DALLAS (Nov. 11, 2016) – The million dollar inaugural Elite Rodeo Athletes (ERA) World Championship – America’s new professional rodeo tour, featuring 87 of the sport’s top athletes and, collectively, 135 World Championships – opened three nights of action on the American Airlines Center floor on Friday.
Top bull riders, steer wrestlers, team ropers, saddle and bareback bronc riders, barrel racers and tie-down ropers all descended upon the Big D this weekend to decide – on two million pounds of dirt packed on top of the Mavs’ & Stars’ hallowed playing surfaces – the season-long, 11 tour stops of rodeo across the western U.S. in one action-packed weekend of competition.
“A heck of night of competition – with two more to go,” said Bobby Mote, Interim President of ERA and Bareback Riding Athlete. “Dallas has such a storied history of rodeo and the ERA’s extremely pleased to bring the World Championship back to town.”
Fans poured into the American Airlines Center some 90 minutes prior to the 7 p.m. start of the competition, mingling with the athletes on the rodeo floor, snapping selfies and scoring autographs – a fan-friendly event exclusive to ERA rodeo.
Competition results:
Bull riding
Drawing the bull “Doc Mosely” out of the fourth starting spot, Lubbock’s Chandler Bownds, was able to put up an early top score – that would stick through the 15-rider field. The round one win gave Bownds enough points to move into the lead of the ERA World Championship standings.
Said Bownds: “Good bull, Doc Mosely. Started out left, went around right. Not the best get-off, but made it out safely. Felt good to be out here in front of this great crowd at the American Airlines Center.”
Place, Name, Hometown, Stock, Score
1st Chandler Bownds, Lubbock, Texas, Doc Mosley, 85
2nd Zack Oakes, Tolar, Texas, King Buck, 83.5
3rd Cannon Cravens,Porum, Okla., Delco, 79.5
Steer Wrestling
The defensive linemen of ERA’s rodeo tour, the steers didn’t stand a chance on Friday night on the floor of the American Airlines Center. Local Texan Bray Armes (Pilot Point) threw his steer the fastest, bringing the several hundred pound steer onto his back in just under four seconds (3.97). Armes would be the only contestant to crack the four-second barrier of the evening, garnering the event win.
Said Armes: “Everybody bulldogged great tonight. I just had a good start and did my job after that.”
Place, Name, Hometown, Stock, Score
1st Bray Armes, Pilot Point, Texas, 3.97 seconds
2nd Hunter Cure, Holiday, Texas, 4.16
3rd Luke Branquinho, Los Alamos, Calif., 4.21
Team Roping
The duo of Clay Tryan (Plentywood, Mont.) and Jade Corkill (Fallon, Nev.) were consistent and fast – two qualities fans have come to expect in the ERA team roping. Their time of 4.05 seconds was well out in front of second place, and pushed them ahead of Derrick Begay and Clay O’Brien Cooper who were winning the championship race coming into the night.
Said Corkill: “I thought we made a good run, but I wasn’t sure if it’d be good enough for first, but I guess it was better than I thought.
Team Roping
Place, Name, Hometown, Stock, Score
1st Tryan/Corkill, Plentywood, Mont./Fallon, Nev., 4.05 seconds
2nd Driggers/Nogueira, Albany, Ga./Scottsdale, Ariz., 4.48
3rd Begay/Cooper, Winslow, Ariz./Gardenerville, Nev., 4.63
Saddle Bronc
Nebraska’s Cort Scheer, aboard the horse “Good Times,” put up an exciting 85.5 score that was well out in front of the rest of the competition. Scheer’s ride went nearly the length of the arena and gave the crowd a great show with his classic riding style.
Said Scheer: “The place was electric tonight. Lots of good spur runs. Definitely had a good time and pleased I was able to win here at the first ERA World Championship at the American Airlines Center.”
Place, Name, Hometown, Stock, Score
1st Cort Scheer, Elsmere, Neb., Good Times, 85.5
2nd Chad Ferley, Oelrichs, S.D., Shining Mountain, 82
3rd Zeke Thurston, Big Valley, Alberta, Can., Show Biz, 82
Barrel Racing
Dublin’s Kassie Mowry qualified for the ERA World Championship this past Wednesday through a Last Chance Qualifier competition that took place at Fair Park in Dallas. The qualifying competition progressed the top two barrel racers, giving them a chance to compete against the best in the world. Mowry showed up as an underdog, but quickly made her mark. She drew the No. 1 starting spot and set the pace for the night with a time of 12.91 seconds. Mowry’s time would hold up as the only sub 13-second run, gaining her the win in the highly-talented field.
Said Mowry: “Everything happened just so fast. I was just trying to stay in the middle of my horse and let him do his job.”
Place, Name, Hometown, Stock, Score
1st Kassie Mowry, Dublin, Texas, 12.91
2nd Fallon Taylor, Collinsville, Texas, 13.05
3rd Lisa Lockhart, Oelrichs, S.D., 13.06
Tie-Down Roping
Texan Caleb Smidt was the only cowboy to break the seven-second barrier on Friday, putting together an impressive run at just 6.95 seconds. The win gave him enough points to shorten Shane Hanchey’s sizable lead down to just 225 points. With two more round of competition at 650 points per round, the tie-down roping points race just got real interesting.
Said Smidt: “I had a great run, had a good calf and my horse was awesome. Definitely looking forward to tomorrow night here in Dallas.”
Tie-Down Roping
Place, Name, Hometown, Stock, Score
1st Caleb Smidt, Bellville, Texas, 6.95
2nd Marty Yates, Stephenville, Texas, 7.23
3rd Cimmaron Boardman, Stephenville, Texas, 7.27
Bareback Bronc
One of the discipline’s all-time greats, Wes Stevenson (Kaufman), went for a wild one on his horse “Dairy Day,” scoring an 82.5 for the win over Kaycee Feild and Ryan Gray (who announced his retirement from the sport following this Sunday’s ERA World Championship finale).
Said Stevenson: “I felt things went well. Dairy Day comes from a great breeder and great family. Horses like that help cowboys show off really well. You know what they say, you’re only as good as the one you dance with.”
Place, Name, Hometown, Stock, Score
1st Wes Stevenson, Kaufman, Texas, Dairy Day, 82.5
2nd Kaycee Feild, Spanish Fork, Utah, Pin Ball Girl, 81.0*
2nd Ryan Gray, Cheney, Wash., Lunatic Clown, 81.0*
*Tie
Tickets for the three-day competition start at $31 and can be purchased online at www.Tickemaster.com, by phone at (800) 745-3000, at the American Airlines Center Box Office or Ticketmaster kiosks located inside Fiesta Foods, Macy’s, Walmart, and the Shops at Willow Bend Mall. Tickets subject to additional fees. The competition begins at 7 p.m. on Friday and Saturday, Nov. 11-12 and at 2 p.m. on Sunday, Nov. 13.
For more information about the 2016 ERA World Championship and the ERA Premier Tour, visit www.erarodeo.com. Fans can catch the action live on FloSports.com’s www.FloRodeo.com.
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About ERA:
Elite Rodeo Athletes (ERA) is a “League of Champions” where only the world’s best rodeo athletes and livestock compete. ERA is rodeo’s finest and provides rodeo athletes, fans and committees, and the entertainment and rodeo industry an opportunity to experience the most skilled rodeo athletes in the world. ERA is comprised of two tours – the Premier Tour, featuring 87 of the sport’s top athletes, representing 135 world championships, collectively; and the Qualifying Series, offering up-and-coming rodeo talent an opportunity to qualify for the Premier Tour and ultimately the $1 million ERA World Championship on Nov. 11-13 in Dallas, Texas. ERA will payout more than $2.4 million in 2016, including the ERA World Championship. FS2 (FOX Sports 2) will nationally televise 42 hours of ERA programming in 2016, including all 11 regular season events and the ERA World Championship. ERA will have the largest household network audience in all of professional rodeo.
