ProRodeo Sports News - March 8, 2019

FIESTA VAQUEROS DE LOS

The partnership has turned into a strong bond between LeMond and Trey Yates. They understand how the other competes, which adds to their chemistry. “I think he’s a very talented young man,” said LeMond, a four-time competitor at the Wrangler NFR. “I was fortunate enough that, at a young

after I got off the phone with him and said, ‘You all right, man?’ I said I was good. That’s a neat friendship – he knows me well enough to know when I’m disappointed.”

ONTOWHATEVER COMES NEXT

While Yates is determined to return to the Wrangler NFR, he knows LeMond might not rodeo as hard. That’s OK with the 23-year-old from

age, I was pretty prosperous in the roping world as well. I think he’s got a better head on his shoulders. He seems to be pretty well- rounded for his age. He knows what direction he wants to go, and he doesn’t allow people to change his mind. He stays with the game plan.” Seeing a cowboy that young with that kind of focus is something you don’t run across often, LeMond said. “He’s pretty level-headed, pretty content in where he’s at,” LeMond said. “Stuff doesn’t bother him too much. “You can’t teach that. They have to grow up in that environment. You have to know there are going to be highs and lows. I guess that’s one of the blessings of being an NFR-qualifier’s son. Just like my boys, they might not compete, but they’ve rodeoed a lot, been around. They seem to settle in a lot faster than guys who haven’t been around it much. I didn’t know what to expect. I rode the emotions pretty hard when I first cracked out.” Last year at the Wrangler NFR, Yates roped with Aaron Tsinigine, the duo earning $128,462 in Vegas while posting a 10-head time of 69.6 seconds. But they also parted ways for the 2019 season. So, Yates called his friend whom he’s roped together with in the past, as far back as 2015. “A lot of people don’t like roping with young guys because they don’t understand the process of rodeoing,” LeMond said. “But he hauls all the horses and takes care of them. He does a great job.” Their chemistry goes beyond the arena. At a recent amateur event, just

Pueblo, Colo. “He’s not in those three big rodeos,” Yates said, referring to San Antonio, The American and RodeoHouston. “I thought about it for a while, and thought, you know what, I idolize the guy so much and think so much of him and the opportunity to rope with him when I can, I told myself, I just need to enjoy it while it lasts. Whatever happens, happens, but we’re going to have fun in the meantime.” LeMond, who lives in Andrews, Texas, would like to make a run at getting back to Las Vegas for the first time since 2015. “When he found out he wasn’t going to have a partner (for 2019), he called and asked me if I would go,” he said. “I told him I’d go through the winter and try to stay hooked through to Reno (Rodeo, June 20-29) and see if we’ve done well enough that we could stay on together through the summer, if I could find somebody to help me with the ranch.” Time will tell as summer approaches. As long as the duo are coming out of the boxes together, they’re pulling for each other. “He’s on my team, that’s a hard thing to find team roping,” Yates said. “We pull for each other. He’s not solely worried about him. We’re a team. We like to see each other have success, and to be able to share it is fun. And just being around each other and rodeoing is fun, too.”

days before the final round in Tucson, Yates didn’t do well. He called LeMond to talk about it. Yates bragged about his dad – J.D. – taking second. LeMond listened. After the call, LeMond texted Yates. “I was very down on myself,” Yates said. “I called JoJo after and told him what took place. My dad won second, but I was very disappointed. JoJo texted me

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Complete results on Page 54

SADDLE BRONC RIDING 1. Jesse Kruse...............172.5 pts. on two 2. Spencer Wright............................170.5 3. Wyatt Casper...................................167 4. Jesse Wright...................................166

TIE-DOWN RACING 1. Rhen Richard............ 32.6 sec. on three 2. (tie) Timber Moore.........................32.8 J.D. McCuistion..............................32.8 4. Monty Lewis...................................33.4

BARREL RACING 1. Lisa Anderson..................35.97 on two 2. Sadye Simpson............................36.62 3. Cheyenne Wimberley....................36.03 4. Mariah Mannering........................36.60

BULL RIDING 1. Daylon Swearingen....174.5 pts. on two 2. Garrett Smith................................173.5 3. Corey Maier.....................................164 4. Chris Bechtold..............................160.5

ProRodeo Sports News 3/8/2019

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