By Daphne VanStavern
California ACTRA Secretary

PASO ROBLES, CALIF. – As the dust settles from the California Custom Trailers & Power Sports, 40th anniversary ACTRA California Chapter State Finals, all we can say is, “Wow! That was a blast!” We had so much fun giving away the best in prizes that our state has ever seen!
  This year was, by far, the largest State Finals that California has ever seen! We ran 2,889 teams over the four days and paid out $400,000 in cash and awards. The payback to our ropers was 93 percent in cash and prizes over the four days – absolutely incredible numbers.  
  We hosted more than 250 people at the banquet on Friday and raised well over $10,000   for our Catastrophe Fund to help members in need, thanks to the generosity of our amazing members. Bonnie Loftus served us a delicious meal, Mark Coulter did a great job as the auctioneer for the live auction, and the Joe Peters Band entertained us all night long   
  We would like to start with thanking the members of ACTRA. We worked hard to produce a quality event and you showed up. The excitement from the ropers as they visited with friends and roped their steers made all of the efforts worth it. And, as we walked around the facility on Sunday night, we were amazed at the cleanliness. It is easy to see how much pride the Paso Robles Events Center takes in maintaining their beautiful facility, and we were very proud to see that our members took pride in it as well. It was immaculate when we left and we credit our members for representing our association so well.
  Running an event of this size takes quite a crew of people and ours worked their tails off.Steve Simons and crew put in long hours to run 5,250 head of cattle through the chutes. The cattle were great quality and held up well for all of those runs.  
  The office staff was unmatched. Elly Leslie ran the office flawlessly with the help of Jamie Brown and Jennifer Cardoza. Mac Mullins and Brenda Robbins were the absolute best out on the microphone. I don’t know how their voices and chipper personalities held up with those long hours, but they were both smiling the whole time, so thank you ladies.
  Our flagging crew was superb. Tod Forsberg, Billy Butler, Todd Utterback, and Lee Legasey were sharp through all of the runs.
  Curtis Jensen with Bullseye Imaging was on hand to capture memories for everyone. He put in some long hours behind the lens and had a few close calls with roping steers to laugh about. We are grateful that he was able to join us.
  The amazing Jodi Branco was given the most challenging task of all which was to find everyone a place to park.She worked tirelessly for five long days without knowing how many people to expect, and while the parking situation wasn’t perfect, she did a phenomenal job and we learned a lot about how to improve it for next year. We thank Jodi for her hard work.
  The directors of this association care deeply about the sport of team roping and all chip in to make the experience great for our members. Give them a pat on the back and a thank you for all they do. The driving force behind this organization and this State Finals is definitely our California ACTRA President, JT Bradley. He was the one with the vision and knowledge to produce this event and we hope everyone knows how much passion, energy, time and effort this man put in to make these Finals so great. He deserves so much appreciation from all of us.
  We would like to thank the Paso Robles Event Center for welcoming us to their gorgeous facility. It is quite an undertaking to accommodate so many people and horses and they worked tirelessly to make sure the grounds were clean, bathrooms were stocked, the arenas were watered and worked, and they even set up additional stalls on Friday to make sure there was room for every horse. We truly appreciate their staff and hope that we can return in 2023.
  Last but certainly not least, we must thank our sponsors. An event of this size wouldn’t be possible without their generous support!
  California Custom Trailers & Power Sports, Inc.; Skyline Silversmiths, LLC; Earl Hall Ag; Professional’s Choice; My Cars; S Bar J Cattle; Wrangler; Fastback Ropes; Cactus Ropes; Ropers Sports News; Scott Thomas Custom Saddles; Ropes Galore; RCR River Ranch Arenas; R-W Productions, Ray Wood; Ken Paddock; BioMane Products; FCP Barns and Buildings; TierraRejadaEquestrianCenter.com Equine Aqua Treadmill; Yeti; Resistol; Total Feeds, Inc.; and Butch and Lori Pope. Please support these wonderful sponsors.
  Results follow and payoffs are per man:
Thur., Sept. 29
#8.5: 4 for $75
1st go: 1. Dustie Christensen and Mike Christensen, 6.19, $500. 2. Danny Leslie and Tucker Donlon, 6.62, $400. 3. CR Wilken and Mason Hicks, 6.66, $300.
Average: 1. Cody Mora and Tucker Donlon, 30.87, $2,200. 2. Ryan Bettencourt and Will Cowden, 33.11, $1,800. 3. Bodi Dodds and Rodney Rivera, 33.30, $1,500. 4. Tyler Jones and Ryan White, 33.39, $1,100. 5. Colt Cowden and Joey Acevedo, 33.68, $800. 6. Bronc Rowland and Joey Acevedo, 34.36, $440.
#10.5 HdcP: 4 for $75
1st go: 1. Cutter Machado and Dalton Pearce, 5.84, $500. 2. Blake VanStavern and Andy Holcomb, 5.88, $400. 3. Doyle Hoskins and Joey Acevedo, 5.91, $300.
Average: 1. Francisco Cruz and Trey White, 23.11, $2,450. 2. Cutter Machado and Dalton Pearce, 26.06, $2,000. 3. Cobie Dodds and Nathan Scott, 26.80, $1,700. 4. Hank Brown and Will Cowden, 27.65, $1,350. 5. Billy Butler and Paul Mullins, 27.91, $950. 6. Les Oswald and Anival Guerrero, 28.40, $570. 7. Tyson Perez and Frank Perez, 28.43, $375.
RCR Arena Open Roping: 5 for $200
1st go: 1. Andy Holcomb and CJ DeForest, 6.09, $600. 2. Mike Christensen and Cord Forzano, 6.68, $400.
Average: 1. Blake Hirdes and Kyle Lockett, 35.73, $2,100. 2. Daniel Green and Dalton Pearce, 37.21, $1,700. 3. Lane Lowry and Jake Bourdet, 37.66, $1,400. 4. Lane Karney and Todd Hampton, 40.33, $1,000. 5. Lane Lowry and Todd Hampton, 40.60, $680.
R-W Productions Breakaway: 3 for $15
Round 1: 1. Sage Pearce, 2.16, $500. 2. Haleigh Grant, 2.59, $400. 3. Allie Hoskins, 2.61, $200.
Round 2: 1. Shaylee Baxley, 2.41, $500. 2. Jayce Tweedy, 2.41, $400. 3. Sadie Grant, 2.63, $200.
Average: 1. Liz Hirdes, 8.99, $2,100 + buckle. 2. Fallon Ruffoni, 9.18, $1,520 + Scott Thomas headstall. 3. Jayce Tweedy, 9.58, $1,000. 4. Jayce Tweedy, 10.58, $525.
16/Under Incentive: 1. Jayce Tweedy, 9.58, $1,000 + buckle. 2. Jayce Tweedy, 10.58, $600 + headstall. 3. Shaylee Baxley, 11.75, $400.
Friday, Sept. 30
Century hdcp: 4 for $60
1st go: 1. Zane Denio and Denny Watkins, 5.84, $400. 2/3. Billy Butler and Denny Watkins; Billy Butler and Paul Mullins, 6.33, $250.
Average: 1. Billy Butler and Paul Mullins, 31.59, $1,830. 2. Karen Dias and Frank Perez, 31.75, $1,400. 3. Zane Denio and Denny Watkins, 32.53, $1,200. 4. Sean Pascoe and Carl Wilken, 32.56, $900. 5. Hank Brown and Gary Ford, 33.43, $600. 6. Derrek Hee and Joey Acevedo, 34.05, $400. 7. JW Brewen and Rob Donlon, 34.42, $300.
Super 7 Hdcp: 5 for $150
1st go: 1. Blake VanStavern and Justin Stacy, 6.28, $800. 2. Tanner Brumley and Stephen Howard, 6.40, $600. 3. Sutton Lockett and Cord Forzano, 6.47, $400. 4. Mike Christensen and David Daniel, 6.50, $200. Short go: Nathan Wohld and Gary Ford, 7.11, $300.
Average: 1. Ryan Bettencourt and Trey White, 40.47, $7,000. 2. Kyndall Green and Lane Wheeler, 43.20, $6,275. 3. Sutton Lockett and Danny Leslie, 43.38, $5,500. 4. Blake Fortuno and Joey Acevedo, 43.39, $4,800. 5. Mike Morrison and Paul Mullins, 45.27, $4,000. 6. Colt Piazza and Lane Wheeler, 45.65, $3,300. 7. Tyson Perez and Colton White, 46.05, $2,550. 8. Sutton Lockett and Cord Forzano, 46.78, $1,400. 9. Sean McRoberts and Kevin Pascoe, 47.15, $700. 10. John R. Smith and David Gill, 48.58, $600. 11. Casey Hall and Tony Lee Boggs, 48.72, $500. 12. Mike Morrison and Carl Wilken, 49.28, $400.
Sat., October 1
#5.5 Roping: 4 for $60
1st go: 1. Josh Alexander and Trevor Alexander, 6.71, $800. 2. Josh Lynch and David Daniel, 6.98, $600. 3. Blake VanStavern and Luke Stamper, 7.07, $400. 4. Ryan Bettencourt and Branstan Joseph, 7.32, $200. Short go: Ryan Pascoe and Greg Horton, 9.64, $500.
Average: 1. Wyatt Hammerstrom and Billy Jay Aviles, 29.83, $4,000. 2. Sutton Lockett and Dan Engler, 32.78, $3,500. 3. Kelton Martinez and Jeremy Pinheiro, 32.79, $3,000. 4. Alex Evans and Tyler Kala’e Masada, 33.58, $2,600. 5. Max Loya and Mason Hicks, 33.75, $2,160. 6. Ralph Kelley and Eli Green, 34.61, $1,850. 7. Casey Hall and Colton White, 34.85, $1,650. 8. Jessica Small and Tanner Smith, 36.32, $1,450. 9. Dustie Christensen and Cliff Garrison, 37.2, $1,100. 10. Dustie Christensen and Stephen Howard, 38.73, $900. 11. John R. Smith and Kevin Elliott, 40.80, $650. 12. Jerry Wooten and Jerry Ruiz, 40.82, $550. 13. Casey Hall and Ali Bilkey, 41.17, $450. 14. Ryan Bettencourt and Branstan Joseph, 41.49, $350. 15. Leslie Davenport and Justin Stacy, 41.60, $250.
All Girl Pick & Draw: 4 for $50/$100 entry
1st go: 1. Jacquelyn Curto and Cheyenne Rey, 7.61, $400. 2. Josie Pereira and Katie Smith, 7.86, $300. 3. Jacquelyn Curto and Christine Tidwell, 8.28, $200. Short go: Pam Wilken and Tammy White, 14.64, $300.
Average: 1. Kristen Ceglia and Alison Grantham, 45.50, $1,800. 2. Hailey Ponce and Aubree Sobie, 45.80, $1,400. 3. Sadie Mullins and Lacey Bourdet, 46.56, $1,250. 4. Jamie Fontes and Lacey Bourdet, 46.65, $1,000. 5. Karen Dias and Rikki Perezchica, 47.07, $680. 6. Haliegh Grant and Alison Grantham, 47.13, $400. 7. Katie Whitney and Lacey Bourdet, 49.53, $300.
Sun., October 2
#4 pick/draw: 4 for $60
1st go: 1. Kaitlyn Andersen and Ross Rivera, 7.11, $800. 2. Adriane Twisselman and Casey Sabin, 7.55, $600. 3. Royce Brown and Tucker Donlon, 7.59, $400. 4. Braydee Bourdet and Ross Rivera, 7.64, $200. Short go: David Zepeda and Marcus Maldonado, 9.24, $500.
Average: 1. Brett VanStavern and Blake VanStavern, 36.58, $4,000. 2. Brody Nelson and Max Loya, 37.91, $3,600. 3. Buster Segura and Levi Segura, 40.30, $3,100. 4. Ron H. Roth and Nathan Roth, 41.73, $2,600. 5. Justin Rhoades and Colton White, 43.64, $2,200. 6. Katie McPartland and Eli Green, 44,31, $1,750. 7. Georgene Mielke and Tyson Porter, 45.03, $1,525. 8. Reagan Amador and Donald Ornellas, 45.04, $1,300. 9. Randy Pennebaker and Jeff Bargas, 45.30, $1,100. 10. Chelsea Smith and Billy Prewitt, 46.77, $900. 11. Clayton Greynolds and Sutton Lockett, 47.75, $500. 12. Zoe Ekk and Jase Dewey, 47.91, $500. 13. Melanie Forzano and Philip Kershisnik, 48.56, $500. 14. Jamie Fontes and Hector Uribe, 48.82, $500. 15. Mark Yanez and Jack Forzano, 50.94, $500.
#3 pick Or Draw: 4 for $60
1st go: 1. Clayton Greynolds and Sutton Lockett, 6.79, $500. 2. Ross Rivera and Adrian Cervantes Jr., 7.44, $300. 3. Gabriella Patino and Shaylee Baxley, 7.72, $200. Short go: Jason Weatherby and Jenna Vultaggio, 16.80, $300.
Average: 1. Chad Marcotte and Tyler Willis, 44.50, $3,000. 2. Randon Rivera and Adrian Cervantes Jr., 44.58, $2,600. 3. Butch Pope and Melody Hutchins, 47.91, $2,200. 4. Sarah Brewen and Chase Grantham, 48.11, $1,800. 5. Braydee Bourdet and Levi Segura, 50.66, $1,600. 6. Justin Duran and Cash Filipponi, 50.73, $1,300. 7. Kelton Martinez and Emmitt Bourdet, 53.78, $1,000. 8. Westin Aviles and Saul Lopez, 57.02, $700. 9. Kathy Balaam and Rachelle McGhee, 59.34, $600. 10. Jeremey Drummond and Bandy Smith Jr., 61.74, $300. 11. Mckenna Waterman and Larry McGrady, 64.83, $300. 12. Dionna Paris and Skylar Lauzon, 66.38, $300.