Wranglers cut rodeo times to bag payouts

Wranglers in the Pro Western Rodeo sessions at the Palouse Empire Rodeo put down some fast times over the weekend.

The Mockonema go-rounds brought in 140 entrants who competed for more than $18,625 in prize money payout.

Winner of the top check was Shane Fallon of Yakima in the barrel racing competition which attracted the largest number of entrants.

She clocked a 16.638 on the first run of Sunday’s card to trim just two hundredths off the time posted earlier by Renee Ewing.

The most pronounced win for the Sunday session was posted by Amanda Hodges of Colville, one of last entrants out in the breakaway roping event. She finished the task before most of the crowd knew she started to clock 1.8 seconds.

That bumped the 2.26 posted by Jordan Crossley of Hermiston who clocked that time three entrants ahead of Hodges.

Sara Morrissey of Deer Park placed third in breakaway with a 2.75.

Kade Wooton of LaCrosse, lone county entrant on the bill for Sunday, scored a smooth 75 points in the first saddle bronc ride Sunday to win the event. Wooton was followed by Jacob Stacy of Moses Lake who booked a rocket ride on Bear Paw and scored a 66.

Another big margin win was posted by Trevor Maddox of Weiser, Idaho, with a 5.09 in steer wrestling. That bumped a a 5.9 set by Eric Knapp of Okanogan in the Saturday session.

Number three finisher was Dave Maddox, Trevor’s father, who clocked a 6.47.

A final chapter of the Palouse Empire sessions centered on a two-year string of wins by the bulls at the local rodeo. Six riders were on the card Sunday, but none of them stayed on for the required eight seconds.

Wes Covington of Omak, the last rider out Sunday, stayed on his bull for eight seconds but the ride was scratched because his free hand went down and hit the bull which went into a tight spin in front of the chutes.

Bo Thomas Marek of Grangville, who competes mostly in Idaho Cowboy Association events on the other side of the border, noted it’s not uncommon for the bulls to run a string like that. Marek, who had a short ride on Cornhusker Sunday, noted he booked a ride earlier this season at Ontario, Ore., that ended a two-yea no-ride run for the bulls at that stop.

Marek said most bull rides are decided in the first two seconds when riders have to shift their weight to counter the bulls’ tendency rare back going out of the chute and dive head down.

RESULTS

Bareback riding: Orlun McGuffin, Ellensburg, 75; Cash Kerner, Prichard, 73; Andam Waite, Nampa, 71.

Barrel racing: Shane Falon, Yakima, 16.638; Renee Ewing, Lewiston, 16.656; Cheyenne Allan, Mabton, 16.809; Tanisha Lovins, La Grande, 16.824; Jade Crossley, Hermiston, 16.830; Rose Miller-Jones, Moses Lake, 16.857; Daryll Compton, Wenatchee, 17.056; Callahan Crossley, Hermiston, 17.199.

Breakaway roping: Amanda Hodges, Colville, 1.8; Jordan Crossley, Hermiston, 2.26; Sarah Morrissey, Deer Park, 2.75; Jennifer Casey, Mesa, 2.87; Bailey Minor, Pendleton, 3.04; Lindsey Parkin, Lewiston, 3.15.

Saddle bronc riding: Kade Wooton, LaCrosse, 75; Jacob Stacy, Moses Lake, 66.

Steer wrestling: Trevor Maddox, Weiser, 5.09; Eric Knapp, Okanogan, 5.9; Dave Maddox, 6.47; Jacob Stacy, Moses Lake, 7.61.

Team roping: Wade and Cody Jess, Coulee City, 6.52; Brett Shehan and Jared Parke, Gooding, 6.92; Micahel Peterson and Johnny Sloan , Ellensburg, 7.75; Kasey Felton and Paul Dunn, Caldwell, 11.62.

Tie down roping: Brian Hill, Lewiston, 10.68; Kass Kayser, Ellensburg, 10.8; Steve Hoffman, Hermiston, 11.84; Kyle Sloan, Ellensburg, 13.05; Mitch Dove, Centerville, 13.25; Dick Hoffman, Hermiston, 14.13.