Excitement Abounded During Night No. 2 in Salt Lake City

SALT LAKE CITY (July 20, 2023) – The 2023 Utah Days of ’47 Rodeo presented by Zions Bank had a little of everything on night No. 2, from near arena record times to a Manu Lataste jumping a bull and a special rodeo drone show.

            The ladies of the Women’s Professional Rodeo Association put on a show for the fans in Salt Lake City. Brighton Bauman of Burleson, Texas, didn’t waste any time in the breakaway roping stopping the clock in 1.9 seconds. That is just a tick off the arena record set in 2022 by Josie Conner with a 1.85 second run during the Gold Medal Round. Bauman will not only be looking for her first gold medal on Monday, but she will be looking to possibly set a new arena record en route to the title. Joining Bauman from tonight’s performance is WPRA Rookie Quincy Sullivan. Sullivan of Peralta, N.M., stopped the clock in 2.4 seconds. A $10,000 payday on Monday would shoot her to the top of the rookie standings so she will have a lot on the line. It should be fun watching it all unfold.

            Rachelle Riggers of Lewiston, Idaho, rounded the cloverleaf pattern in 17.12 seconds to advance in the barrel racing to a final sudden death run on Monday for a chance at an Olympic style medal. Emily Beisel will have her shot as well, finishing second on the night with a time of 17.24 seconds.

            The Gold Standard in Rodeo features a total of 336 competitors, who will take their shot at a share of close over three-quarters of a million in prize money and a Gold, Silver or Bronze medal that will be awarded on Monday, July 24. There will be 32 competitors in all the roughstock events (Bareback riding, Saddle Bronc riding and Bull riding) and 40 competitors in all timed events (Steer Wrestling, Team Roping, Tie-down Roping, Breakaway Roping and Barrel Racing).

            Tristen Hutchings brought the night to a close in bull riding as the only one to have a qualified ride. Hutchings of Monteview, Idaho, rode Andrews Rodeo’s Old Gringo for 80 points and collected all the money tonight totaling $5,000.

            Jayco Roper and Sam Peterson tied atop the leaderboard in the bareback riding so both will easily advance to Medal Monday. Roper of Oktaha, Oklahoma, rode Andrews Rodeo’s Fresno, while Peterson of Helena, Montana, competed on Championship Rodeo’s Mary Moon to the tune of 85.5 points each. They picked up $1,750 on Thursday night but will battle it out on July 24 for not only $10,000 in cold hard cash but also a one-of-a-kind Gold Medal.

            The full field is divided into four groups of 8 each per performance in the roughstock and 10 in the timed events. The top two scores or times per performance will advance to the Gold Medal Round. Scores/times from the Semi-Final performances will NOT carry forward to the Gold Medal Round (only to break ties). The 8 competitors in each event in the Gold Medal Round will compete in a sudden-death format with the winner collecting a Gold Medal and $10,000 cash.

            Cody Devers of Balko, Oklahoma, took top honors in steer wrestling during performance two stopping the clock in 4.0 seconds. Stetson Jorgensen of Blackfoot, Idaho, finished second in a time of 4.3 seconds. Both will be going for Gold come Monday.

            Team ropers Brenten Hall and Paden Bray were the only team to break the four second mark on night No. 2. Hall of Jay, Oklahoma and Bray of Stephenville, Texas, stopped the clock in 3.9 seconds. Aaron Tsinigine and Ryan Motes tied for second with Coy Rahlmann and Jonathan Torres with a 4.6. Tsinigine and Motes won the tiebreaker and will be back in Salt Lake City on Monday.

            Tanner Butner was the top saddle bronc rider with an 87-point ride on Championship Pro Rodeo’s Heaven On Earth. Ryan Sanford took second on the night with an 86.5 on Andrews Rodeo’s Brutus but more importantly will advance to the final round on Monday.

            Luke Potter and Nilton Braga will be moving on in the tie-down roping. Potter of Maple City, Kansas won the performance in a time of 8.4 seconds, while Braga of Brazil tied with Bo Pickett with a 9.5. Braga will advance based on the tiebreaker after finishing better in the average from the progressive round held last week.

            The Utah Days of ’47 Rodeo presented by Zions Bank, is taking place at the $17.5 million state-of-the-art Days of ’47 Arena at the Utah State Fairpark, custom designed and built for rodeo. The venue—an outdoor arena located in the heart of Salt Lake City—features over 10,000 stadium-style seats.

            For only the eighth time in the history of rodeo, riders will have an opportunity to compete for Gold, Silver or Bronze Medals. The first two times were in conjunction with the Olympic Winter Games in Calgary (1988) and Salt Lake City (2002), when rodeo was part of the Cultural Olympiad and the other five times being 2017-2023. This will be the fourth time for breakaway ropers as their event was added to the roster in 2019. The medals that will be awarded at the Utah Days of '47 Rodeo will be produced by OC Tanner, the same company that made the Olympic medals for the champions of the 2002 Olympic Winter Games.

            Tickets are still available. For more information on the event visit www.utahdaysof47rodeo.com.

            Action at the Utah Day of ’47 Rodeo continues July 21 at 7:30 p.m. MT.

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Results: - Performance 2 – July 20, 2023

Bareback riding: 1. (tie) Jayco Roper, Oktaha, OK on Andrews Rodeo’s Fresno and Sam Petersen, Helena, MT, on Championship Rodeo’s Mary Moon, 85.5 points, $1,750 each; 3. Jacob Lees, Caldwell, ID, 83.5 on C5 Rodeo’s Flap Jack, $1,000; 4. Dean Thompson, Altamont, UT, 82 on Championship Pro Rodeo’s Pistol Princess, $500.

Gold Medal Round current qualifiers: Jayco Roper and Sam Peterson

Steer wrestling: 1. Cody Devers, Balko, OK, 4.0 seconds, $2,000; 2. Stetson Jorgensen, Blackfoot, ID, 4.3, $1,500; 3. Olin Hannum, Malad, ID, 4.5, $1,000; 4. Marc Joiner, Loranger, LA, 6.2, $500.

Gold Medal Round current qualifiers: Cody Devers and Stetson Jorgensen

Team roping: 1. Brentan Hall, Jay, OK/Paden Bray, Stephenville, TX, 3.9 seconds, $2,000 each; 2. (tie) Coy Rahlmann, Ellsinore, MO/Jonathan Torres, Ocala, FL, and Aaron Tsinigine, Tuba City, AZ/Ryan Motes, Weatherford, TX, 4.6 seconds, $1,250; 4. Clint Summers, Lake City, FL/Jake Long, Coffeyville, KS, 19.1, $500.

Gold Medal Round current qualifiers: Brentan Hall/Paden Bray and Aaron Tsinigine/Ryan Motes

Saddle bronc riding: 1. Tanner Butner, Daniel, WY, 87 points on Championship Pro Rodeo’s Heaven On Earth, $2,000; 2. Ryder Sanford, Sulphur, LA, 86.5 on Andrews Rodeo’s Brutus, $1,500; 3. Parker Fleet, Axtell, TX, 85.5 on Sankey Pro Rodeo’s Outclassed, $1,000; 4. Q McWhorter, San Luis Obispo, CA, 81.5 on Stiletto Night, $500.

Gold Medal Round current qualifiers: Tanner Butner and Ryder Sanford

Tie-down roping: 1. Luke Potter, Maple City, KS, 8.4 seconds, $2,000; 2. Nilton Braga, Brazil and Bo Pickett, Caldwell, ID, 9.5, $1,250 each; 4. Rial Engelhart, Lakeview, OR, 11.6, $500.

Gold Medal Round current qualifiers: Luke Potter and Nilton Braga

Breakaway roping: 1. Brighton Bauman, Burleson, TX, 1.9 seconds, $2,000; 2. Quincy Sullivan, Peralta, NM, 2.4, $1,500; 3. Mollie Bassett, Vinita, OK, 2.5, $1,000; 4. Bryana Lehrmann, Lexington, Texas, 11.9, $500

Gold Medal Round current qualifiers: Brighton Bauman and Quincy Sullivan

Barrel racing: 1. Rachelle Riggers, Lewiston, ID, 17.12 seconds, $2,000; 2. Emily Beisel, Weatherford, OK, 17.24, $1,500; 3. Keyla Costa, Tolar, TX, 17.44, $1,000; 4. Bryana Lehrmann, Lexington, TX, 17.59, $500

Gold Medal Round current qualifiers: Rachelle Riggers and Emily Beisel

Bull riding: 1. Tristen Hutchings, Monteview, Idaho, 80 points on Andrews Rodeo’s Old Gringo, $5,000; no other qualified rides.

Gold Medal Round current qualifiers: Tristen Hutchings