Forrie Smith fell off a horse in front of his mom and step dad when he was 6 and proclaimed that he was going to be a stunt man. 54 years later, he’s doing just that. Forrie plays Lloyd Pearce on Paramount Network’s hit series Yellowstone and recently completed shooting the third season of the show. He has been involved in Yellowstone since season one. “I was a guest star and now I’m on contract. I’m the cow boss. We started shooting season three the first week of August, and just finished up. It takes 8 days to do an episode.”
Rodeo paved the path from bronc rider to stunt man. Born in Helena, Montana, and raised on his grandpa and grandma’s ranch southwest of there, he spent his early years going down the rodeo road with his parents. “I went to grade school at Montana City – there were 13 kids in 8 grades.” He started competing in rodeo when he was 8. “I was on my second pair of chaps already – I wore one out riding at home.” His grandma (Josephine Palmer) didn’t want him riding bucking stock, so he was raised in the timed events. “My granddad rodeoed when they circled the cars and snubbed the horses,” recalls Forrie. “I was drawn to it. I’m known as a horseman. I’ve started a lot of warm bloods for the equestrian people.” He always knew his call was riding bucking stock. He started riding bareback horses when he was 11. “I would get on turnout horses and people like Pat Linger and Steve Loney would help me out.”
He was still spurring bucking horses in 2009, taking after his dad. “I was raised in the back seat of a station wagon. My dad was winning checks until he was 52 in the RCA.” His mom, Chick, was a barrel racer and when she had troubles with her horse she would time and secretary. “I started working the labor list when I was eight under guys like Sonny Linger, Reg Kesler, and the Big Bend Rodeo Company.” Through the years, he did anything necessary at a rodeo including flanking, loading, and riding. “I’ve been on 17 horses in one day and 11 head of bulls in one day. Everything good in my life was because of rodeo.”
He is quick to say that it was rodeo that got him into the film business. “I use a lot of the things I learned from rodeo in the film industry – like breaking things down into steps, thinking positive and not being negative. Thinking about what you did wrong and forgetting it; thinking about what you did right and building on it. Hurry up and wait – that’s all learned from rodeo.” He relates his acting to riding a bucking horse. “You read that dialog and figure out the scene and why you’re saying what you’re saying. If you look at the script and say ‘I got this’ – that positive attitude will work out for you and the energy will carry you – same as riding a bucking horse. If you say you’re not going to ride it, you probably won’t.”
Forrie has been a stunt man for 25 years. His first part was in Desparado. “I had started in the movie business a year before as a wrangler, my first movie was that remake of Stagecoach with Willie Nelson. Then they needed a guy that could rope a guy off a roof. I was the only one that showed up with a rope long enough to reach him. Then I had to get the dialog … my name was Harley.” He had only been in the film business for a week when he went to sign up for the teamsters union. “I had to have references and they were all old rodeo partners. The guy looked at me and said ‘who are you, you come with some of the best and highest recommendations I’ve ever seen’ – that was 1986 – almost to the day I got my screen actors guild card.”
With his look and voice, he was encouraged to take acting lessons. “I just wanted to do stunts .. but I went to Lawrence Parks for acting lessons and learned how to break down a character and a script. That was 25 years ago and I’ve been in it ever since.” Everybody that was in the stunt business back then had some kind of rodeo background. The hardest stunt he’s had to do are horse falls. “There’s a lot of components that go into that – you’ve got to hit your mark, set your horse up and follow through with it. Doing high falls isn’t as bad – it’s just that first step that’s hard. And I didn’t really like the fire gigs – you usually lose all your eyebrows.”
Forrie was raised in Helena, Montana, and moved to Arizona 30 years ago, and now calling San Acacia, New Mexico, home. “I fed cows with a team and sleigh when it was 50 below and it was 106 in August when I was setting posts,” he recalls of his days in Montana. “I drove my cousin back to Texas – 20 years ago – right after Urban Cowboy came out and cowboys were in.” He started doing day work and rodeoing, competing in open rodeos and he filled his permit in 1982 and started competing in pro rodeos. “That was easy back then, there were 100 rodeos in Texas.” He was part of the National Senior Pro Rodeo Association, joining in 2006, when he was 47. He competed for three years there, never winning the world, but winning his circuit twice and taking the average at the Finals. “I was raised to make money – if I didn’t make money rodeoing, I didn’t do it.” He spent his off time wrangling or hauling horses before getting his gig with Yellowstone. He still does wrangling jobs, the latest one for an upcoming Tom Hanks movie.
At 60, Forrie has no plans to slow down. “Thank God to the movie business I’ll have a decent retirement through the teamsters guild. As long as I can stick my feet in the stirrup, I’ll always do day work and I’ll still do movies.” Any chance he gets, he goes home. “I like sleeping in my own bed, petting my own dogs, and saddling my own horses. It’s getting better around home about going out and having a meal and not getting interrupted. I’m not complainin’ – it’s so cool – the excitement and joy you bring people with just a hug and a picture. Without them, I wouldn’t have a show. It’s kind of wild.” Season three of Yellowstone comes out in summer 2020. “I’m a very blessed man – I thank God and my Lord and Savior Jesus Christ that I’m still on the ride. It ain’t over yet.”
Erin King knows she’s led a blessed life, and the blessings keep coming.
The cowgirl who lives in Wickenburg, Ariz. with her fiancé Brandon Bates and their daughters, Madison and Brooklyn, has loved every bit of her life.
She grew up in Sheridan, Wyo., a member of the King ranching and roping family, with parents Bob and Debbi King who were horse people. Debbi did combined training with horses, and Bob, who co-owned King Saddlery with his family, was a highly respected team roper.
Even though her family made the world-renowned King ropes, she and her younger sister Kristen were never forced to rope as kids. “We didn’t grow up roping, which is funny, because our dad made the ropes,” Erin said. “He never pushed that upon us. He knew, when we wanted to rope, we’d come to him.”
The girls were involved in a variety of activities, though. Erin was a member of 4-H, FFA, gymnastics, dance, and ran barrels, poles and breakaway roped throughout junior, high school and college. Debbi always told her daughters there were two kinds of people: those who loved horses, and those who were in love with horses, and Erin was the latter.
It was when Erin met Brandon twelve years ago that the roping bug really bit. Erin had dabbled in breakaway, but it “wasn’t her thing,” she said. She was riding and training horses, but when Brandon came into her life, that changed. “That’s all they do,” she said, referring to their roping and riding, “and rodeo for a living. I was thrown into the atmosphere.”
Erin learned quickly, in part because of her horsemanship skills. Because she knew how to ride and had ridden colts, barrel horses and jumping horses, the riding part was easy. Brandon helped her learn how, providing the best teacher she could have: a good horse. “That horse took me to the same spot every time and backed into the box the same every time. I still remember the first money I won. It was at a round robin, it paid $700 and I thought I was the coolest thing ever.”
She headed for a while, then after selling two good head horses, switched to heeling for a good reason. “Brandon’s a heeler, so we’ll always have good heel horses around,” she said. The heeling did good things for her heading. “I love heeling,” she said, “but with heeling, your arm has to be stronger, and heading became more simple for me.” Her heading improved, and “I started winning a lot and they raised my number,” she laughed.
For several years, the couple lived in Idaho, then moved to Texas and California. But those places weren’t a good fit for them, so they moved to Wickenburg a year ago.
Wickenburg, the team roping capital of the world, is the perfect place for them. They just opened up their new place: the Wickenburg Winter Cowboy Camp.
WWCC, as it’s known, boasts sixteen plug-ins for RVs and trailers, two barns with thirty stalls combined, a third barn under construction, and two arenas.
The plug-ins are full electricity and water with most of them having sewer as well. A lot of people park their RVs or trailers and rent or borrow a smaller trailer to haul horses to ropings so the big trailer doesn’t have to be moved.
“We’re more than a place to stay and plug in,” Erin said. “People can come here and do it all in one spot.” They offer lessons, horse training, and their arena is open from 10 am to 4 pm every day, for ropers to practice or train a horse.
Erin and Brandon also take in consignment horses, and Brandon is building a deck onto a barn so they can host cookouts as well.
Erin has qualified for the World Series Finale, held in Las Vegas at the South Point Hotel and Casino, in December. This is her first time to compete at it, even though she’s qualified four previous times.
She loves what the Arizona atmosphere has done for team roping. “No matter what roping you go to, the cattle are incredible, the competition is unbelievable, and you have to be your very best. You can’t make mistakes, and I think that is amazing.
Her dad used to compare team roping with golf to explain its complexities and challenges. “He said, ‘how do you ever conquer them?’”
The environment in Arizona also makes it fun. “Everybody’s in a good mood,” she said. “Everybody’s on vacation and is so happy to be here. It’s sunny, it’s dry, and we feel so blessed to be here.”
And Erin is thankful for her family, her horses and her roping. “It makes you truly appreciate being here and doing what we love to do.”
More than 50,000 people attended the rodeo this year, making it one of the bigger events in the area.
It’s a long-time tradition, said Cindy Schonholtz, general manager of the rodeo. “There simply isn’t a better place to spend the Fourth of July than at the St. Paul Rodeo. Fans enjoy the patriotism, the bucking horses and bulls, the fireworks, even the novelty of arbor vitae trees in the arena. They appreciate being part of the history and tradition of St. Paul and the American West, and they are delighted and surprised when they come to the rodeo, because it’s so much more than rodeo.”
Tickets range in price from $16 to $26. All seats are reserved, so purchasing tickets early guarantees a better selection of seating, Schonholtz said.
Tickets can be purchased online at www.StPaulRodeo.com. For more information, visit the website or call 800.237.5920.
The rodeo is a fundraiser for many service and youth organizations around the area; it is produced by nearly one hundred percent volunteer labor.
LAS VEGAS – On Thursday, Dec. 12, the World Champions Rodeo Alliance (WCRA) will make a major announcement regarding the Triple Crown of Rodeo (TCR) at the Las Vegas Convention Center on Rodeo Row at the Days of ’47 booth at 1 p.m. PT. PBR CEO Sean Gleason, Days of ’47 Cowboy Games & Rodeo General Manager Tommy Joe Lucia, and President and CEO of Days of ’47 Dan Shaw will accompany WCRA President Bobby Mote as each representative speaks on the state of the TCR and it’s future.
The TCR is an annual bonus that will pay $1,000,000 to any one athlete or collection of athletes whom win first place in any three consecutive WCRA $1,000,000 Major Rodeos.
The current WCRA 2020 schedule includes three major rodeos where athletes can qualify for the TCR $1,000,000 bonus, beginning in Kansas City, Missouri for the Royal City Roundup on February 28. The Kansas City event will be followed by the May 17 Stampede at The E in Guthrie, Oklahoma. The 2020 series is scheduled to wrap-up in Tacoma, Washington on August 28 with the Puget Sound Showdown.
The huge statue sitting in the walkway of the South Point Hotel and Casino in Las Vegas of Benny Binion on his horse, Trece, has traveled far to find a home here in this very busy thoroughfare within the confines of the headquarters of the Professional Rodeo Cowboy Association when the National Finals Rodeo comes to town. It is a larger than life bronze 15 feet tall and 16 feet long, weighing 2,800 pounds created by well-known sculptor, Deborah Copenhaver.
Benny Binion was a successful businessman, who found his fortune in gambling in Dallas, Texas before moving to Las Vegas. The horse was owned by his daughter, Brenda, but Benny, who always wanted to live the western way of life, wanted her to sell him to her to use on his ranch in Montana. “No dice,” she said. Trece was one of 18 foals from the mare, Brenda Joe. “I think my dad thought if he made a bronze of him, I’d let him have the horse,” explained Brenda Binion Michael. The Texas Historical Society paid for Copenhaver to sculpt the bronze. It was placed in front of the famous Billy Bob’s, The Largest Honky Tonk in the World, in the Stockyards at Fort Worth, Texas and was unveiled on Benny’s 80th birthday. When Billy Bob’s was sold, Ronnie Campbell hauled the statue to Las Vegas and it was placed in front of the parking garage of The Horseshoe, Benny’s casino, on 2nd Street in downtown Las Vegas.
Michael Gaughan, owner of South Point, wanted it once Binion’s were no longer owners of The Horseshoe. “It was out in a back street collecting bird shit,” said Gaughan. “Mr. Binion was very close to me – he never said no to me. I tried to get the statue a couple of times, and finally got it for $1. Getting it into South Point was a challenge. First it had to be cleaned – which took two people three days working on it. “We were told not to tilt it or use steel wool,” explained Gaughan, “So we used warm water, soap, and Irish-cut oatmeal to get it cleaned up. They cut a hole in the building, and a second hole to get it into the casino. It took an entire day – it was like moving a Trojan horse.”
Benny Binion had a love of the west, and a high regard for cowboys. He was very instrumental in getting the Professional Rodeo Cowboys Association National Finals Rodeo to move to Las Vegas. Since South Point has become the destination of the PRCA Convention, the Benny Binion World Famous Bucking Horse Sale, and so much more during the National Finals Rodeo plus so many other western events and competitions held there during the year the bronze of Benny Binion and Trece is destined to be a focal point at South Point forever.
LAS VEGAS – Bareback rider Clayton Biglow couldn’t have picked a better time to be riding his best.
The Clements, Calif., cowboy won his third round in a row at the 2019 Wrangler National Finals Rodeo when he captured the Round 7 title with a 91.5-point ride on Rafter G Rodeo’s Ankle Biter before 16,786 spectators Wednesday night at the Thomas & Mack Center
Biglow’s score tied the Wrangler NFR bareback riding Round 7 record set by Bobby Mote on Big Bend Rodeo’s Spring Fling in 2008.
“That was the best bull ride I ever made,” Biglow, 23, said with a laugh. “When she turned back, I was just trying to keep my feet up in her neck and stay with her, and she was really whipping it around there.”
Ankle Biter also was voted top bareback horse of Round 7.
Biglow is having an amazing Wrangler NFR. He won Round 5 with a 92.5-point ride on Pickett Pro Rodeo’s Scarlett Belle and shared Round 6’s top honor with Caleb Bennett and Tilden Hooper, as all three riders had 88.5-point rides.
Biglow’s ride in Round 6 came on Pickett Pro Rodeo’s Freckled Frog. Biglow came into the Wrangler NFR as the leader in the PRCA | RAM World Standings, and he remains there with $292,786.
Biglow has earned $110,834 at the Wrangler NFR and leads the average with 615 points on seven head.
“I’ve been drawing really good and I feel good, and I want to keep the ball rolling,” Biglow said. “I’ve been very blessed that’s for sure. I’ve just been trying to keep my confidence in my head and forget about what’s going on. You don’t want to have your highs too high and your lows too low.
“You only get on one horse at a time, so I don’t want to get too ahead of myself. I’m taking it jump for jump and night by night, and I’m coming at it every night like it is a one-header. I’m giving it all I have when I nod my head.”
Biglow is a four-time qualifier for the Wrangler NFR – 2016-19. His career-best finish was fourth in the world standings last year.
Sage Kimzey wins his first round at this year’s Wrangler NFR
Sage Kimzey, the reigning five-time PRCA world champion bull rider, has had a stout performance at the 2019 Wrangler NFR, and it got even better on Wednesday night.
The Strong City, Okla., cowboy won his first round of this Wrangler NFR with a 90-point ride on Cervi Championship Rodeo’s Smoke Wagon.
“I wasn’t really paying attention, all I had to do was my job,” Kimzey said. “My mantra is ‘No noise,’ and I just climb on and take care of business.”
Smoke Wagon is making his Wrangler NFR debut, but Kimzey had some history with him before Round 7.
“He threw me off at Houston a couple of years ago, and it feels good to get him ridden for sure,” Kimzey said. “He’s been a bucker for a long time and was good tonight.”
By winning the round, Kimzey earned $33,564 counting ground money. He leads the world standings with $363,816. He has a $113,378 lead over second-place Boudreaux Campbell.
“That’s good – it all helps, and it all spends the same,” Kimzey said. “I am just trying to stay on nine bulls now since I was bucked off one. The rank bulls are out (Thursday night) and that’s all I’m worried about. I feel really good. I feel strong and healthy and all good.”
Saddle bronc rider Zeke Thurston wins with round record – RodeoBum.com
Zeke Thurston, the 2016 saddle bronc riding world champion, matched up with Northcott Macza’s Get Smart, the 2019 saddle bronc Pendleton Whisky “Let ’er Buck” Stock of the Year, in Round 7, and the results were historic.
Thurston set the Wrangler Round 7 record with a 92.5-point ride. The previous Round 7 record of 90 points was shared by Billy Etbauer (2009), Chase Brooks (2018) and Wade Sundell (2018).
“Yeah, that horse I’ve been on probably seven or eight times, and it’s gone good every time,” said Thurston, who was pumping his fist moments after his eight-second performance. “It’s one of those horses that, when you draw him, it could be his day or your day. It’s easy to underestimate him, because he’s not very big but bucks big and has a big heart. I’ve won a lot of money on that horse. He’s pretty special.
“For him to win the world (saddle bronc horse of the year) this year and to be able to draw him at the Finals and ride him is pretty fun.”
Thurston leads the saddle bronc riding world standings with $277,953. He also won Round 1 win an 88-point ride on Mo Betta Rodeo’s Sue City Sue.
“It’s just about getting things going,” Thurston said. “I started off good (winning Round 1) and placed here and there. I had a couple nights of bad luck too, but you just look past it and keep rolling on. You just stick to the basics, and they’ll tell you who wins at the end.”
Thurston, of Big Valley, Alberta, is happy to be part of a strong showing of Canadian saddle bronc riders. Jake Watson, of Hudson’s Hope, British Columbia, and Dawson Hay, of Wildwood, Alberta, won rounds 5 and 6, respectively.
“Jake (Watson), Dawson (Hay) and I traveled together this year, and we had a blast,” Thurston said. “We had a lot of fun rodeoing, all had good years, won lots and made the Finals, which was really special. It’s Jake’s second time and Dawson’s first, and for us three to come here and do well just makes it all the better. Rodeo is a huge family, and having guys like that you get to be around all the time is pretty cool.”
Team ropers Cody Smith/Wesley Thorp win round with record-tying run
Team ropers Cody Snow and Wesley Thorp claimed their first round win of the 2019 Finals in record fashion.
Snow and Thorp stopped the clock in 3.6 seconds to capture top honors in Round 7.
That tied the Round 7 Wrangler NFR record shared by Derrick Begay/Cesar de la Cruz
(2009); Clay Tryan/Travis Graves (2012); and Trevor Brazile/Patrick Smith (2015).
“I try to do the same thing every time and ride hard across the line and put it on the steer’s head before I think about being fast,” Snow said. “It means a lot for this time in the NFR. We have placed along the way, and it’s good to get a win like that, but there are still some (rounds) left to build momentum.”
Thorp was happy with how things unfolded.
“That was the best steer we’d drawn, and I was in a better position to go faster,” he said.
The $26,231 payday also was welcomed with open arms by Thorp. Snow and Thorp have each earned $62,885 at this year’s Wrangler NFR. They are first in the average with a 28.7-second time on six head.
“We just need to keep the momentum going,” Snow said.
Thorp is upbeat about the remainder of the Wrangler NFR.
“I feel good,” Thorp said. “We haven’t changed from Round 1, and it just shaped up quicker tonight. It’s relieving to know we won’t need to change anything, just make the same run.”
Team roping header Clay Smith ($234,551) and his heeling partner, Jade Corkill, ($192,676) are leading their respective world standings.
Steer wrestler Stetson Jorgensen wins first career Wrangler NFR round
Steer wrestler Stetson Jorgensen will never forget his first appearance at the Wrangler NFR.
Now, the Blackfoot, Idaho, cowboy has even more reason to remember the experience after capturing his first career round win with a 3.4-second time in Round 7, the fastest of the rodeo through seven rounds.
“It did feel good,” Jorgensen said. “Knowing I had a good steer like that and with my horse working good, I knew I had a good shot tonight. That (victory lap) was pretty awesome. Watching the NFR when I was 10 or 12, I always wanted to be here, and making that victory lap was an accomplishment and a dream come true. I’m just so grateful to be here doing what I love.”
Jorgensen kept his head despite not getting a check in rounds 3 through 6.
“I broke out last night, but I finally got the start down and knew I had to just not back off,” Jorgensen said. “I’m kind of out of the average, and the go-rounds are going to pay more than the average, so that’s what I’m going for. I’m feeling dangerous.”
Jorgensen also was quick to praise his horsepower.
“It’s a horse called Mable, who’s owned by Garrett Henry from Wyoming,” he said. “This is actually her first year going, and she’s working really good, so far. My expectations for her are way up there.”
Ty Erickson is atop the steer wrestling world standings with $185,414.
Tyler Milligan scores Round 7 win in tie-down roping
The Pawhuska, Okla., cowboy clocked a 7.5-second run to win Round 7, the first of his career.
“It was awesome, I don’t how else to explain it,” Milligan said. “It’s my first time here and this win is really humbling.
“I knew she was pretty good, but she had a couple bad outs, the first guys that ran her didn’t do well with her. But she turned out good tonight.”
Milligan had a witty answer to why his fortune changed in Round 7.
“I got my boots shined, I think that might have something to do with it,” he said.
Milligan was quick to credit his horse, Big Time, the 2019 Purina Tie-down Roping Horse of the Year presented by AQHA.
“He’s doing really good,” Milligan said. “I’ve been the only person at fault for not winning as much as we should be, but he’s been really good.”
Shane Hanchey is leading the tie-down roping world standings with $209,928.
Hailey Kinsel gets her first round win of 2019 Wrangler NFR – RodeoBum.com
Barrel racer Hailey Kinsel is finding her groove at the right time.
The Cotulla, Texas, cowgirl recorded a 13.60-second run to win Round 7, her first of the 2019 Wrangler NFR.
“Oh, it feels really good,” Kinsel said. “It’s nice to move up the dirt again. I kind of used my mulligan earlier when I had my first good ground draw, so I was glad to move back up and have a really good shot at it tonight. My horse has been trying hard, so I was glad to give her a good shot at it.”
Kinsel has earned checks in four consecutive rounds and took over the world standings lead with $236,713 while aboard her horse, Sister.
“Yeah, she’s loving it,” Kinsel said. “I wanted her to peak around this time of the week instead of early on and then have her get to where she wasn’t feeling good later on. She feels really strong, and she’s feeling better and better every night. That works for me.”
The Round 7 victory was a big boost for Kinsel at the right time as she aims to win back-to-back world championships.
“Oh, it’s really exciting,” Kinsel said. “Every little bit helps, and more than anything, she worked really honest and tried really hard. She was really firing, and that makes me excited to make three more runs.”
Stetson Wright leads tight all-around world standings race.
Rookie Stetson Wright still leads the all-around race in the 2019 PRCA | RAM World Standings with $247,576. He has a slim lead over reigning world champion team roping header Clay Smith ($245,402). Tuf Cooper, the 2017 all-around champ, is third in the standings with $222,640. Wright, who is third in the bull riding world standings, is trying to become the first roughstock rider to win the all-around crown since ProRodeo Hall of Famer Ty Murray did it in 1998. Smith cut into Wright’s lead after he and his partner – heeler Jade Corkill – took second in Round 6 with a 4.2-second run and earned $20,731.
Barrel racer Amberleigh Moore leads RAM Top Gun Award standings
Barrel racer Amberleigh Moore has earned the most money of any contestant at the 2019 Wrangler NFR – not counting ground money – with $114,923, putting her in the driver seat to win the RAM Top Gun Award.
Bareback rider Clayton Biglow ($110,833) and bull rider Boudreaux Campbell ($109,000) are second and third, respectively.
Another element of excitement at the Finals is the RAM Top Gun Award, which goes to the contestant who wins the most money in any single event at the Wrangler NFR.
LAS VEGAS – A little history lesson on Monday night helped Coleman Proctor handle his business during the fifth round of the National Finals Rodeo.
“I had a steer that was like my first-round steer,” said Proctor, who, with partner Ryan Motes, stopped the clock in 4.4 seconds to share second place on the fifth night of ProRodeo’s championship. “Chad Masters had him and said that the steer didn’t score good and that I needed to take a normal start. That’s what I did.
“The great thing about our sport is the comradery; everybody’s trying to help everybody win. I tried to take the right start. Heisman hit the nail on the start. I can’t be an inch closer. That’s Lady Luck right there.”
Masters is a two-time world champion who had the steer in Friday’s second round, so his scouting report gave Proctor all the information needed. With that, he earned his second straight paycheck of this year’s NFR, this one worth $18,129. He has pushed his NFR earnings to $48,923 and his season earnings to $153,241. He is fourth in the world standings.
“That steer hit wild and was long down the pen, and Motesy did a great job of finishing it off,” said Proctor, a five-time NFR qualifier in heading from Pryor, Oklahoma. “If you’re rockin’ a pink goatee, how can you not be a full-size man when you heel one like that?”
Monday’s round was Pink Night at the NFR, a designation to help support the fight against cancer. It’s happened on the fifth night of the finale for more than a decade, and Proctor has had plenty of success in the fifth round; that includes two go-round wins. Motes always dyes his facial hair to go along with the special night.
After a slow start in the opening three rounds, Proctor and Motes have cashed in strong each of the past two nights; they were second in the fourth round, too. Both remain in the hunt for a world championship, though Proctor’s focus now is to try to secure that Montana Silversmiths gold buckle for his partner.
“I told my wife, ‘Wow, what a difference 48 hours makes,’ ” he said. “I appreciate all the concern and the worrying about me, but our preparation and ground work were laid, and I have played with what brought us here. We stuck to what we do. Motesy is going to have a great chance to win the world at the end of the week.
“I’m just sticking to what I know. I knew I was lucky when I started this game, and I feel like everything’s going to go our way these next five rounds.”
Launches With National High School Rodeo Association As An Alliance
AUSTIN, TEXAS – The World Champions Rodeo Alliance (WCRA) today announced the unveiling of the WCRA Division Y (DY), a youth division designed to give youth the most exclusive opportunity to qualify and compete in a one-day $1,000,000 major rodeo.
DY will feature athletes ages 13 and up from around the globe competing for their spot on the WCRA DY Leaderboard (age limit is determined by sanctioning bodies where DY athletes earn points). The top 24 athletes in each discipline as of April 12, 2020 on the DY Leaderboard will advance to the May 14-15 Youth Stampede At The E event in Guthrie, Oklahoma at the legendary Lazy E Arena.
The May 14-15 Youth Stampede at the E will host competitors in each of the six disciplines; girl’s breakaway roping, steer wrestling, team roping, tie-down roping, and barrel racing, — each athlete competing for their piece of the $50,000 purse. The event format will be two rounds and an average. Athletes will not be required to pay an entry fee.
The average champions from each discipline from the youth event will advance to the WCRA $1 Million Stampede At The E on May 16. The one-day $1 million major rodeo will give one youth in each discipline the opportunity to run at more than $111,000, with the winners walking away with at least $50,000 each.
“Based on feedback throughout the rodeo industry, we have made the decision to add a youth division to give the youth a chance to earn big payouts on a large stage,” said WCRA President, Bobby Mote. “While we realize the need for growth in rough stock, our first event will only feature the six major timed event disciplines. Rough stock disciplines will be added in a future segment.”
WCRA also announced their first youth alliance- The National High School Rodeo Association (NHSRA). The NHSRA is an international, non-profit organization dedicated to the development of sportsmanship, horsemanship and character in the youth of our country through the sport of rodeo. The NHSRA membership consists of over 11,500 members from 43 states, five Canadian provinces, Australia and Mexico. The NHSRA also supports athletes dreams by annually awarding more than $550,000.00 in scholarships at the national level, and $1.8 million in scholarship cumulatively on the international level.
“NHSRA is always looking for ways to provide our members with opportunity to grow in and out of the arena, while striving to build a strong foundation for our members,” said NHSRA Executive Director, James Higginbotham. “While there are roughly 1,800 NHSRA sanctioned rodeos throughout the year, WCRA will give our members a chance to compete, if they choose, on an additional platform.”
Youth competitors can begin earning points through nominating their efforts beginning December 2, 2019 and concluding April 12, 2020. Athletes will be given the opportunity to nominate for $25 and earn points or the youth division. Nominating DY and the open division will not be permitted. Athletes who are under 18 years of age must chose to compete in the open VRQ division or the youth divison.
“What better way to launch our youth initiative than with the largest youth rodeo association in the world,” said Mote. “We could not be more proud to join forces with the NHSRA to take youth rodeo to new heights. You can’t be all for rodeo- if you’re not developing the next generation of the sport.”
Since launching in May of 2018, the WCRA and its partners have awarded more than $5,600,000 in new money to rodeo athletes. All rodeo athletes interested in learning more about the WCRA or the VRQ should be directed to wcrarodeo.com. All athletes looking to register, please visit here.
-WCRA-
About WCRA
WCRA is a professional sport and entertainment entity, created to develop and advance the sport of rodeo by aligning all levels of competition. In association with the PBR, WCRA produces major rodeo events, developing additional opportunities for rodeo-industry competitors, stakeholders, and fans. To learn more, visit wcrarodeo.com. For athletes interested in learning more about the WCRA Virtual Rodeo Qualifier (VRQ) system, visit app.wcrarodeo.com.
About the National High School Rodeo Association
The National High School Rodeo Association was founded in 1949, the mission of the NHSRA has existed first and foremost to promote and support education and to develop the essential attributes of leadership, dedication, commitment and responsibility in high school students. While preserving the western heritage, the NHSRA teaches its members to maintain the highest regard for each other and their livestock. The NHSRA’s mission does not stop on the high school level, as the Association also strives to impart to its members the advantage of higher education and the desire to never stop learning. The NHSRA supports their dreams by annually awarding more than $550,000.00 in scholarships at the national level, and $1.8 million in scholarship cumulatively on the international level. With over 70 Years of history behind the NHSRA and continued growth and success, the organization is preserving the past and preparing for a successful future.
When Evan Allard was a kid, while his friends were playing football under the bleachers during the Vinita, Okla. rodeo, he was glued to the rodeo, watching the rodeo clown.
He loved rodeo, and every time the Will Rogers Memorial Rodeo came to town, he was there, with a singular focus, observing. And when he showed cattle at the Inter-State Fair and Rodeo in Coffeyville, Kan., just thirty miles north of Vinita, he was watching there, too.
And now he’s headed to the biggest stage in pro rodeo: as a bullfighter at the Wrangler National Finals Rodeo.
Allard grew up around cattle in a family that didn’t rodeo, but he idolized the rodeo clowns and bullfighters.
When he was fifteen years old, he snuck behind the chutes in Coffeyville and introduced himself to Cory Wall, who was fighting bulls. Wall invited him to a Sankey rodeo school in late August, where Wall was the bullfighter instructor, and Evan went. “I wanted to do it so bad I couldn’t stand it,” he remembered.
He got ahold of a Humps and Horns magazine, with a listing of stock contractors and associations, and started making phone calls, asking for jobs. “I didn’t know any better,” he said. “I didn’t know the difference between the PRCA and the NFL, for that matter. It didn’t matter to me. I sure wanted to fight bulls and wanted somebody to give me a shot.”
He began working a junior bull riding association, two events a month for thirty dollars an event. “I was uptown,” he said, thinking he had it made. Ironically, he was working with Cody Webster, who he’ll work alongside in front of the yellow chutes in Las Vegas. “He was just a pup,” Evan said. “We were just babies.”
In 2005, thanks to Jim McClain, he got introduced to freestyle bullfighting, which became his forte. “That’s where I really made a name for myself,” Evan said. He worked Two Bulls Protection shows, which were owned and produced by McClain.
In 2006, he went to his first freestyle bullfighting competition, and four years later, he won his first freestyle national championship, with two more titles after that, in 2014 and 2015.
At the time, he worked a fulltime job as a journeyman substation technician, testing and maintaining high voltage transformers. His job supplemented his rodeo income, helping him buy his place, the Hookin’ A Ranch, and start his herd of fighting bulls.
Then he got a call to work a rodeo as a bullfighter. He had done plenty of cowboy protection, but freestyle was his main work. He couldn’t refuse this job, but didn’t have any vacation time away from work. “I thought, one of these days, I’ll work when I can’t fight bulls,” he said. “So I quit my job.” It was 2015, and he became a PRCA member.
He estimates he works more than 100 performances a year protecting cowboys, at rodeos from Oklahoma to California and everywhere in between: the Ft. Worth Stock Show, several PBRs, the Texas Circuit Finals, and more.
There’s more to Evan than rodeo. He got his pilot’s license three years ago, with the sole purpose of flying to rodeos. Last year, he got his aerial applicator’s license, to crop dust, and this year, he bought an agricultural plane. He’s growing his business, spraying farmers’ crops and pastures in northeast Oklahoma and southeast Kansas, with his long-time girlfriend, Kelsea Walker, helping out.
When he got the call that he was selected to work the WNFR, it was a surreal feeling. “Getting that phone call was an unreal moment,” Evan said. “I instantly was glad it was six weeks away. I don’t want to lose that feeling.” The two bullfighters who signed for his PRCA card four years ago are the men he’ll work alongside in December; Cody Webster and Dusty Tuckness.
When he was a little bitty kid, he never thought his dream would take him this far. As a kid, all he wanted to be was a rodeo clown, because he didn’t understand the difference between the clown and the bullfighters. Having the natural athletic ability to fight bulls took him in that direction instead of clowning. He knows there might be a kid in the audience who looks up to him, just like when he was young. “That’s why it’s important to me to put on the face paint and the baggies,” he said. He knows that for the kids in the crowd, the bullfighters and clowns are bigger than life. “At the end of the day, protecting bull riders is very important, and it has turned into an art, but without somebody in that crowd, we have no job, and the only way to get people in that crowd is to entertain them. There’s more to it than just fighting bulls and going home.”
Evan knows that when he gets to Las Vegas, the ten days will fly. He’s not ready for that, but he’ll savor every moment. “I don’t want it to be over. I know once I get out there, it will go so fast it’ll seem like it’s over before it starts.”
Nothing but PREMIER performance horses sell at Diamonds in the Desert Premier Horse Sale. Join MM Auction Services and the Plaza Hotel as they bring the western legacy back AGAIN to Downtown, Las Vegas! The Historic Horse Sale at the Plaza Hotel & Casino returns again during Cowboy Christmas! As you review the horses, know that buyers will prevail at the sale so rest assure to BUY WITH CONFIDENCE.
We are bringing the best performance horse consignors and buyers together in Cowboy Town during the Wrangler National Finals Rodeo @ the Plaza Hotel & Casino. Diamonds in the Desert brings the BEST of all performance horse disciplines to one location making it easier for everyone to find their next “once in a lifetime”.
We are proud to offer 75 head of outstanding horses. These 75 have already been through one sifting process. When they show up in Vegas, they will go through a thorough vet check and another sifting process. We are asking buyers to do their homework. Call consignors now, ask lots of questions, and go ride the horses at their homes giving buyers the confidence they need to bid come sale day. Buyers will be able to find their next roper, barrel racer, reiner, rancher, trail rider, driver, cow horse, futurity horse, prospect, show, specialty, draft, and/or family horse. The sale features bloodlines from some of the industry’s leading stallions including: Frenchman’s Guy, Sun Frost, Doc O’Lena, High Brow Cat, Doc’s Remedy, Dry Doc, Peppy San Badger, Inwhizable, Metaliccat, Playgun, Dash for Cash, Topsail Whiz, Colonel Freckles, Hollywood Dun It, Boomernic, HF Mobster, and Paleface Dunnit just to name a few.
December 10th is when it all kicks off with the vet checks and sifting process from 9-5pm. December 11th is the Live Demonstration of all horses at 9 am followed by our Meet & Greet in the arena at 3 pm. December 12th is the Buyers VIP Video Preview at 8 am. The main event, “Diamonds in the Desert Premier Horse Sale”, kicks off at 12:00 pm in the Plaza Showroom.
MM Auction Services cordially invites you to join us in Las Vegas, Nevada December 10th-12th. Live Facebook and YouTube feeds will be available for those who cannot join us as well as absentee and live online bidding. Attendees coming to town without a trailer, need not worry. We have licensed and insured transporters ready to take care of you. We even have an exclusive international shipper. To request a catalog or for more information regarding the sale, go to www.diamondsinthedesert.sale
Two contest winners join list of 10 to perform at the Thomas & Mack Center; Anthems presented by Rocky Mountain Elk Foundation
LAS VEGAS (November 5, 2019) – After a three-month promotion, two performers have been selected by fans to sing the national anthem at the Wrangler National Finals Rodeo in Las Vegas. The Wrangler NFR will kick off on Thursday, Dec. 5 and run through Saturday, Dec. 14.
The Wrangler NFR National Anthem Contest launched on Aug. 1. All entries had to be submitted by Aug. 23. Entries were received from 29 states. From there, an initial fan vote narrowed the list to the Top 30 and a panel of judges narrowed the list to the Top 8 for further open voting. From Sept. 26 through Oct. 3, fans voted on their selection of choice among the final eight entries. The 2019 winners were Jackie Akers, a repeat winner from 2018, and Allie Burget, a winner from 2016. Akers will perform on Dec. 8, while Burget will appear on Dec. 9.
A native of Carson, Iowa, Akers works in the Riverside Community School district in nearby Oakland. She lives in Carson with her husband, Cody, and two daughters – Carly and Layla. An experienced performer, she has had solos in numerous school plays and concerts and sang the national anthem for numerous events, ranging from sports to military events. For the past 14 years, Akers has been the lead female vocalist for the very popular church band at the Carson United Methodist Church. For the past 18 years, Akers has had the opportunity to sing the national anthem at the local Carson Rodeo.
Hailing from the small, rural town of Brewster, Wash., Burgett has been performing since she was a child. Following high school, she attended Gonzaga University in Spokane, where she graduated in 2017 with a bachelor’s degree in Political Science and Criminal Justice. Since then, she has worked as a paralegal and is planning on attending law school next year. In addition to performing the national anthem for rodeos and other athletic events, she enjoys performing country music and singing for her local church. Allie performed the national anthem at the NFR once before in 2016, which she recalls as one of the greatest honors and privileges she has received.
Tuesday, Dec. 10 – Tracy Lawrence (also performing at the Golden Nugget)
Wednesday, Dec. 11 – Military Personnel from Nellis Air Force Base
Thursday, Dec. 12 – Mark Chestnut (also performing at Rodeo Vegas)
Friday, Dec. 13 – Craig Campbell
Saturday, Dec. 14 – Andy Griggs
Known as the richest and most prestigious rodeo in the world, the Wrangler NFR attracts the top 15 contestants in bareback riding, steer wrestling, team roping, saddle bronc riding, tie-down roping, barrel racing, and bull riding to compete for a share of the $10 million purse and the coveted Gold Buckle. In 2018, the event had a total attendance of 169,171 over the 10 days of competition and has sold out more than 300 consecutive performances.
For more information on the Wrangler NFR and Cowboy Christmas, please visit www.NFRexperience.com or through social media at /LasVegasNFR and use #WranglerNFR. For the latest Pro Rodeo news and Wrangler NFR coverage, please visit www.prorodeo.com or through social media at @PRCA_ProRodeo.
When Evan Allard was a kid, while his friends were playing football under the bleachers during the Vinita, Okla. rodeo, he was glued to the rodeo, watching the rodeo clown.
He loved rodeo, and every time the Will Rogers Memorial Rodeo came to town, he was there, with a singular focus, observing. And when he showed cattle at the Inter-State Fair and Rodeo in Coffeyville, Kan., just thirty miles north of Vinita, he was watching there, too.
And now he’s headed to the biggest stage in pro rodeo: as a bullfighter at the Wrangler National Finals Rodeo.
Allard grew up around cattle in a family that didn’t rodeo, but he idolized the rodeo clowns and bullfighters.
When he was fifteen years old, he snuck behind the chutes in Coffeyville and introduced himself to Cory Wall, who was fighting bulls. Wall invited him to a Sankey rodeo school in late August, where Wall was the bullfighter instructor, and Evan went. “I wanted to do it so bad I couldn’t stand it,” he remembered.
He got a hold of a Humps and Horns magazine, with a listing of stock contractors and associations, and started making phone calls, asking for jobs. “I didn’t know any better,” he said. “I didn’t know the difference between the PRCA and the NFL, for that matter. It didn’t matter to me. I sure wanted to fight bulls and wanted somebody to give me a shot.”
He began working a junior bull riding association, two events a month for thirty dollars an event. “I was uptown,” he said, thinking he had it made. Ironically, he was working with Cody Webster, who he’ll work alongside in front of the yellow chutes in Las Vegas. “He was just a pup,” Evan said. “We were just babies.”
In 2005, thanks to Jim McClain, he got introduced to freestyle bullfighting, which became his forte. “That’s where I really made a name for myself,” Evan said. He worked Two Bulls Protection shows, which were owned and produced by McClain.
In 2006, he went to his first freestyle bullfighting competition, and four years later, he won his first freestyle national championship, with two more titles after that, in 2014 and 2015.
At the time, he worked a fulltime job as a journeyman substation technician, testing and maintaining high voltage transformers. His job supplemented his rodeo income, helping him buy his place, the Hookin’ A Ranch, and start his herd of fighting bulls.
Then he got a call to work a rodeo as a bullfighter. He had done plenty of cowboy protection, but freestyle was his main work. He couldn’t refuse this job, but didn’t have any vacation time away from work. “I thought, one of these days, I’ll work when I can’t fight bulls,” he said. “So I quit my job.” It was 2015, and he became a PRCA member.
He estimates he works more than 100 performances a year protecting cowboys, at rodeos from Oklahoma to California and everywhere in between: the Ft. Worth Stock Show, several PBRs, the Texas Circuit Finals, and more.
There’s more to Evan than rodeo. He got his pilot’s license three years ago, with the sole purpose of flying to rodeos. Last year, he got his aerial applicator’s license, to crop dust, and this year, he bought an agricultural plane. He’s growing his business, spraying farmers’ crops and pastures in northeast Oklahoma and southeast Kansas, with his long-time girlfriend, Kelsea Walker, helping out.
When he’s not fighting bulls, Evan Allard is flying as an aerial applicator. – courtesy of the family
When he got the call that he was selected to work the WNFR, it was a surreal feeling. “Getting that phone call was an unreal moment,” Evan said. “I instantly was glad it was six weeks away. I don’t want to lose that feeling.” The two bullfighters who signed for his PRCA card four years ago are the men he’ll work alongside in December; Cody Webster and Dusty Tuckness.
When he was a little bitty kid, he never thought his dream would take him this far. As a kid, all he wanted to be was a rodeo clown, because he didn’t understand the difference between the clown and the bullfighters. Having the natural athletic ability to fight bulls took him in that direction instead of clowning. He knows there might be a kid in the audience who looks up to him, just like when he was young. “That’s why it’s important to me to put on the face paint and the baggies,” he said. He knows that for the kids in the crowd, the bullfighters and clowns are bigger than life. “At the end of the day, protecting bull riders is very important, and it has turned into an art, but without somebody in that crowd, we have no job, and the only way to get people in that crowd is to entertain them. There’s more to it than just fighting bulls and going home.”
Evan knows that when he gets to Las Vegas, the ten days will fly. He’s not ready for that, but he’ll savor every moment. “I don’t want it to be over. I know once I get out there, it will go so fast it’ll seem like it’s over before it starts.”
MAKE SURE YOU READ THE DECEMBER ISSUE OF RODEO NEWS FOR MORE GREAT STORIES
