ProRodeo Sports News - August 23, 2019

A SUCCESSFUL RUN

friends over for backyard buck-outs.”

Griffith has worked his way up to 30 horses and calls his rodeo company Skullbone Buckers. “I saved my money all the time and have to pay for the food and all the horses, and I kept buying one or two at a time and I got up to 25 and we put on a rodeo,” Griffith said. “Then we started putting on 18-and-under bulls, barrels and broncs to get our name out there.” Word spread about Griffith’s growing stock, and he took small broncs to the Junior NFR in 2018. “There’s no one around here with that stuff,” Griffith said. “It gives these kids a chance to get on smaller horses.” Griffith’s notoriety landed him an opportunity to compete in the senior

GRITTY hosted two weeklong clinics in July that paired a small group of kids with ProRodeo athletes and college coaches by partnering with a local rodeo in Cody, Wyo. “They (the athletes and coaches) taught them (the kids) not only how to ride a better bronc or bull, but they also taught them about their mental game and how to behave, and what you’re looking for when you get to college rodeos and into the pros,” Riley said. “These are really important things for the kids to know how to do and what that looks like.” During the clinics, the kids were mentored by past qualifiers for the Wrangler NFR such as Cody Custer, J.W. Harris and Heath Ford. “They respect the

Thanks to the GRITTY program, 15-year-old Connor Griffith made it to Cheyenne (Wyo.) Frontier Days, where he won the senior youth bareback riding division.

information they get from people who were successful in the sport, and it’s crucial that we as former athletes give back to our sport,” Franks said. Learning the correct way to compete is equally important. Everything from chute procedures to getting off with the pickup men safely and getting in shape mentally and physically is covered. “They’ll get more confidence and stay hooked longer, and that deters them frommaking bad decisions,” Franks said. The clinic in Cody was a trial run that GRITTY hopes to expand all over the country, Riley said. “It’ll reap dividends for the sport in the future,” Franks said. One of the clinic’s participants was Connor Griffith, a 15-year-old from Skullbone, Tenn., and a three-time competitor at the Junior NFR with a unique background. “He wanted to ride broncs, but his mom is a single mom and she told him he needs to go get a job because it (rodeo) is expensive,” Riley said. “So, he worked a summer and bought two broncs and started riding in his yard and inviting his YOUNG BUCK

youth division bronc riding at Cheyenne (Wyo.) Frontier Days at about the same time as the GRITTY clinic. “This kid had the opportunity of a lifetime, so we had to make it happen,” Riley said. Amom involved with GRITTY in Casper, Wyo., took Griffith fromCody to Cheyenne, where he won his division. “It’s just phenomenal, without this program he would not have a Cheyenne Frontier Days buckle,” Riley said. “There’s nothing better than rodeo,” Griffith said. “I love the cowboy lifestyle and doing cowboy stuff. “It (GRITTY) made me know how hard I needed to work to get to where those guys are winning first at rodeos. It was cool seeing the NFR guys at Cheyenne, so hopefully I will be there someday.” The clinic taught Griffith plenty. “I learned a lot about the mental game of it, like how to have a strategy and tips to help me in the bigger world of rodeo,” Griffith said. Griffith is looking three years ahead with the goal of qualifying for the Wrangler NFR when he is 18. “I want to work as hard as I can to try to get to bigger and better stuff,” Griffith said.

Photo courtesy of Connor Griffith Connor Griffith, left, gets advice from junior roughstock affiliate Joe Demers during Griffith’s trip to Cheyenne Frontier Days.

“There are a lot of underprivileged kids who would be great at rodeo but don’t have a chance otherwise. It all takes money, and someone has to give for it to work.” – BRET FRANKS

ProRodeo Sports News 8/23/2019

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