence was one of the favorite cowgirl competitors and always sought out by various reporters. In 1927 she won the Cowgirl All Around Championship, plus the Cowgirl Trick Riding Championship. She was the first cowgirl to win the Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Trophy, valued at $10,000. The trophy would not be given to a cowgirl to keep until someone had three consecutive wins.
During her rodeo years Florence continued to go to the Madison Square Garden Rodeo. She remembered in 1932 when Mrs. William Randolph Hearst, Chairman of the Milk Fund, had a luncheon for the cowgirls competing that year. Mrs. Hearst gave each of them a purse for their enthusiastic participation in the rodeo which aided her favorite charity. After the presentation the cowgirls became silent. Florence got to her feet, in behalf of the group, and thanked Mrs. Hearst for her kindness and hospitality. From that time forward Florence became the ‘unofficial’ spokesperson for the cowgirls whenever there was any public speaking required.
Florence – Courtesy of granddaughter, Madonna Pumphrey Her achievements were amazing. She won the Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer $10,000 Trophy; the George W. Nixon trophy for World Champion Girl Bronc Rider in Chicago in 1926; the Juergens and Anderson World Champion Cowgirl Trick Rider in 1927 and 1928; and the Champion All-Around Cowgirl at Philadelphia in 1930, plus many more.
In 1939 Florence “Princess Mohawk” Hughes Randolph announced she was hanging up her saddle. “I have done everything in rodeo that I set out to do,” she reported. Her retirement dinner was held at Madison Square Garden, and she was presented a huge bouquet by Paul Whiteman, a popular bandleader of that era.
She did not retire when going home, but began teaching her granddaughter, Madonna, age 5, to trick ride. Floyd’s daughter, Mary Louise had married Jim Eskew, Jr., world champion trick roper, and Madonna was their child. As a teenager Madonna became a well-known trick rider and trick roper. She retired from trick riding at 16, but continued to perform as a trick roper.
Florence did many things during her retirement in Ardmore including assisting her husband politically when becoming sheriff. She was also active in her church. Madonna said, ‘There was never a Sunday that she didn’t have me at Sunday School and Church at the First Christian Church in Ardmore.’ Additionally, she and Floyd also helped start the Ardmore VFW Rodeo in 1946, and worked on it for many years.
Florence was inducted into the Rodeo Hall of Fame at the National Cowboy & Western Heritage Museum in 1968. The only two women to be honored in that Hall of Fame at that time was Florence and Tad Lucas. Many of her trophies she had won during her rodeo career are housed there in the Oklahoma City Hall. Her most treasured were The Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Trophy which she won in 1927 as “a tribute to the charm and courage of western womanhood’. The second trophy, also from Madison Square Garden, was from 1933 when she won as the Champion Trick Rider. She was also inducted to the National Cowgirl Hall of Fame in Fort Worth in 1994 posthumously. Florence had passed away April 14, 1971.
The cowgirls from the 1920s and 1930s were fiercely driven and it was extremely difficult in those days. Once they honed their rodeo skills, won some prize money, learned how to travel from one rodeo to the next, and became friends with other cowgirls and cowboys, you couldn’t keep them away. It became their life, and some excelled at it, like Florence.Gail Woerner, rodeo historian, is writing a book about professional rodeo from 1920 to 1959, with an emphasis on the Madison Square Garden rodeos. She has always called the early day Madison Square Garden Rodeos the ‘unofficial’ predecessor to the National Finals.
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ProFile: Kaycee Hollingback
2020 AMERICAN Breakaway Champion
Kaycee Hollingback’s $100,000 win at the American “was God’s timing,” said the 20-year-old sophomore at Southeastern Oklahoma State University. “I’d been to a couple qualifiers and got close, but never made it. Mom and dad encouraged me to try for a spot at the last qualifier and they loaned me the money to enter.” She went to the Last Chance qualifier, the day before the Semi Finals, and made it in two spots. “I made it back on one of them to the top 40, like 17th.” Then she got to run in the perfs and made that cut and the rest is history. She made the two hour drive back and forth from Durant because she was fitting in class and two jobs with the competition. Kaycee is studying Elementary Education and works one day a week at the Durant stockyards and two days a week at J. Price Energy services. She has no intention of changing anything she’s doing after her win. “I told my parents to put the money somewhere I can’t touch it.”
Kaycee came up the rodeo ranks starting at 7 years old. She started roping when she was ten, winning the Oklahoma State Goat Tying in junior high and winning the state in the high school in goats in 2016 and breakaway in 2017. She went on to college rodeo for SEOSU under the leadership of Christi Braudick. “I trailered her back and forth to the Semi Finals,” said Christi, who also qualified for the Semi Finals. “It was a long journey for us. I was so stoked she made it through. She is a hard worker and so deserving of this. When she won, I started crying because of how much she really deserved it.”
The college is now shut for the remainder of the year, and the students continuing with online studies only. “I always take my Spring Break to help my dad (Jerald) work cows,” Kaycee said. “We work cows for the place my dad works for; running cows through the chute and ear notch and work the calves. I try to cheat and be the only one on horseback, but that doesn’t always work.”
Kaycee is riding a horse she got from a girl she college rodeoed with last year. “I was looking for a practice horse and I tried him and liked him. In the practice pen, I could catch almost all of them, but at a rodeo I couldn’t catch anything.” The duo finally clicked in August. “At six, he’s like having a toddler around all the time – he has a lot of personality. He’s not bad, but he doesn’t like being by himself, so you have to have a buddy with him. He was so different at scoring and everything – I wasn’t use to it.”
The pair definitely clicked at The American. “It was awesome – it was perfect for my adrenaline – I like going to bigger places like that – it pumps me up.” Kaycee remembers dreaming of roping for that much money and that big a stage when she was a kid. “My mom (Virginia) is an English teacher and I remember a writing project in school about something you predicted would happen in the future and my paper was about how breakaway roping will be part of the NFR.”
For now, she’s at home practicing with her younger brother, Tanner, and enjoying some family time. -
On The Trail with Wyatt Casper
Wyatt Casper can breathe a little easier after winning $600,000 at the AMERICAN. “When I’m home, I like to be home – and that’s what this money will help with,” said the Pampa, Texas, cowboy. “It’s tough, when I’m gone in the summer and my family can’t go with me. I go with buddies – we bust our butts for three months putting 45,000 miles on our rigs. Thank God for cell phones.” Last year, Wyatt supplemented his income by working for his dad, trucking.
The Casper family (John, Amy and Ty, Clay, and Wyatt) moved from Minnesota to the Panhandle of Oklahoma when Wyatt was 5. “I transferred my trucking company (Casper Express) down there and never looked back or regretted it,” said John, who tried a little bit of everything in rodeo, but when he started raising a family, he settled on team roping when he can. “It was a great move for us – we wanted our boys to grow up rodeoing and cowboying and have more opportunities.” All three boys found success in rodeo from the junior high level to the national level. Clay has gone on to success at the USTRC Finals and Ty has won many Top Hand awards at ranch rodeos. Wyatt qualified for the National High School Finals Rodeo in team roping in 2010 and for saddle bronc riding in 2014.
Wyatt didn’t get on a saddle bronc until his senior year in high school. “When Oklahoma high school only had two guys entered the first semester and neither one stayed on a horse, the money piled up,” he said. “There were six of us trying for that money by spring. If it weren’t for that, I don’t think I would have set foot on a bronc horse. I went out to OPSU in Goodwell that spring and Robert Etbauer and some of the other college kids helped me out.”
“He’s a great bronc rider and it’s been fun watching him,” said Robert Etbauer, coach at OPSU. Robert qualified for the NFR 12 times; 1988-1992 and 1994-2000 and won the gold buckle in 1990 and 1991. “We’ve got a great facility and we can get those kids started by helping them take care of themselves before they get on – Wyatt had a lot determination.”
Wyatt with his son, Cooper, in front of the AT&T Stadium during The AMERICAN. – Courtesy 
Wyatt working for his dad, trucking – Courtesy 
Wyatt, after winning The AMERICAN – Kay Miller After graduating from a class of 15 from Balko (Okla.) High School in 2014, he went on to Clarendon (Texas) College under the coaching of former PRCA bronc rider Bret Frank. He earned an associates in welding. He got his PRCA card in 2015 and last year was the toughest year he’s had. “I only won $3,500 between June 1 and August 31,” he said. “I went through that time just trying to forget about the week and look forward to the next week. It was really tough – I was digging a hole and all I could think about was digging harder to get out of it. I thought I’d been riding good but hadn’t been getting paid.” By the end of August, he started winning money and finished last year in 33rd place.
The other thing that helped Wyatt is changing his riding style. “I shortened the seat of my saddle – 16 ¼, pulled my stirrups up and my binds up and that’s allowed me to expose myself in the back and show off those horses a lot better. I just tried it and ended up loving it.”
“He’s waited a long time for this,” said his mom, Amy, a Special Ed teacher at Balko. “His dad and I have supported him from the beginning and told him to never give up. Financially we were there for him if he ever needed it to keep going down the road and doing what he loves. He’s a great kid and has a beautiful family. He has a huge following up here in Balko, in Minnesota and Pampa – always cheering him on.” Amy has already taken the ten days off for the 2020 NFR.
Wyatt has never been to the NFR. “I said I wasn’t going until I make it.” Since a few rodeos cancelled, Wyatt headed home after the AMERICAN, which he says is now his favorite rodeo. “Hands down that’s my favorite – it’s such a cool place to ride.” Wyatt rode there in 2016, and was 78 points. He’s happy to be heading home to spend time with his family.
Riding in Rock Springs Senior Year – JenningsRodeoPhotography.com 
Tie-down roping, 2007 
Wyatt and Lesley’s wedding, standing with their parents – Christy Ladd Photography He met Lesley at college. “I saw her and asked some friends about her. We were entered at the same rodeo, it rained pretty hard and she messaged me on Facebook about the ground. I stayed consistent after that and met her at another rodeo.” They were engaged on March 24, 2016 and married the following May 13. They have two children; Cooper, born November 4, 2018 and Cheyenne, born December 6, 2019.
He is going to seek counsel on the best way to invest his current earnings. “My brother in law bought 12,000 acres in Miama Texas, and wants us to help them so we might go that route. I’m going to talk to some people who have gone through this – I’ve got some people in mind to pick their brains to figure out what is going to be best for me and my family.”
Wyatt’s goal is to earn enough and invest enough that rodeo will carry him into his next venture. “I want stuff in place for me to already be making money when I’m done rodeoing.” His goal for riding is to ride at least 80% of his horses and use them. “I want to go at each horse the same and use them to my ability.” Last year, he rode 78% of his horses and so far this year he until Houston he was 35 for 35, with 30 of those rides being over 80 points. Houston didn’t go so well. “I landed straight on top of my head. I’m good – they say I have a compressed fracture on T1, but stable. I need to take a month off.”
Wyatt started out in the roping pen, team roping and calf roping. He still ropes when he has time. “My wife barrel races and I’m training some of her young horses; hopefully by the time I’m done riding broncs we’ll have some horses going and some colts coming along.”
“I am so proud of Wyatt,” said Lesley. “I have been with Wyatt basically from the start of his bronc riding career and to see him grow so much and come this far is truly amazing. Whatever Wyatt wants, he sets his mind to it and he always reaches that goal. He is a fantastic father and husband.”
For now his priorities remain the same – God first, family second, rodeo third. “We all wouldn’t be here without our Lord and Savior.”
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CTEC title is Taylor-made; McLeod battles through Jr. Ironman to claim crown, $11,750
Santos holds off Tierney to become 16th man to win CINCH Timed Event crown
March 15, 2020 / Guthrie, Oklahoma – Taylor Santos’ youth was spent in roping pens and rodeo arenas.
When he wasn’t practicing or competing, he was watching it on TV. The family’s pile of video cassettes included years of the CINCH Timed Event Championship, and those images helped fill the young cowboy’s thoughts of being one of the greatest ever.
Fast forward to Sunday, when his dreams were realized. He roped, tied and wrestled 25 animals in a cumulative time of 340.4 seconds over just three days to win $103,000 and become just the 16th person in the 36-year history of the CTEC to claim the elusive title.
“This is a long three days, but it’s so worth it,” said Santos, 25, of Creston, California. “It was a blast.”
Yes, it was. Of course, when one pockets that kind of cash, it’s bound to be more exciting. But there was more to it. The weekend’s festivities featured one of the tightest championships in recent history. Only 30.2 seconds separated first through fifth place, and Santos edged the runner-up – 2017 champion Jess Tierney – by just 7.3 seconds.
“Things can go great or they can go the other way, but this weekend went really good,” said Tierney, the rodeo coach at Western Oklahoma State College, who pocketed $29,000. “I’d say that money will fit just right.
“I feel like I overcame some things, but I had great help and some great support. There are some things I’d change, but there are some things I wouldn’t change. In anything you do, you can win something or you can learn something, and I think I got to do both this weekend.”
This was just an extension of recent first for Santos. In 2019, he qualified for the National Finals Rodeo for the first time in his young career. He finished 10th in the tie-down roping world standings and earned $81,076 in Las Vegas this past December. All the while, he also gained a boatload of confidence, and that carried over into this weekend.
Still, he had to overcome some early jitters.
“After getting that first steer under my belt, I felt a lot better about things,” Santos said, referring to Friday afternoon’s first run of the opening round. “You don’t have time to overthink things too much. It’s definitely a battle and definitely a marathon.”
This endurance-test included his older brother, Lane Karney, who just completed his fourth CTEC. In his first trip to the Lazy E Arena in 2017, Karney enlisted in Santos’ help. That, too, paid off for the younger sibling, albeit three years later.
“Lane and I are two years, two weeks apart in age,” Santos said. “Every day of our lives, we were basically matching each other.
“I’ve been on the waiting list the last couple of years. I’m glad I’ve seen it on TV and on the tapes so many times, but that first year I came with Lane, I realized that it’s completely different than what it looked like on the big screen. I got a whole new vision and idea of what the event was. I learned a lot that year.”
And it paid off in his first time competing at the “Ironman of ProRodeo.” It’s not often that newcomers walk away with the biggest check at this unique event, but this marks the second straight year that a CTEC rookie earned the crown – a year ago, Georgia cowboy Justin Thigpen won the title, then he missed this year after suffering an injury just two weeks ago.
“Taylor is a great kid with an amazing talent,” Tierney said. “Everybody here was such a great talent, and that made for fun watching.”
First round: 1. Jordan Ketscher, 65.3 seconds, $3,000; 2. Marcus Theriot, 65.8, $2,000; 3. Roger Nonella, 68.6, $1,000.
Second round: 1. Jess Tierney, 58.3 seconds, $3,000; 2. Haven Meged, 59.3, $2,000; 3. Clay Smith, 63.7, $1,000.
Third round: 1. Taylor Santos, 56.6 seconds, $3,000; 2. Marcus Theriot, 58.6, $2,000; 3. Seth Hall, 61.8, $1,000.
Fourth round: 1. Clay Smith, 53.4 seconds, $3,000; 2. Haven Meged, 65.2, $2,000; 3. Jess Tierney, 66.4, $1,000.
Fifth round: 1. Clay Smith, 45.8 seconds, $3,000; 2. Kyle Lockett, 51.2, $2,000; 3. Clayton Hass, 52.8, $1,000.
Average: 1. Taylor Santos, 340.4 seconds on 25 runs, $100,000; 2. Jess Tierney, 247.7, $25,000; 3. Seth Hall, 351.5, $15,000; 4. Clay Smith, 360.6, $10,000; 5. Marcus Theriot, 370.6, $7,500; 6. Haven Meged, 395.1, $5,000; 7. Paul David Tierney, 400.4, $4,500; 8. Jordan Ketscher, 445.7, $3,000.
Total money: 1. Taylor Santos, $103,000; 2. Jess Tierney, $29,000; 3. Clay Smith, $17,000; 4. Seth Hall, $16,000; 5. Marcus Theriot, $11,500; 6. Haven Meged, $9,000; 7. Jordan Ketscher, $6,000; 8. Paul David Tierney, $4,500; 9. Roger Nonella and Clayton Hass, $1,000 each.
Oh, Canada!
McLeod battles through Jr. Ironman to claim crown, $11,750
March 15, 2020 / Guthrie, Oklahoma – Long ago, Tee McLeod knew he was representing his home country of Canada, his home province of Saskatchewan.
On Sunday morning, he earned the first international title in the young history of the Jr. Ironman at the Lazy E Arena. He was somewhat dominant over the three days of rugged competition, though it got a bit hairy at the end.
“This is a dream come true,” said McLeod, 20, of Waldeck, Saskatchewan. “I prepared every day for two months. I did all the events every day and went to the gym.
“This place is awesome. Everybody does a great job putting this on, and I’m just fortunate enough to be here.”
He won the first two rounds, then finished second in Sunday’s final round. By winning the title and earning top pay in the rounds, he pocketed $11,750. Quade Hiatt, a two-time competitor from Canyon, Texas, finished second in the overall average, just three-tenths of a second behind the Canadian. For that, Hiatt earned $5,000. He also won the third round worth $750, and his calf horse, Hercules, was named the WCRA’s Top Horse of the Jr. Ironman, valued at another $250.
Hiatt made a run for the title, though. His 4.7-second steer wrestling run to close out the competition on Sunday put the pressure on McLeod, who needed to be 7.2 seconds or faster to claim the top prize; McLeod stopped the clock in 7.0.
“I’ve never been to anything like this,” he said “I had a good friend come and help me out, saddle my horses and get them warmed up. He talked me through it the whole way. (Helper) Paden Bray was huge, too.
“That money is not like the big guys,” he said, referring to the $100,000 paid out to the winner of the CINCH Timed Event Championship, “but that’s life-changing money to me. I’m going to take it back to college, and it’s going to help out a bunch.”
While the exchange rate might mean that he keeps the cash close to his vest at Eastern New Mexico State University instead of sending it home, he’s still awfully proud to carry on a strong Canadian legacy in rodeo.
“I have a lot of family and friends that were supposed to come down here,” McLeod said. “With the coronavirus, they didn’t want to come down here, but they got to watch it on TV. Representing Canada is awesome. I’ve done it my whole career, going to the high school nationals, but this is huge.”
Jr. Ironman first round: 1. Tee McLeod, 39.3 seconds, $750; 2. Tyler West, 44.1, $250; 3. Sam Morgan, 47.8.
Jr. Ironman second round: 1. Tee McLeod, 36.1 seconds, $750; 2. Tyler West, 39.5, $250; 3. Quade Hiatt, 40.3.
Jr. Ironman third round: 1. Quade Hiatt, 33.0 seconds, $750; 2. Tee McLeod, 46.5, $250; 3. Denton Good, 53.2.
Jr. Ironman average: 1. Tee McLeod, 121.9 seconds on 12 runs, $10,000; 2. Quade Hiatt, 122.2, $5,000; 3. Tyler West, 151.5, $2,000.
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Tierney moves into contention
Two former champions sit atop the CINCH Timed Event Championship standings
March 13, 2020, 2020 / Guthrie, Oklahoma – Since the early days of the CINCH Timed Event Championship, the name Tierney has been a staple at the Lazy E Arena.
Over the 36 years of the “Ironman of ProRodeo,” a Tierney has been crowned its champion seven times. It began in 1987, when Paul Tierney won the first of his four titles – the last time in 2000. Youngest son Paul David followed with titles in 2014 and ’16, then Jess earned the 2017 crown.
This is no easy title to claim, either. Only 15 men in the event’s history have been crowned titlists, because the unique challenge pits top all-around cowboys competing in each of the five timed events to complete a round. Over the five-round weekend, each man will make 25 runs over just three days.
On Friday night, Jess Tierney put the finishing touches to a long, two-round day with the fastest-round of the weekend so far, stopping the clock in a cumulative time of 58.3 seconds to win the second go-round and pocket $3,000 for doing so.
“These rounds are really good for getting your fees back, but you don’t want to focus on winning the rounds, because it’s such a marathon here,” he said. “If you focus on going too fast here, a bunch of crazy stuff can happen.
“Solid rounds are great. I’ve watched (seven-time winner) Trevor Brazile for years, and he wasn’t scared of winning three or four rounds. Anytime you can put a good round together, it just gives you confidence going into the next one.”
In fact, Jess Tierney finished the opening round in seventh place, then utilized a strong second performance to move into the No. 2 spot, just 7.2 seconds behind leader Jordan Ketscher’s 130.1-second cumulative time on 10 runs.
“It’s a long weekend,” said Tierney of Hermosa, South Dakota, now living in Altus, Oklahoma, where he is the rodeo coach at Western Oklahoma State College. “It’s the longest weekend I have all year. Anytime you can keep your mind straight here – where you’re making practice-type runs but still hustling and trying to get the most out of yourself and out of your horse – that’s when I’ve had the best luck.”
It happens because of his experience and his talent, but there’s also something special that occurs at the CTEC. Because he competes in each event, he relies on other cowboys and their horses to assist.
“Tony Reina (who has made both the National Finals Rodeo in tie-down roping and the Clem McSpadden National Finals Steer Roping) has been a huge blessing this year letting me use his good mare as a calf horse,” Tierney said. “He’s a great guy to have in my corner, as is my dad. I have never been here without (team roper) Jace Crabb; nothing rattles that guy. (Steer wrestler and hazer) Kody Woodward has always been here. I don’t even call those two. They just now they’re going to be here.
“The thing about the Timed Event is that it’s a huge mental game. I don’t know anybody that’s come to this event that’s just awesome in all five events. There are going to be obstacles. When you get here, you’ve got to play the game where you can see those obstacles coming.”
Ketcher hasn’t had many obstacles. He took the lead in the opening round, which took place Friday afternoon. The 2018 CTEC winner from Squaw Valley, California, Ketscher never relinquished the top spot. He won the opening round and has just continued to build.
“My whole game plan was to make solid runs and rope what I draw, and it seems to be working out,” he said. “I still don’t have a great amount of experience in (steer roping), but being around here the last four years, I’ve seen these scenarios play out. It’s just about me not getting ahead of myself and grinding it out.”
How will he approach the final three rounds of this unique competition?
“I’ll try not to do anything different,” he said “I’ll just keep making my runs and let the cards fall where they’re going to fall.”
The Jr. Ironman took on a bit of an international flavor, when Canadian Tee McLeod won the opening round Friday morning. He roped, tied and wrestled four animals in a cumulative time of 39.3 seconds to claim the $750 prize. Reigning champion Tyler West finished second in 44.1 seconds to pocket $250.
First round: 1. Jordan Ketscher, 65.3 seconds, $3,000; 2. Marcus Theriot, 65.8, $2,000; 3. Roger Nonella, 68.6, $1,000.
Second round: 1. Jess Tierney, 58.3 seconds, $3,000; 2. Haven Meged, 59.3, $2,000; 3. Clay Smith, 63.7, $1,000.
Average leaders: 1. Jordan Ketscher, 130.1 seconds on 10 runs; 2. Jess Tierney, 137.3; 3. Marcus Theriot, 140.4; 4. Roger Nonella, 153.4; 5. Taylor Santos, 156.9.Jr. Ironman first round: 1. Tee McLoud, 39.3 seconds, $750; 2. Tyler West, 44.1, $250; 3. Sam Morgan, 47.8.
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Super Series II Champions
Thirty-two cowboys and cowgirls earned a spot in the RODEOHOUSTON® Semifinals during the Super Series II Championship Round on March 8.Semifinalists Crowned in RODEOHOUSTON® Super Series II
Thirty-two cowboys and cowgirls earned a spot in the RODEOHOUSTON® Semifinals during the Super Series II Championship Round on March 8.
TIE-DOWN ROPING
Cory Solomon secured the Super Series II Tie-Down Roping win at RODEOHOUSTON with local family and friends there supporting him.
“My goal is just to do well at my hometown rodeo in front of family and friends,” Solomon said. “To win a rodeo like this would be a dream come true.”
Advancing to a Semifinal Round:
Cory Solomon: Prairie View, Texas — $4,000
Reese Riemer: Stinnett, Texas — $4,000
Cody Huber: Albia, Iowa — $3,750
Ryan Jarrett: Comanche, Oklahoma — $3,000
BAREBACK RIDING
Leighton Berry won the Super Series II Bareback Riding at his first RODEOHOUSTON appearance.
“I’ve always known that this rodeo was super cool,” Berry said. “People say such good things about it and you get excited to get here and then it just blows your mind. This is probably the coolest rodeo I’ve ever been to.”
Advancing to Semifinal Round:
Leighton Berry: Weatherford, Texas — $6,500
Paden Hurst: Huntsville, Texas — $6,000
Jake Brown: Cleveland, Texas — $3,500
Anthony Thomas: Humble, Texas — $1,375
TEAM ROPING
Team Dustin Egusquiza and Travis Graves secured the Super Series II Team Roping win after three consistent runs, advancing to the semifinals.
Advancing to Semifinal Round:
Dustin Egusquiza: Mineral Wells, Texas; and Travis Graves: Bluff Dale, Texas — $13,000
Derrick Begay: Winslow, Arizona; and Cory Petska: Marana, Arizona — $8,000
Jake Cooper: Monument, New Mexico: and Caleb Anderson, Charlotte, North Carolina — $7,500
JR Dees: Aurora, South Dakota; and Lane Siggins: Coolidge, Arizona — $5,000
SADDLE BRONC RIDING
Allen Boore clinched a Super Series II Saddle Bronc Riding win Sunday night.
“I love the atmosphere here in Houston,” Boore said. “They take really good care of us and they make it feel like home on the road.”
Advancing to Semifinal Round:
Allen Boore: Axtell, Utah — $4,583
Lefty Holman: Visalia, California — $4,458
Joe Harper: Paradise Valley, Nevada — $3,958
Ross Griffin: Tulurosa, New Mexico — $3,375
STEER WRESTLING
Stephen Culling won the Super Series II Steer Wrestling and has advanced to the Semifinals.
Advancing to Semifinal Round:
Stephen Culling: Fort St. John, British Columbia, Canada — $4,500
Kalane Anders: Cheyenne, Wyoming — $4,000
Jace Melvin: Bluff Dale, Texas — $3,000
Jesse Brown: Baker City, Oregon — $3,000
BARREL RACING
Lacinda Rose took home the win in Super Series II for Barrel Racing.
“I love the atmosphere,” Rose said. “They really want to make this a good experience.”
Advancing to Semifinal Round:
Lacinda Rose: Willard, Missouri — $6,000
Jessie Telford: Caldwell, Idaho — $5,000
Lois Ferguson: West, Texas — $3,500
Mary Walker: Ennis, Texas — $3,000
BULL RIDING
Parker McCown clinched the Super Series II win in his RODEOHOUSTON debut.
“I think all my friends and family up in the stands cheering me on is really cool,” McCown said. “I think that’s the best part of being here in Houston.”
Advancing to Semifinal Round:
Parker McCown: Montgomery, Texas — $6,000
Roscoe Jarboe: New Plymouth, Idaho — $4,500
Eli Vastbinder: Union Grove, North Carolina — $3,500
Brady Portenier: Caldwell, Idaho — $1,000
The top four from each event, from each Super Series will advance to a Semifinal Round. The top four from each event in the Semifinal rounds will advance to the RODEOHOUSTON Super Series Championship, Sunday, March 22. The remaining six from each event in the two semifinals will compete in the Wild Card Round, Saturday, March 21, where the top two from each event will advance to the championship. Each event champion will walk away with a $50,000 payout, in addition to previous winnings. The RODEOHOUSTON Super Series includes the RODEOHOUSTON Super Shootout presented by Crown Royal, on Sunday, March 15.
The Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo promotes agriculture by hosting an annual, family-friendly experience that educates and entertains the public, supports Texas youth, showcases Western heritage and provides year-round educational support within the community. Since its beginning in 1932, the Rodeo has committed more than $500 million to the youth of Texas. For more information, visit rodeohouston.com and connect with RODEOHOUSTON online via Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and YouTube for all the latest news. The 2020 Rodeo continues through March 22.