RATON –— The 37th Annual Raton Rodeo took to the Jim Young arena Friday evening, June 20 for PRCA and WPRA rodeo action. Many of these cowboys and cowgirls ride what is called the Turquoise Circuit covering rodeos in the southwest as they compete for money and points in their respective events. The performance Friday evening got underway with bareback riding, and as always riders put on a good show for the crowd who were enjoying free hamburgers from K-Bobs. Stock Contractor Southwick’s Rocky Mountain Rodeo Company stock didn’t disappoint with many of the broncs and most of the bulls winning the battle and throwing cowboys in the 8-second window. Ropers and steer wrestlers didn’t fare much better as the stock proved somewhat elusive. Wyatt Lindsay tackled his steer in 5.8 seconds Friday to lead the steer wrestling while Conner Hall posted an 8.2 tie-down time to hold on to first place in that event. Cory Kidd and Caleb Anderson posted a 6.7-second run in the team roping to move into first. As always, the ladies’ barrel racing proved to be a tight competition with five of the ladies making 18-second runs and
Rebecca Hughes pulling out a 17.31-run to hold first place last night. The bulls once again showed their prowess throwing most of the riders. Cody Strite, however, managed the 8-second ride and scored 84. On Saturday evening, the rodeo was once again entertaining and disappointing Not as the bulls went 5-1 and the broncs also posted a 5-1 performance. Codi Myers was the cowboy to post a score in the bareback riding while none of the saddle bronc boys could go the distance to the 8-second buzzer. It was a close one in the Steer Wrestling competition as Christian Pettigrew tackled his steer in 5.0 seconds flat with Jake Trujillo coming in right behind him with a a 5.7-second run and Justin Simon made a 6-second run. The tie-down roping was another tight competition as the cowboys pressed the barrier, and some broke it to add a 10-second penalty. L.D. Meir however managed to tie the calf in 9.0 seconds. Garrett Baker tied one in 10.1 seconds however he broke the barrier and added the penalty while Cliff Kirkpatrick posted a 10.7-second run. There were only two teams in the team roping and the team of Justin Young and Chad Wahlert wrapped up the steer in 13.9 but added a 5-second penalty for catching one hind leg. It was a tight race on the barrels as the ladies pressed their horses close (some too close) which added a penalty for nocking over a barrel. Kasey Etbauer managed to post a 17.45 which put her in second for the two-day event. DiAnna Erdely ran a 17.68 which likely placed her in third. It only took 8-seconds, but Dan Curtin may have thought different as the bull he was riding spun him around like a top. Yet he managed to hold on for the duration and score a 73. He was the only cowboy to make an 8-second ride Saturday evening as the bulls went 5-1 over the cowboys. Pro Rodeo Results for the Raton, N.M., June 19-20 Bareback riding: 1. Kyle Charley, 78 points on Rocky Mountain Rodeo’s Fall Out Casey, $526; 2. Shon Gibson, 72, $395; 3. Codi Myers, 70, $263; 4. KC Del Peterson, 68, $132. Steer wrestling: 1. Christian Pettigrew, 5.0 seconds, $677; 2. Jake Trujillo, 5.7, $508; 3. Wyatt Lindsay, 5.8, $338; 4. Justin Simon, 6.0, $169. Team roping: 1. Cory Kidd V/Caleb Anderson, 6.7 seconds, $602 each; 2. Robert Ansley/Brian Sullivan, 7.6, $451; 3. Wade Kreutzer/Kyon Kreutzer, 8.8, $301; 4. Justin Young/Chad Wahlert, 14.3, $150. Saddle bronc riding: 1. (tie) Magin Montoya on Rocky Mountain Rodeo’s Cats Paw, Kade Wooton on Rocky Mountain Rodeo’s Miss Liberty and Bill Hammerness on Rocky Mountain Rodeo’s Original Gangster, 68 points, $395 each; no other qualified rides. Tie-down roping: 1. Connor Hall, 8.2 seconds, $1,109; 2. Don Coffell, 8.6, $832; 3. L.D. Meier, 9.0, $555; 4. Ty Baker, 9.2, $277. Barrel racing: 1. Rebecca Hughes, 17.31 seconds, $490; 2. Kasey Etbauer, 17.35, $426; 3. DiAnna Erdely, 17.68, $362; 4. Cayla Fielder, 18.07, $298; 5. Kylee Schumacher, 18.25, $234; 6. Cindy Smith, 18.31, $170; 7. Kristen Frank, 18.47, $106; 8. Kari Boxleitner, 18.63, $43. Bull riding: 1. Cody Strite, 84 points on Rocky Mountain Rodeo’s Mind Freak, $602; 2. Clay Wagner, 75, $451; 3. Dan Curtin, 73, $301; no other qualified rides. Total payoff: $15,488. Stock contractor: Rocky Mountain Rodeo. Rodeo secretary: Beckie Frazier. Officials: Paul Hughes and Phil Sanders. Timers: Nancy Dorenkamp and Keri Huggins. Announcer: West Huggins. Specialty act: Cameron Keeton. Bullfighters: Jake King and Lyndel Runyan. Flankman: Shawn Runyan. Chute boss: Will Cook. Pickup men: Todd Cook and Ketch Weaver.
