ProRodeo Sports News - October 18, 2019

Wrangler NFR debut has bareback rider psyched IN HIS WORDS TRENTEN MONTERO

I kept telling myself I was not going to look at the standings until it was all over. But that got harder and harder as the year went by. I ended up looking at them quite a bit the last couple weeks. I made it to three rodeos and won a little more than $1,000 that last weekend. I went to Omaha, Neb., Mona, Utah, and San Bernardino, Calif. The nerves (at those rodeos) came more so

it kind of reminded me when I was a rookie, first starting out, trying to get my fees paid and going from weekend to weekend. It’s nice to get to spend a little bit of time at home and get rested and healed up. But at the same time there’s a part of me that wishes I was riding there tomorrow. It’s not bad, there’s definitely plenty to keep myself occupied so I’m not thinking about it all the

At 27, Trenten Montero is headed to his first Wrangler National Finals Rodeo in Las Vegas, Dec. 5-14. The bareback rider fromWinnemucca, Nev., finished the 2019 regular season in 14th place in the PRCA | RAMWorld Standings with $80,757. Montero is living in Billings, Mont., with his wife, Maria, who is in graduate school studying occupational therapy. But the Nevada-born cowboy is eager to get to Vegas and represent his home state. In a family full of rodeo competitors, only Montero’s great-aunt had reached the Finals until he accomplished the feat. Among his victories in 2019 were the Pikes Peak or Bust Rodeo in Colorado Springs, Colo., and the St. Paul (Ore.) Rodeo. Those two victories paid Montero a combined $23,004.

about an hour before the rodeo. By the time I was getting out of the chutes I was all business, wasn’t really thinking of anything except what I had to do right then. I started off the season sitting pretty good in the standings. I had a good winter, then had a few minor injuries in February and fell out of the Top 15. I always felt like I had a chance the whole year. I guess the big turning point for my season was when I won St. Paul. Then, less than a week after that I won Colorado Springs and that got me solidly into the Top 15. I think that’s when it started becoming real, sitting in the middle of the Top 15 in the middle of July. I’d never been in the Top 15 that late in the year. That’s when I knew that this was going to probably be my year. My longtime partner Luke Creasy had some problems with injuries. So I hopped in with a few other guys. I also went by myself for a good part of the summer. I traveled with some younger guys – Hunter Carlson and Jacob Lees. It was fun. It was nice to hop in with younger guys because

time.

It seems like I’m always on the road even when rodeo season is over. I had my cousin’s wedding last weekend. I’m also going deer hunting in another week in Nevada with my dad and brother. I’ve been doing a lot of fishing and been hitting the gym to stay in shape. I’ve also got a couple rodeos to go to. My whole family is really excited for me. They’ve supported me in my whole career, even when I was having trouble and barely scraping to get by and when I was injured. They kept believing I’d get there eventually. I know my dad (Glynn) was watching the standings the whole year through. I think he was even more excited than I was. It’s exciting to qualify and be fromNevada because Nevada is so sparsely populated there haven’t been a whole lot of us who have been there. It’s a huge honor to represent my home state and Vegas. I know (saddle bronc rider) Mitch Pollock and I are both real excited to be the first people to represent Winnemucca riding at the Finals.

MGMRESORTS.COM/NFR

ProRodeo Sports News 10/18/2019

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