FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:
DWAYNE ERICKSON
The timed event cowboys – the steer wrestlers, tie-down ropers and team ropers -- have discovered a short cut to the Canadian Finals Rodeo.
All they have to do is agree to practice their craft, somewhat in solitude, at Edmonton’s Rexall Place a year or two before they want to take a run at the $1 million-plus purse.
Their task is to run the spares – three bulldogging steers, three calves and three team roping steers after each round. They appear in the arena about 20 minutes to a half hour after most of the spectators have cleared the building and go to work.
The spares are used only if one of those in the regular pens the contestants are drawing isn’t suitable.
There’s no guarantee, of course, but it’s more than likely those who volunteer for the work – cowboys who never before have qualified for the CFR – will be in the competitive line-up next year or the year after.
For example:
Tie-down roper Logan Hofer was recruited to run the spares at the 2006 CFR. Two years later, he qualified as a contestant and hasn’t missed a finals since.
Same thing with Randy Smith; he ran the spares in 2007 and came back the next year roping in front of a full house. And he’s back again this week.
Then there’s Craig Weisberger; he ran the steer wrestling spares last year. This week, he rides into Rexall Place competing for a Canadian championship.
J.D. Hays ran the spares at a couple of CFRs, then qualified for his first CFR in 2008. Brother Rowdy also ran the spares once and makes his first start as a finalist this year.
The volunteers don’t get much for their toil – a hotel room and about $300. But, they have to be dependable and they have to actually bulldog the steers or catch and tie the calves.
“We don’t want them to miss the steers or calves or just to ride by and exercise their horses,” said rodeo administrator Jim Pippolo. “We want them to actually catch and roll over the steers or catch and tie the calves. That way the cattle will be even with the others in the pen.”
The cowboys charged with the tasks are recruited by the event directors – this year Mark Nugent in the tie-down roping and Todd Maughan in the steer wrestling.
“It used to be difficult to find guys to help,” Pippolo recalled. “But now that they’ve seen and heard about the experiences of those who have done the extra work, fewer cowboys are rejecting our requests.
“It’s good for the young guys because, while they’re not competing, they are at the big show and walking across the dirt their peers are competing on and that’s beginning to mean something to them.”
Maughan lined up Coleman Kohorst to run the bulldogging spares this week and he’s a solid threat for next year’s CFR. He spent considerable time in the U.S. northwest and California the last three months and placed at about 10 rodeos, including Omak and Othello in Washington, Pendleton and Canby, Ore., and San Francisco.
Nugent, on the other hand, plucked a couple of kids out of the Innisfail area who have yet to turn pro – Kirk and Ben Robinson.
The last name should be familiar to rodeo fans – they’re the teenage sons of the ol’ master, Hall of Fame stalwart and six-time Canadian champion Larry Robinson.
Both kids made finals in the amateur ranks this year and are solid future CFR prospects.
They’ll not only run the spares, but will also untie calves during the performance.
“They’re young, they’re handy, they’re quick and they’ll be ready if a calf kicks free, be there, get down, get the rope off and it’s all over,” said Nugent. “They won’t need some guy helping them chase one around the infield.”
The volunteer cowboys are a significant part of the crew assigned to pulling off a professional, clean, smooth-running performance.
The CFR starts on Wednesday and goes nightly at 7 through Saturday with matinee rounds on Saturday and Sunday at 1 p.m. |
