Much needed rain across the Great Plains made for a challenging weekend of rodeos in the Prairie Circuit. While slack was safe but soggy, rookie Laura Mote of Llano, Texas, got the choice ground the next day at the $4,000-added Will Rogers Stampede in Claremore, Oklahoma, and her 9-year-old gelding Red Hot Redbull (Reb Hot Fame x Little Rock Misty x Spires Rock) smoked a set to comfortably win the rodeo with a 16.94-second run to pocket $3,239.
“I think he was very excited to be outside,” Mote said. “We went from the little coliseum at Corpus Christi to Northside (Cowtown Coliseum in Fort Worth) and made four runs there.”
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Ironically, Mote thought that Claremore was a short run based on the videos she had seen.
“It was a long run to the first,” she said. “I thought, ‘Well, we’ll let him run and see how it goes!’ Sure enough, he went extremely fast to the first. He definitely gave me a mini heart attack there! I think held him the whole time. I had to stand up in my stirrups and pull back with both hands because we were rolling! He was excited! When he dropped and turned it, I was a bit surprised!”
Other Winners
Mote, who is sitting sixth in the WPRA Resistol Rookie Standings with $8,619, missed out of on the preferred footing at the Beef Empire Days in Garden City, Kansas, since she was out in slack soon after the rains. Ceri Ward got the $2,523 victory at the $4,600-added rodeo with a 17.47-second run.
On the West Coast, Megan McLeod-Sprague got the $1,430 win at the $1,200-added PRCA Last Stand Rodeo in Coulee City, Washington. In Canada, Sam Smith picked up $3,619 for her first pro rodeo win at the $8,000-added Grande Prairie Stompede in Alberta.
Latricia Mundorf and Keyla Polizello Costa split the win in Bandera, Texas, for $982 each. LaRae Smith took the top spot and $957 in Atoka, Oklahoma. Debbie Langdon scored first at the Valley Center Stampede in California for $882. Kricket Ginter is working on her next Great Lakes Circuit title with a $592 win at the Cole’s Tractor & Equipment Regional Rodeo in Farmington, Missouri.
Tristan Parrish topped the Tonasket Comancheros Rodeo in Washington. She also placed at Coulee City for total weekend earnings of $1,698.
Looking Ahead
The $5,000-added Old Fort Days Rodeo wraps up this weekend in Fort Smith, Arkansas. Many contestants are piggy-backing that rodeo with the $4,000-added Crossett Riding Club PRCA Rodeo on the Arkansas, Louisiana border.
The richest added rodeo of the week is the 79th Annual Santa Maria Elks Pro Rodeo in California with its $7,500 added to the barrels. In the Wilderness Circuit, Cedar City, Utah, has $5,000 added. In Canada, the $4,250-added Leduc Black Gold Rodeo in Alberta is this weekend.
Claremore, Oklahoma
1. Laura Mote, 16.94 seconds, $3,239
2. Ilyssa Riley, 17.26, $2,591
3. Katie Chism, 17.33, $2,106
4/5/6. Shannon McReynolds, $1,458
4/5/6. Lindsey Muggli, $1,458
4/5/6. Nicholas Sartain, 17.45
6. Carlee Otero, 17.50, $972
7. Taycie Matthews, 17.53, $810
8. Jennifer Driver, 17.59, $729
9. Jessica Routier, 17.60, $648
10. Lisa Lockhart, 17.61, $567
11. McKenzie Morgan, 17.67, $486
12. Jordan Driver, 17.71, $405
13. Leslie Smalygo, 17.75, $324
14. Sadie Wolaver, 17.77, $243
15. Stephanie Joyner, 17.80, $162.
Garden City, Kansas
1. Ceri Ward, 17.47 seconds, $2,523
2. Michelle Darling, 17.56, $2,145
3. Taylor Johnson, 17.72, $1,766
4. Jamie Chaffin, 17.75, $1,514
5. Chris Gibson, 17.81, $1,261
6. Emery Mask, 17.82, $883
7/8. Sidney Forrest, 17.84, $568
7/8. Brittany Pozzi Tonozzi, 17.84, $568
9. Kristin Hanchey, 17.94, $442
10. Virginya Foran, 17.97, $378
11. Ari-Anna Flynn, 18.03, $315
12. Tammy Peterson, 18.04, $252
