It’s a great time of year with all of the Spring rodeos in the west and the BFI just around the corner, June 22, held in conjunction with the Reno Rodeo. What a great week of rodeo and ropings, starting with all of the pre-ropings prior to the BFI, then following the BFI is the Reno Rodeo Invitational hosted by Perry DiLoreto and family, followed by the Reno Rodeo Ladies Invitational. Man, that is some kind of week with the headquarters hotel again being the Silver Legacy. Be sure and get your room reserved so you can hang out with the BFI ropers and enjoy the great food and fun at the Silver Legacy. Call today and ask for the special BFI rate, 1-800-687-7733.
A great field of ropers will compete at this year’s roping which is back again to the field of 100 teams. Last year they took more teams, however the time frame ran way over with the extra teams and therefore they have gone back to the 100 team format. When the BFI originally started in 1977 in Chowchilla, Calif., there were only 40 teams invited. Three heelers will be coming back for their 38th appearance at the roping, which means they have been to all of the BFI’s. They are Mike Beers, sponsored by Johnson Performance Horses, who will rope with Cole Bevans, sponsored by Rafter 4T Ranch. Allen Bach will be back roping with his son, Joel. The third man to come back for his 38th appearance will be Denny Watkins, sponsored by Formula 1 Equine Spa and Center. Watkins will be roping with Mike Christensen. All three of these heelers fit the mold of BFI style competition where roping skill as well as good horsemanship can let you put six good runs together to win this event. These three have all done well here in the past, including the winner’s circle.
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In the PRCA 2015 Windham Weaponry High Performance World Standings, it is interesting to see that Trevor Brazile is once again leading the AA position with $59,510 as of this writing, and Clay Tryan and Jade Corkill are leading the Team Roping standings with $55,621 won so far in the single event. They could set an all time record this year if they continue their winning trend. This team has proven themselves to be one of the most consistent teams going down the road today and they will be a favorite at this year’s BFI.
Brandon Beers will be sitting out this year’s BFI after having some serious shoulder surgery. He and his wife Kimber also have a new baby boy at the casa so this will give him some time at home with his son. Rich Skelton is another roper who may miss this year’s BFI after being involved in a tractor accident, that gave hime some hospital time. Hopefully, he will be recovered by BFI time. Rich was partnered with Nick Sartain and the team is currently sitting 9th and 8th in the PRCA standings as of this writing.
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I’m off to announce the Bishop Mule Days along with my partners Bob Tallman and Steve Kenyon over the Memorial Day Weekend. This is always a fun time and we all look forward to this event every year. If you have never been there, you need to put it on your bucket list.
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Something new for us at Ropers Sports News is this summer we will be putting together a program for ACTRA that will be inserted into the August issue. This program will feature Finals schedules for each ACTRA Chapter as well as the National Finals. Also included will be lists of awards, hotel and stall information, etc. This special souvenir program along with the August issue of RSN will not only go to every ACTRA household, but also every RSN subscriber, vendors throughout the United States and be sent to special events throughout that month. The RSN staff produced the BFI program for 34 years while I still owned the roping and is more than capable of putting out a quality product. This issue (August) will be a great one to advertise your products or events. Contact our office for more information.
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