‘The best horses and the best cowboys.’ Fort Worth raises its rodeo game in 2020.
Texas is a stronghold for notorious bucking bulls.
When the Fort Worth Stock Show conducted its popular Professional Rodeo Cowboys Association Xtreme Bulls performances Jan. 21-22, there was no problem corralling a wild and reckless pen of bovines that gave cowboys fits.
When the Professional Bull Riders conducts its Global Cup international team competition this weekend at AT&T Stadium in Arlington, its high standard of bulls will be easily met.
But when it comes to rounding up an accomplished herd of bucking broncs for a high-profile Texas rodeo show in Texas, it’s more challenging.
Greater bucking horses reside in the northwestern United States and western Canada. So, when the Fort Worth Stock Show Rodeo organizers upgraded their annual pro rodeo this year for the big move into the new Dickies Arena, they began looking harder for top-of-the-line bucking horses.
They found some by contracting bucking horses from the Calgary Stampede, which is well known for a string of broncs that can give a cowboy a mouthful of gritty arena dirt.
When the bigger prize money was at stake during the FWSSR ProRodeo Tournament’s final round before about 9,400 fans during a sold-out performance Saturday night, the winning scores in both the bareback and saddle bronc riding were in the elite 90s on Calgary Stampede broncs.
In bareback riding, former PRCA Wrangler National Finals Rodeo qualifier Tilden Hooper, who is from Carthage but now lives in the north Fort Worth and Saginaw area, turned in a Stock Show PRCA rodeo record score of 91.5 aboard Calgary Stampede bronc Agent Lynx.
Hooper said he was grateful that the rodeo added the Calgary Stampede into its stable of stock contractors.
“To step up and get those guys here, that’s a huge deal,” Hooper said. “When they bring the best horses and the best cowboys and put the money up, that’s when the show’s the best.”
Hooper’s 91.5 broke the previous FWSSR record of 90 that had been shared by two world class riders. In 1973, Gary Tucker turned in a 90 and Jason Jeter of Arlington posted the same score in 2004.
Hooper earned $20,000 for making the finals winning ride and $24,580 throughout the rodeo, which used a tournament format for the first time to determine champions.
In saddle bronc riding, 2019 National Finals qualifier Dawson Hay of Wildwood, Alberta, clinched the title aboard the Calgary Stampede bronc, Zena Warrior, with a rodeo record-tying score of 91. Two-time world champion Cody Wright set the original record in 2011.
Hay, who earned $23,080 during the rodeo, hails from the heart of bronc riding country and is familiar with the Calgary Stampede’s renowned rodeo livestock.
“The Calgary Stampede has some of the best horses in the whole world,” Hay said. “To be able to have Canadian contractors that have such incredible stock is really awesome. They are constantly trying to improve this rodeo and get better horses.”
Other champions
▪ In steer wrestling, Jacob Talley of Keatchie, Louisiana, clinched the title with a time of 4.0 seconds. He earned $26,640 at the rodeo, the highest of all competitors.
▪ In breakaway roping, Cassie Bahe of Grantsville, Utah, lassoed the title with a 2.3 in the finals and pocketed $23,260 overall.
▪ In tie-down roping, Tyler Milligan of Pawhuska, Oklahoma, a former National Finals qualifier, paced the eight-man finals field with an 8.4. His total earnings were $23,200.
▪ In barrel racing, Hailey Lockwood of Cotulla finished No. 1 with a 16.30, which was the fastest time of the 16-day rodeo. Lockwood, who has snared the Women’s Professional Rodeo Association world title the past two years, earned $24,080.
▪ In bull riding, Brady Portenier, Caldwell, Idaho, clinched the title with a 90 aboard J Bar J Rodeo’s Little Hoot. He pocketed $24,827.
▪ In team roping, Clay Ullery of Valleyview, Alberta, and Jake Edwards of Ocala, Florida, clinched the team roping title with a 4.9. Each cowboy collected $23,200.
Ullery and Edwards earned the right to compete based on 2019 season accomplishments, but each roper faced a challenge because neither of their usual partners qualified.
The two paired up through the PRCA’s entry system, called PROCOM. They actually met for the first time at Dickies Arena just before the evening performance on Feb. 1, and roped together for the first time then. They had never even practiced roping together, but relied on their experience to be competitive.
The duo finished fourth the first time they partnered on Feb. 1. They won the round on Feb. 2, and advanced to the semifinal. The Saturday night finals round was their fourth time to rope together. They were the first team to compete and set the pace with 4.9 seconds.
When the dust settled, Ullery and Edwards edged second-place finishers Clay Smith, the reigning world champion header, and Jade Corkhill, three-time world champion heeler, who turned in a 5.1.
Next year, the Fort Worth Stock Show & Rodeo will celebrate its 125th anniversary. The 2021 edition is scheduled for Jan. 15-Feb. 6.
This story was originally published February 10, 2020 at 12:00 AM.