ProRodeo Sports News - August 19, 2022

HERMISTON, ORE.

Richardson gets boost with Hermiston win On the Move FARM-CITY PRO RODEO

BY BRADY RENCK, Special to ProRodeo Sports News B raden Richardson sits in the chute, green chaps adorning his legs, black protective helmet on his head. Something good and terrifying is about to happen. At 5-foot-5 inches, 130 pounds, he is about to ride a bull without fear. “I tell myself it’s only eight seconds,” Richardson said with a laugh. For Richardson, his size belies his confidence. Watch him hang on and bend with the bucks, and it’s clear he was built for this. He is tough and resilient, carving out his ProRodeo path after navigating a difficult path. He competed on his PRCA permit for three years, his road to success not linear as he was undermined by inconsistency and injuries. He was also finishing up his degree at Panola College in Carthage, Texas. “That was the grind. A struggle,” said Richardson, who graduated with an associate’s degree in petroleum technology and science, leaving a future in the oil industry as backup plan. “I was going to school and trying to rodeo full time when I wasn’t broke.” Richardson, 27, found his traction last season, earning his first NFR berth, finishing 13th overall in the standings with $135,537 in earnings. A trip back to Las Vegas is starting to come back into a focus. After a slow start to this season, Richardson is simmering. He has won six events, including the top prize at the Farm City Pro Rodeo in Herminston, Ore. Richardson posted an 88.5 on Corey & Lange Rodeo’s Gold Rush. He watched the bull once at a smaller rodeo this season, leaving him with just enough intel to soothe the nerves. “I knew he was new and would be pretty good, though. My goal was just to stay on him and win the rodeo and fortunately it happened,” Richardson said. “It wasn’t really a fist fight. I was in really good position the entire time, and he was a good bull.” The race against the calendar and the clock is on for Richardson. It’s mid-August and he sits in 27th place in the standings, knowing he needs to stay hot to sneak into the Top 15 for the NFR. “It’s a ton of motivation. It was a rocky start to the season. But I never lost confidence. I knew it would turn around,” Richardson said. “It’s hard to say what the key was. I just feel like the more bulls I get on, the better I get as the season goes on.” It helps to have touchstone moments that remind him he belongs in the conversation with the sport’s best. All he has to do is Google his ride from the Xtreme Bulls event in Ellensburg, Wash., in 2021 and see the athleticism and swagger that produced an 89-point ride on Dakota Rodeo’s Not Today. “That was a career highlight,” Richardson. “I won $38,000 in one night.” Richardson seeks to finish up this season right, determined to return to the NFR with no room to throttle down. “I have to just keep pushing and doing what I am doing and stay focused,” Richardson said. “I know what’s at stake with the events coming up.”

TOP MONEY EARNER TOP SCORES

Tristan Martin ($9,999, steer wrestling) BAREBACK RIDING

Martin

1. Jess Pope .............................. 90 pts. 2. Tilden Hooper ............................... 88 3. Bill Tutor ....................................... 87 STEER WRESTLING 1. Tristan Martin . .............. 7.0 sec. on 2 2. Sterling Lambert .......................... 7.6 (Tie) Dirk Tavenner . ..................... 7.6 (Tie) Tucker Allen ......................... 7.6 TEAM ROPING 1. Egusquiza/Graves ......... 8.9 sec. on 2 2. K. Driggers/J. Nogueira . .............. 9.3 3. B. Hall/C. Tryan ............................ 9.8 SADDLE BRONC RIDING 1. Ryder Wright ......................... 90 pts. 2. Logan Hay . ................................ 89.5 3. Riggin Smith ................................. 89 TIE-DOWN ROPING 1. King Pickett . ............... 17.1 sec. on 2 2. John Douch ............................... 17.5 3. Marcos Costa ............................. 18.0 BARREL RACING 1. Paige Jones ...................... 16.97 sec. 2. Dona Rule ................................ 17.07 3. Tasha Welsh . ........................... 17.10 BULL RIDING 1. Braden Richardson ............. 88.5 pts. 2. Justin Houston . ............................ 87 3. Derek Kolbaba . ............................. 86

Complete results/Page 58

Kent Soule photo

Braden Richardson capped off the Farm-City Pro Rodeo with an 88.5-point ride on Corey & Lange Rodeo’s Gold Rush. He walked out of Hermiston, Ore. with $6,952.

ProRodeo Sports News 8/19/2022

ProRodeo Sports News 8/19/2022

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