BY BRETT NIERENGARTEN @PRORODEOBRETT
Throughout the Texas Swing, the Monday Notebook has primarily focused on what happens in the biggest Texas rodeo that week, but this week there is much more than that.
In addition to the San Angelo Stock Show and Rodeo, there was also an Xtreme Bares and Broncs event in Montana and an Xtreme Bulls event in Oklahoma. Both paid more than $25,000, including nearly $40,000 for the latter.
With that, there’s plenty to talk about, primarily in the roughstock events.
- Saddle bronc rider Brody Cress took the lead in the Long Round in San Angelo one day after getting married. Cress was 87.5 points on Sunday afternoon following his nuptials on Saturday. The Long Round winner makes about $7,000 in San Angelo and Cress is currently 3.5 points clear of the rest of the field.
- There have been 11 times faster than 4 seconds in the steer wrestling in San Angelo. The bulldogging has been terrific in Foster Communications Coliseum. Dakota Eldridge leads the First Round with a 3.4-second run and Cody Devers and Justin Shaffer are splitting Round 2 at 3.5. Devers is also tied for the Average lead (8.2 seconds) with Will Lummus and Eli Lord.
- Bull rider T Parker won almost $12,000 at the Lawton Xtreme Bulls. It was by far the biggest win of the 19-year-old’s professional career as he rode Bad John of Frontier Rodeo for 89.5 points, the most of his PRCA career. The win moved Parker from No. 10 to No. 6 in the World Standings.
- Saddle bronc rider Ben Andersen has won back-to-back Xtreme Broncs events. Andersen was the champion of the PRCA Xtreme Bares and Broncs on March 25 and also won the MSU-Northern Xtreme Bares and Broncs on April 1. Those two wins paid Andersen, who is up to No. 5 in the world, more than $9,000.
- Bull rider Sage Kimzey competed for the first time in a month and finished third in Lawton. Kimzey had not competed since Round 2 of Super Series I in Houston, but showed no signs of rust. He rode FC Red Eye for 87.5 points to take home third place and more than $6,000. Kimzey is 7-for-16 so far this season and currently No. 27 in the world.
- Tie-down roper Justin Smith made the fastest run of the year at a Texas Swing Rodeo with a 6.9 in San Angelo. Smith’s run is seven tenths faster than any other cowboy at San Angelo. The other fastest times of the Texas Swing were 7.4 in Fort Worth, 7.2 in San Antonio, 7.5 in Houston and 7.1 in Austin.
- Wenda Johnson leads Round 1 in San Angelo as she looks for third Top 2 finish there in last four years. Johnson’s 14.23-second run on Mo in Round 2 was the fastest of the rodeo. The Oklahoma cowgirl won San Angelo in 2021 and finished second there in 2020.
