ProRodeo Sports News - August 7, 2020

Jackie Jensen photos Jake Orman, above, hit the Deadwood (S.D.) Days of ’76 Rodeo arena with his backup horse, Brute, while his partner, Brye Crites, left, competed on his horse, Sneaky. Their combined efforts took them to the average win with 10.6 seconds on two head.

Burwell pushed them to about $10,000 away from breaking into the Top 15. “We were pretty down after the Fourth and were about to quit going, but this lets a guy remember you can win and gives us incentive to keep going,” Crites said. Orman and Crites carried that momentum to winning the Sac County Fair & Rodeo in Sac City, Iowa, earning $1,806, July 29. “We know it’s a long shot to make the NFR, but I guess now we have an outside chance to make the (ProRodeo) Tour Finale, too,” Crites said. “Everything is so tight this year that any big win helps. It’s harder to win, but when you do win it makes that big of a difference.” Competition is stiff this year because the COVID-19 pandemic caused many rodeos to cancel, which created a concentration of competitive cowboys at the same rodeos instead of spreading out. “Now it seems like there are a lot more teams entered everywhere,” Orman said. “You can’t go to a little rodeo that’s easy to win, there are good teams everywhere. Everyone is going anywhere they can. It’s making the rodeos better but also tougher to win, but they all are paying good.” Orman, 28, is in his 10th year of ProRodeo competition and got his first taste of ProRodeo success when he won the 2016 RAMNational Circuit Finals Rodeo and has since won more than $223,680. Crites, 26, is comparatively new to the ProRodeo scene with $51,194 earned since his rookie year in 2018. “There are a lot of easier ways to make money, but this is what I like doing,” Orman said. “It’s hard since my wife (Morgan) is at home and we’re expecting a baby girl in October. But I don’t think there’s a better lifestyle to have.”

29.4% The percent that the total payout increased at the Deadwood Days of ’76 Rodeo between 2019 and 2020. Cowboys competed for $215,669 in 2019 and $279,152 in 2020.

TIE-DOWN ROPING 1. Caleb Smidt .. 16.4 sec. on 2 2. Jake Pratt .....................17.0 3. Cody Huber . .................17.3

STEER ROPING 1. C. Patterson .. 34.4 sec. on 3 2. Roger Branch ...............35.4 3. Blake Deckard ...............36.2

BULL RIDING 1. (Tie) Trevor Reiste .87.5 pts. Braden Richardson .......87.5 3. Matt Palmer .....................87

ALL-AROUND Shad Mayfield, $795

tie-down roping and team roping

Complete results/Page 56

ProRodeo Sports News 8/7/2020

ProRodeo.com

39