Competition heats up at Badlands Circuit Finals
By T.J. ALLICK, Staff Writer tallick@minotdailynews.comThe temperature may be falling outside, but the action is heating up at the 2008 Badlands Circuit Finals hosted by the 54th Annual Y's Men's Rodeo.
The second go-round of the four day rodeo saw some stiff competition Friday at the All Seasons Arena, none closer than in the Saddle Bronc.
Competing for the title are the 12 best from the midwest, and of the 12 are three of the top 10 cowboys in the world.
Two of the three, Chad Ferley and Bryce Miller traded blows Friday night. Miller struck first with an 84 on Crazy Horse, a seven-time National Finals Korkow Company horse, in the second ride of the round.
"That horse has been great for a long time, but I haven't seen her in quite a while," Miller said. "She was real fresh and ready to go (Friday)."
Miller's 84 stayed on top until the final ride of the round, where Ferley, who was the 2006 National Champion, cleared Sutton Company's Justin's Pepper for an 86.
"That's a good horse, he's been good for quite a long time," Ferley said. "This circuit is always real tough because there are a lot of good bronc riders here, so you kind of have to have the right horse to get the job done.
"Hopefully I can draw as good as I did the next two days."
Like Ferley, Miller knows it's going to take a little luck of the draw to win the circuit finals.
"Riding against this good of guys, everybody is going to have a good ride," he said. "So the one with the horse that is maybe a notch better than others is going to have the high ride. Me and Chad were both real lucky tonight."
The third cowboy in the top 10, J.J. Elshere, bounced back after getting bucked off Thursday night by scoring a 74 Friday.
Strong showing
for N.D. cowboys
The number of North Dakota cowboys at the circuit finals may be limited, but their talent certainly is not.
Two of the state's best took home some first place prize money Friday night.
Mohall's Sam Nordick put on a strong showing Thursday night, but he was upstaged by defending Bareback champ Scott Montague.
Nordick wouldn't be denied Friday as he took the second go-round with an 81 point ride on Sutton Company's Tinker Bell.
The high-ride helped put Nordick in contention for the weekend average title, as he kept up with Montague, who scored a 76 to stay on top in the average.
Bull rider Cole Hendrickson had the highest of five 80-point rides in the second go-round to win his second consecutive night. Hendrickson rode a bull named Swamp Donkey for a score of 86, his second 80-point ride of the rodeo.
Defending titles
and quick times
Defending Badlands Circuit Steer Wrestling Champion, Matt Gilbert continued to make his bid for a second consecutive title with a blazing fast 4.1 seconds run. The time put him on top of the average with a total time of 11.4 after two rounds.
In the team roping, Shaw Loiseau and Casey Wilson turned in the fastest time of the rodeo Friday, a 5.8 run that put them on top with an average of 12.9.
South Dakota cowboy Paul Tierney put himself in solid position for the Badlands all-around title with the fastest Tie-Down Roping run of the rodeo.
Tierney tracked down his calf and wrapped three legs up in 8.9 seconds, nearly a second faster than Blake Eliason's run of 9.6, which was good for second Friday.
Tierney's quick run put him on top in the average with a two-round total of 18.1.
Shanna Anderson had the quick time in the Barrel Racing Friday night with a time of 13.27. Her time was just one-hundredth of a second faster than second place Tamra Musick's 13.28.
