The Reno Rodeo is back and better than ever in 2021. Last year’s even was canceled due to the coronavirus but the Reno Livestock Event Center is ready to welcome back cowboys in full force this week.
The 10-day event begins June 17 with the Division 1 Xtreme Bulls event, with $54,000 added money. The Reno Rodeo Xtreme Bulls and the Reno Rodeo, which runs from June 18-26, will be broadcast live on The Cowboy Channel, and streamed on the PRCA on the Cowboy Channel Plus App at 10 p.m. (EDT).
WPRA Women’s Breakaway Roping
Reno Rodeo welcomes the inaugural year of Women’s Breakaway Roping. Although it is often compared to tie down roping, the rider neither dismounts nor ties the calf. Still, the event is fast paced and requires keen roping and horsemanship skills.
Rapidly gaining popularity, the event looks much the same as tie down, with the horse and rider waiting in a box next to the chute that has a spring-loaded rope, known as the barrier, stretched in front. A light rope is fastened from the chute to the calf’s neck, and once the calf is out of the chute, it releases the barrier, which gives the calf a head-start. Once the barrier has released, the horse runs out of the box while the roper attempts to throw a lasso around the neck of the calf.
Once the rope is around the calf’s neck, the roper signals the horse to stop. The rope is tied to the saddle horn with a string. When the calf hits the end of the rope, the rope is pulled tight and the string breaks. The breaking of the string marks the end of the run. The rope usually has a small white flag at the end that makes the moment the rope breaks more easily seen by the timer. The fastest run wins.
John Harrison – Rodeo Clown & Barrelman
John Harrison is a high energy rodeo clown that was selected by his peers to be a three-time Wrangler National Finals Rodeo Barrel Man and has been awarded the Coors “Man in the Can” three times. John is the grandson of the legendary Freckles Brown, who rode ProRodeo Hall of Fame bucking bull, Tornado, after 220 consecutive buck-offs in six years. John became a member of the Professional Rodeo Cowboys Association (PRCA) in 1999 as a trick and roman rider, and trick roper. He later diversified and added barrel man to his PRCA card.
Bareback
A bareback rider begins his ride with his feet placed above the break of the horse’s shoulder: If the cowboy’s feet are not in the correct position when the horse hits the ground on its first jump out of the chute, the cowboy has failed to “mark out” the horse properly and is disqualified.
Throughout the eight-second ride, the cowboy must grasp the rigging (a handhold made of leather and rawhide) with only one hand.
The rider is judged on his control and on his spurring technique. The score also is based on the rider’s “exposure” to the strength of the horse, and the horse’s performance accounts for half the total score. A rider is disqualified if he touches his equipment himself or the animal with his free hand.
Saddle Bronc
Model spurring action begins with the rider’s feet far forward on the bronc’s point of shoulder, sweeping to the back of the saddle, or “cantle,” as the horse bucks. The rider then snaps his feet back to the horse’s neck a split second before the animal’s front feet hit the ground.
Other factors considered in the scoring are the cowboy’s control throughout the ride, the length of his spurring stroke and how hard the horse bucks.
Disqualification results if, during the eight seconds ride, the rider touches the animal, himself or his equipment with his free hand, if either foot slips out of a stirrup, if he drops the bronc rein, or if he fails to have his feet in the proper “mark out” position at the beginning of the ride.
Steer Wrestling
The steer wrestler on horseback starts behind a barrier and begins his chase after the steer has been given a head start. If the bulldogger leaves too soon and breaks the barrier, he receives a 10-second penalty.
The steer wrestler is assisted by a hazer, another cowboy on horseback tasked with keeping the steer running in a straight line.
When the bulldogger’s horse pulls even with the steer, he eases down the right side of the horse and reaches for the steer’s horns. After grasping the horns, he digs his heels into the dirt. As the steer slows, the cowboy turns the animal, lifts up on its right horn and pushes down with his left hand.
After the catch, the steer wrestler must either bring the steer to a stop or change the direction of the animal’s body before the throw or is disqualified. The clock stops when the steer is on his side with all four legs pointing in the same direction.
Steer wrestling is often known as the “big man’s event” and with good reason; at the 1995 NFR in Las Vegas, the average steer wrestler weighed in at 223 pounds.
Reno Rodeo 2021 news?
The 2021 PRCA Xtreme Bulls Tour has treated Clayton Sellars extremely well.
The Florida native won his second Division 1 event this season when he won the Reno (Nev.) Rodeo Xtreme Bulls event Thursday night.
Sellars walked away the champ with 179 points on two head.
“I’ve always wanted to win in Reno whether it was the Xtreme Bulls or the rodeo, and this feels great,” said Sellars, 23.
Sellars won the San Angelo (Texas) Xtreme Bulls April 18.
Sellars arrived in Reno ninth in the PRCA | RAM World Standings and second in the Xtreme Bulls standings and will move up in both after earning $21,018. He earned $15,300 for his San Angelo performance.
“It seems like I always do well at Xtreme Bulls events, especially the big ones,” Sellars said. “It has been great and I’m thankful for every single one of them.”
The last rider in the 12-man short round Thursday, Sellars had a 90.5-point ride on Big Stone Rodeo Inc.’s Renegade to clinch the average victory.
“I had never been on that bull and actually I had never even seen that bull before,” Sellars said. “He was wild and jittery in the box, so I thought he was going to be really fast.
Reno Rodeo Live Stream
The Reno Rodeo is also moving to Live Streaming. All EVENTS for the 2021 Reno Rodeo will be digital to ensure entry to the rodeo grounds is easy and safe for both fans and volunteers. For more details on CBS Sports, Fox Sports Net, Versus, ESPN, ESPN2 and ESPN Classic. available for download on May 1, 2021.
Reno Rodeo Online Without Cable
Over 140,000 fans attend each year for the 4th richest PRCA tour rodeo and the 3rd best as recognized by USA Today’s 10 Best Readers Choice. The event impacts the Reno/Sparks area economy with $42 million going to hotels, casinos, restaurants, and retail outlets. The Reno Rodeo has been nationally televised on CBS Sports, Fox Sports Net, Versus, ESPN, ESPN2 and ESPN Classic.
