PRORODEO Sports News - July 26, 2024

CALGARY, ALBERTA

CALGARY STAMPEDE

Yeahquo/ VonAhn win team

roping crown

Ty Erickson is a soft-spoken cowboy who doesn’t However, the Helena, Mont., native did get emotional after capturing the steer wrestling crown at the coveted Calgary Stampede with a 4.0-second run in the Final Four Showdown Round. The win seemed improbable since the 33-year-old broke his left ankle and snapped the tendons during a run April 26 at the Clovis (Calif.) Rodeo. “The goal was always to come back for Calgary, and we battled back and got here, and I mean everything went good,” said Erickson, 33. “My ankle wasn’t bothering me at all, and I was really happy about that, and I made the Short Round and it just worked out, it was just my day. This win is right up there with my world title just because the stuff I had to go through to get here.” Erickson, the 2019 PRCA Steer Wrestling World Champion, advanced to the Final Four by splitting the win with a 4.5-second run in the 12-man semifinals. “I’m so proud of my horse, Crush,” Erickson said. “J.D. Struxness and I have been riding him all year and shoot we have been winning everything on him. I can’t say enough about him and how he has been working.” Erickson has qualified for the NFR eight times (2014-19, 2022-23) and finished 11th in the PRCA | RAM World Standings last season. And he has no plans of slowing down through the remainder of the regular season, which concludes Sept. 30. “A guy could take some time off, but we are entered up,” Erickson said. “I was just sitting at home watching all these rodeos and I was just ready to get out there and now that I am I think we are going to rodeo and try and win a world title.” Steer wrestler Erickson nabs coveted title Calgary Stampede photo by Covy Moore Ty Erickson captured the coveted steer wrestling win in Calgary after putting together a 4.0-second run in the Final Four Showdown Round. show a lot of emotion.

You’ve got to love it when Plan B comes together

and proves to be a big success.

With the timing of the Rocky Mountain Cup at the Calgary Stampede and the NFR Open powered by RAM in Colorado Springs, Colo., colliding, there were some ‘dosey doe your partner’ moves in the team roping. A combination that clicked saw header J.C. Yeahquo hook up with 2015 PRCA World Champion Heeler Kollin VonAhn. The two don’t usually rope together, but their partners were ‘otherwise engaged’. Turns out Buddy Hawkins and Andrew Ward were partners last year at the Circuit Finals, so they needed to rope together at the NFR Open. “Buddy and J.C. started roping this year, and Andrew and I started roping,” VonAhn said. “There was a conflict of time for them to get up here. So, this week, we roped together here, and at Casper. That way we could make the good events for us, and shoot, it’s worked out perfect.” The format of the Calgary event sees 30 teams getting a pair of runs, with the top eight aggregate times advancing to a short round, and then a Showdown Round featuring the top four, with the slate clean for both the Finals. Yeahquo and VonAhn went 4.1, 4.3, and then 5.2 seconds in the short go. World Champions Tyler Wade and Wesley Thorp came out as the gunners in the four round and laid down a run of 4.4 seconds. However, Yeahquo and VonAhn were up to the challenge and bettered it with another 4.1-second run. “If you go to thinking about it too much, you allow mistakes. So, I didn’t think about it. I just let the reactions happen. We had a good steer, and we were able to use him,” said Yeahquo, from Mandaree, N.D. That gave the duo the bonus check of $12,500 each, plus their go-round earnings of $2,867 apiece. The money should help push Yeahquo close to being the season leader for headers, and give VonAhn, who’s in the Top 15, a shot up as well. “This is huge,” said VonAhn, from Blanchard, Okla. “It definitely helps a guy take a deep breath this time of year.” However, it doesn’t mean they’ll be ditching their regular partners quite yet. “I don’t know that we’ll do that,” laughs VonAhn. “But it’s always fun when a plan comes together.”

Saddle bronc riding saw another tight battle shape up through the afternoon. Kade Bruno and Zeke Thurston both had 92-point rides in the Showdown, forcing a ride off. Thurston went first, scoring a 90.5 on Calgary Stampede’s Yesterdays Delivery. Bruno rode second and matched with Northcott and Yule Rodeo’s Mary Lou for another high-scoring ride. After some initial confusion caused by a recording error, Bruno was awarded a “Everybody makes mistakes, and I had no hard feeling. I was just as happy for Zeke as I was going to be for myself. What a cool deal. You don’t have ride offs every day and you definitely don’t get to ride off against a four-time world champ. That was pretty special I’m just really thankful to be here. This is my first trip to Calgary so to get the win, it is right at the top of my accomplishments. What a day.” Bruno is taking aim at qualifying for his third consecutive Wrangler National Finals Rodeo. A year ago, Bruno finished third in the PRCA | RAM World Standings with $322,178. He made his second-straight NFR appearance, securing a seventh-place finish in the average. Bruno scored 764 points on nine head, winning $96,919. He placed in four rounds, highlighted by an 88.5-point ride on Summit Pro Rodeo’s Cat Walk in Round 6, claiming the go-round win. Bruno captures saddle bronc title Calgary Stampede photos by Covy Moore Kollin VonAhn, above, and J.C. Yeahquo, right, won the Calgary Stampede team roping title after clocking a 4.1-second run in the short go. sensational 92 points and the Calgary Stampede Championship. “Man, the emotions are kind of a roller-coaster,” said Bruno, 23.

Kade Bruno won his first Calgary Stampede saddle bronc riding title with a 92-point ride on Northcott and Yule Rodeo’s Mary Lou in a ride-off with Zeke Thurston. Calgary Stampede photo by Covy Moore

ProRodeo Sports News 7/26/2024

ProRodeo Sports News 7/26/2024

ProRodeo.com

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