NEWS PHOTO SEAN ROONEY - Clay Elliot rides Kesler's Gone Country during the Broncs and Honky Tonks Indoor Spring Rodeo Friday at the Cypress Centre.
srooney@medicinehatnews.com@MHNRooney
The big names were in the money early at the Broncs and Honky Tonks Indoor Spring Rodeo, and some of them were even trying to double-dip.
Clay Elliott put up the best saddle bronc score of the first day, an 88 aboard Kesler’s Gone Country, then hopped on a friend’s horse and gave tie-down roping a go no less than five minutes later.
He’s one of a few cowboys entered in multiple events this weekend, though it’s less common to see someone attempting both the scored and timed events.
“I’m a bronc rider,” said the 25-year-old from Nanton. “I really love to rope but I ride broncs at a professional level, I don’t get to rope as much as I’d like.
“It’s kind of a slow weekend this weekend. I try to enter these while I can because other times of the year I’m travelling with three other bronc riders.”
He’s not just any bronc rider. The defending Canadian champion in saddle bronc, Elliott made Gone Country look like a legend in his eight-second ride. Things didn’t go nearly as well in roping – he took a no time – but getting experience early in the season is valuable. He still knows where his bread is buttered, but there’s nothing wrong with trying both.
Curtis Cassidy was another of the double-ups in Friday’s main performance. The 40-year-old from Donalda had a five-second time in steer wrestling – a tenth slower than brother Cody – then added a 9.1-second tie-down time which was second to Sexsmith’s Lee Rombough’s 8.3. None of those scores actually led after the first day, however, as Jason Thomas (Benton, Ark.) had a 4.2 in steer wrestling and Blair Smith (Wimborne, Alta.) an 8.2 in tie-down, both from the earlier slack performance.
With Saturday’s 7 p.m. and Sunday’s 1:30 p.m. events left to go, the goal Friday was to put up a near-unbeatable mark, which meant a lot of risk-taking and only a few successes, Elliott’s 88 among them.
Only Provost’s Klayton Lakevold managed a bull riding score – 80 – while Diane Skocdopole of Big Valley went well under the 13-second mark in barrel racing with a 12.814. Other leaders include Clint Laye (Cadoga, Alta.) with an 86.5 on Double Dippin’ in bareback, plus the B.C. team roping duo of Levi Hughes and Logan Wharry with a 4.5-second mark.
Elliott said Medicine Hat was his 16th rodeo of the season already, even though the Canadian circuit has barely begun.
When you’re at his level, the expectations are high. He certainly met them Friday.
“Win the bronc riding is what I want to do every weekend, for every rodeo I go to,” he said. “As far as setting the pace that’s a pretty good way to do it.”
As for other local results, Medicine Hat’s Tyler Popescul had a 10.1 in tie down roping in the slack. He and Eckville’s Clayton Smith had a no time in the team roping. Dalton Kraft and Kevin Schreiner had a 10.8 in the slack while fellow local Trent Tunke and Jesse Popescul had a 9.8. In barrel racing, Medicine Hat’s Chelsey Carlier had a 13.556-second time in the slack.
