Cassidy takes commanding lead in Reno

21 Jun 2014

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contact: Julie Mankin (307) 760-7099

RENO, NEV.; June 20, 2014 — Canadian all-around star Curtis Cassidy of Donalda, Alberta, is putting everything in place for a return to the pinnacle of American rodeo – the Wrangler National Finals Rodeo.

Cassidy, 35, wrestled his first steer in 3.5 seconds and his second in 4.2 seconds during the first day of action at the 95th Reno Rodeo to take a commanding early lead. He and other contestants compete in two preliminary rounds with the top 12 in each event coming back for the June 28 short round.

The $2.1 million, 10-day Reno Rodeo boasts almost 700 contestants and roughly 140,000 fans, and is a Gold stop on the Wrangler Million Dollar Tour. That makes it a must-attend event for cowboys hoping to earn enough this season to secure a top-15 ranking and qualification to the Wrangler NFR in Las Vegas.

Cassidy has earned two Canadian Professional Rodeo Association championships in steer wrestling and well over a million dollars in the Professional Rodeo Cowboys Association. He has four NFR appearances under his belt and one of his horses has carried four other cowboys to world championships. But Cassidy hasn’t made it back to Las Vegas since 2010. An overall victory at Reno would pay roughly $11,000 and send him from his current ranking of 22nd into the top five in the world standings.

Also on Friday night, defending Reno Rodeo bareback and saddle bronc riding champions Wes Stevenson and Chad Ferley were both bucked off, which effectively ended their chances to repeat in Reno.

The second performance begins at 7 p.m. Saturday. Tickets are available at www.renorodeo.com or by calling 800-325-7328. For more information, please call 775-329-3877.

RENO, NEV., June 20, 2014 — Following are leaders after the first performance at the Reno Rodeo:

Bareback Riding: First Round: 1, Austin Foss, Terrebonne, Ore., 81 points on Flying U’s Short Bar. 2/3 (tie), Steven Peebles, Redmond, Ore., and Brian Bain, Redmond, Ore., 79 each. 4/5 (tie), Clint Cannon, Waller, Texas, and Bobby Mote, Culver, Ore., 77 each. 6/7 (tie), Teddy Athan, Livermore, Calif., and Tyson Thompson, Bradley, Calif., 74 each.

Steer Wrestling: First Round: 1, Curtis Cassidy, Donalda, Alb., 3.5 seconds. 2, Tom Lewis, Lehi, Utah, 4.2. 3, Straws Milan, 4.5, Cochrane, Alb., 4, Tanner Milan, Cochrane, Alb., 5.3. 5, Trigger Pugh, Ponoka, Alb., 5.7. 6, Sean Santucci, Prineville, Ore., 7.3. 7, Jason Thomas, Benton, Ark., 14.2. Second Round: 1, Curtis Cassidy, Donalda, Alb., 4.2 seconds. 2, Wyatt Smith, Rexburg, Idaho, 4.7. 3, Tom Lewis, Lehi, Utah, 5.2. 4, Tanner Milan, Cochrane, Alb., 5.5. 5, Sterling Wallace, Justin, Texas, 5.9. 6, Clayton Hass, Terrell, Texas, 6.3. 7, Trigger Pugh, Ponoka, Alb., 8.6. Aggregate: 1, Curtis Cassidy, Donalda, Alb., 7.7 seconds on two steers. 2, Tom Lewis, Lehi, Utah, 9.4. 3, Tanner Milan, Cochrane, Alb., 10.8. 4, Trigger Pugh, Ponoka, Alb., 14.3. 5, Sterling Wallace, Justin, Texas, 21.6. 6, Jason Thomas, Benton, Ark., 23.8. 7, Christian Radabaugh, Prineville, Ore., 33.1.

Team Roping: First Round: 1, Rhen Richard, Roosevelt, Utah, and Jeremy Buhler, Arrowwood, Alb., 5.5 seconds. 2, David Key, Stephenville, Texas, and Kory Koontz, Sudan, Texas, 5.6. 3, Cale Markham, Vinita, Okla., and Chase Tryan, Helena, Mont., 10.0. 4, Bubba Buckaloo, Kingston, Okla., and Chris Young, Coleman, Okla., 10.8. 5, Jake Stanley, Hermiston, Ore., and Andy Carlson, Hermiston, Ore., 10.9. 6, Brooks Dahozy, Casa Grande, Ariz., and Daxton Jim, Owyhee, Nev., 12.4. Second Round: 1, Cale Markham, Vinita, Okla., and Chase Tryan, Helena, Mont., 5.0 seconds. 2, Brooks Dahozy, Casa Grande, Ariz., and Daxton Jim, Owyhee, Nev., 6.3. 3, Jake Stanley, Hermiston, Ore., and Andy Carlson, Hermiston, Ore., 10.7. 4, Bubba Buckaloo, Kingston, Okla., and Chris Young, Coleman, Okla., 13.8. 5, Adam Rose, Willard, Mo., and Billie Saebens, Nowata, Okla., 19.8. Aggregate: 1, Cale Markham, Vinita, Okla., and Chase Tryan, Helena, Mont., 15.0 seconds on two steers. 2, Brooks Dahozy, Window Rock, Ariz., and Daxton Jim, Owyhee, Nev., 18.7. 3, Jake Stanley, Hermiston, Ore., and Andy Carlson, Hermiston, Ore., 21.6. 4, Bubba Buckaloo, Kingston, Okla., and Chris Young, Coleman, Okla., 24.6.

Saddle Bronc Riding: First Round: 1, Bryce Miller, Nelson, Neb., 80 points. 2/3/4 (tie), Jesse Wright, Milford, Utah; Jake Wright, Milford, Utah; and Spencer Wright, Milford, Utah, 79 points each. 5, Taos Muncy, Corona, N.M., 78. 6/7/8 (tie), Brady Nicholes, Hoytsville, Utah; Isaac Diaz, Desdemona, Texas; and Jace Angus, Fallon, Nev., 72 each.

Tie-Down Roping: First Round: 1, J.C. Malone, Roy, Utah, 8.4 seconds. 2, Cameron Elston, Ramona, Calif., 8.9. 3, Stetson Vest, Childress, Texas, 10.3. 4, Cy Eames, Gooding, Idaho, 10.7. 5, K.C. Miller, San Luis Obispo, Calif., 17.9. 6, Cody Jordan, 18.2. 7, Curtis Cassidy, Donalda, Alb., 29.9. Second Round: 1, Cody Jordan, Hobbs, N.M., 9.9 seconds. 2, Stetson Vest, Childress, Texas, 10.4. 3, J.C. Malone, Roy, Utah, 11.3. 4, Rhen Richard, Roosevelt, Utah, 12.6. 5, Justin Parke, Gooding, Idaho, 14.1. 6, Cy Eames, Gooding, Idaho, 15.8. 7, K.C. Miller, San Luis Obispo, Calif., 19.4. Aggregate: 1, J.C. Malone, Roy, Utah, 19.7 seconds on two calves. 2, Stetson Vest, Childress, Texas, 20.7. 3, Cy Eames, Gooding, Idaho, 26.5. 4, Cody Jordan, Portales, N.M., 28.1. 5, K.C. Miller, San Luis Obispo, Calif., 37.3. 6, Curtis Cassidy, Donalda, Alb., 46.3.

Barrel Racing: First Round: 1, Kimmie Wall, Roosevelt, Utah, 17.49 seconds. 2, Kelli Thouvenell, Hooper, Utah, 17.51. 3, Paxton Segelke, Snyder, Colo., 17.60. 4, Kassi Venturacci, 18.00. 5, Sue Smith, Blackfoot, Idaho, 18.03. 6, Kelley Carrington, Boston, Ga., 17.86. 7, Kelli Barichello, 18.11. Second Round: 1, Kelley Carrington, Boston, Ga., 17.29 seconds. 2/3 (tie), Kimberli Quinn, Reno, Nev., and Kimmie Wall, Roosevelt, Utah, 17.60 each. 4, Mandy Staley, Cottonwood, Calif., 17.80. 5, Chandler Markel, Fort Collins, Colo., 17.83. 6, Heather Coombs, Austin, Nev., 18.00. Aggregate: 1, Kimmie Wall, Roosevelt, Utah, 35.09 seconds on two runs. 2, Kelley Carrington, Boston, Ga., 35.15. 3, Mandy Staley, Cottonwood, Calif., 36.06. 4, Kassi Venturacci, Fallon, Nev., 36.29. 5, Heather Coombs, Austin, Nev., 36.73. 6, Gypsy Watson, Washoe Valley, Nev., 36.81. 7, Chandler Markel, Fort Collins, Colo., 36.81.

Bull Riding: First Round: 1, Corey Navarre, Weatherford, Okla., 81 points on Diamond G’s Koma Kind. 2/3 (tie), Dalton Votaw, Liberty, Texas, and Bayle Worden, Charleston, Texas, 76 each. 4, Reid Barker, Comfort, Texas, 73.