ProRodeo Sports News - May 27, 2022

EDITOR’S LETTER TRACY RENCK

Cowboys getting ready for crucial summer rodeo run Phil Doyle photo The Reno (Nev.) Rodeo is the kickoff to the summer run for PRCA contestants. The 2022 Reno Rodeo runs from June 17-25.

I t seems like yesterday – Dec. 11 – the curtain dropped on the thrilling 2021Wrangler National Finals Rodeo at theThomas &Mack Center in Las Vegas. Fast-forward to the present and the calendar is getting ready to flip to June 1. That means there are only four months left for cowboys to rodeo and ultimately try and qualify for the 2022Wrangler NFR Dec. 1-10 in Las Vegas. Some cowboys – namely the season leaders bareback rider Jess Pope, steer wrestler Hunter Cure, team roping header Kaleb Driggers, team roping heeler Junior Nogueira, saddle bronc rider Sage Newman, tie-down roper John Douch, barrel racer Jordon Briggs and bull rider Stetson Wright can make their reservations. Barring unforeseen circumstances, all these cowboys will place in the Top 15 in their events by the end of the regular season Sept. 30. Jess Tierney is leading the steer roping standings with $31,064. The 2022 National Finals Steer Roping will take place in November in Mulvane, Kan. For those people keeping track at home, here are some numbers to digest as cowboys chase coveted NFR bids. The Top 15 cutoff in events were as follows in 2021, bareback rider Zach Hibler ($65,381), steer wrestler Curtis Cassidy ($64,548), team roping header Quin Kesler ($62,403), team roping heeler Joseph Harrison ($61,688), saddle bronc rider Spencer Wright ($74,061), tie-down roper

Rodeo is June 17-25, and it is a big payday on the NFR Playoff Series presented by PendletonWhisky. A year ago, the Reno Rodeo payout was nearly $700,000. Mix in Reno with the lucrative Cowboy Christmas run at the end of June and first of July and it is easy to see why a contestant’s season can be pointed toward Vegas in seemingly a blink of the eye. In 2021, the top five timed-event Cowboy Christmas earners were Tuf Cooper ($31,255), Dustin Egusquiza/Travis Graves ($30,464 each), Andrew Burks ($22,513) and Shad Mayfield ($20,915). On the roughstock end, Caleb Bennett ($20,264), Pope ($19,832), StetsonWright ($19,519), Jordan Spears ($15,702) and Clayton Biglow ($14,134) were stuffing their stockings. There are also many more top-dollar rodeos right after Cowboy Christmas, like the Calgary Stampede and the inaugural NFR Open powered by RAM in Colorado Springs, Colo., July 13-16, which will be one of the biggest rodeos of the season with $1 million in payouts to contestants, livestock and other PRCAmembers. So, to review, contestants can’t qualify for the NFR or NFSR in the middle of July. However, those who are all-in on making it to the NFR or NFSR need to put these coveted trips in focus by then capitalizing on opportunities. Solidifying a position in the Top 15 is a much more ideal situation than bouncing around the bubble – just outside the Top 15 and chasing rodeos all around the country the last week of the season to get into the Top 15. Honestly contestants don’t care how they get to the NFR, they just want to be there to have the chance to compete and go after the ultimate prize, a gold buckle.

Tracy Renck is the editor of the ProRodeo

Sports News . He previously served more than seven years as a media coordinator at the PRCA. He has three decades of experience in sports journalism with the last several consumed by ProRodeo.

Douch ($88,874), barrel racer Molly Otto ($64,173) and bull rider Roscoe Jarboe ($95,778). The No. 15 steer roper was Cash Myers with $33,657. In simple terms, the push starts now for competitors with NFR and NFSR dreams. There’s no re-inventing the wheel here. Many world champions have said the PRCA “season” starts at Reno, Nev. The 2022 edition of the Reno

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