ProRodeo Sports News - July 10, 2020

COWBOY CHRISTMAS

BY MATT NABER A bout 400 years’ worth of subscriptions to the PRCA on Cowboy Channel Plus is what team ropers Erich Rogers and Paden Bray could buy with their collective Cowboy Christmas winnings. And who could blame them? Who wouldn’t want to re-watch winning $17,134 each at four ProRodeo competitions during the first week of July? Their Cowboy Christmas haul launched Rogers (the 2017 team roping heading world champion) from 20th to 10th among team roping headers and took Bray into the Top 15 for the first time in his ProRodeo career, going from 20th to eighth among the heelers. “It’s a breath of fresh air to have it come together,” Bray said. “We really needed it rodeo-wise and financially. I’ve been 16th and 17th, but never inside the Top 15. “I feel like this is where I wanted to be my whole life, and to be here is pretty awesome.” If Cowboy Christmas has a Santa, then Rogers and Bray have been among the top on the Good Cowboys List two years in a row. In 2019, they earned the seventh-most money of all timed-event cowboys with $17,349. Despite having fewer rodeos to enter and more cowboys competing at the ones that were held this season because of COVID-19, Rogers and Bray nearly matched their 2019 total. “I told Paden that as soon as they let us compete we will have to hit it as hard as we can and win as much as we can so we’re not in the same position as last year,” Rogers said. “Every little dollar counts.” Bray, 21, finished his inaugural ProRodeo season as the 2019 PRCA | Resistol Rookie of the Year for heeling. While Rogers made the Wrangler National Finals Rodeo last season, Bray narrowly missed qualifying, finishing 17th in the PRCA | RAMWorld Standings with $72,884. During Cowboy Christmas, Rogers and Bray posted consistent times. The duo won the Cody (Wyo.) Stampede in 4.8 seconds, tied for third with 12.2 seconds on two head at the World’s Oldest Rodeo in Prescott, Ariz., were part of a four-way tie for fourth with 4.7 seconds at Mandan (N.D.) Rodeo Days and tied for seventh at the Sitting Bull Stampede in Mobridge, S.D., with a 5.7-second run. Through it all, Rogers focused on the bigger picture. “I was more worried about Prescott because that’s a circuit rodeo and we needed a win to get qualified for the circuit finals,” Rogers said. “It sounds like our circuit is about done, so we needed that to go compete at the (RAMNational Circuit) Finals in Kissimmee next year.” As of July 7, Rogers led the Turquoise Circuit Standings for team roping heading, while Bray was fourth in the heeling standings. Their biggest win of the week came at Cody where they collected $8,671 each. “I was really excited, especially now since it’s a big rodeo and way, way Ropers Rogers and Bray haul in $17,134 over holiday Making It Count

CHRISTMAS CASH Team ropers Erich Rogers and Paden Bray earned checks at four rodeos over Cowboy Christmas. • Cody, Wyo. . .................................................. $8,671 • Prescott, Ariz. ............................................... 4,043 • Mandan, N.D. ................................................. 3,154 • Mobridge, S.D. . .............................................. 1,266

ProRodeo Sports News 7/10/2020

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