The Lost Stampede?
I've been covering sports in the Treasure Valley since 1982 and during the dog days of summer one of the big sports stories has always been the Snake River Stampede. As one of the top 10 pro rodeos in the country there was a demand for coverage.
While all sports can be considered entertainment, I always felt rodeo was more like the circus coming to town than a sporting event. Sure the competitors are definitely athletes but then so are trapeze artists. My problem was finding a way to cover the rodeo that made sports sense.
Way back the Stampede had musical headliners and remember doing a live broadcast with a new comer named Reba McEntire. Later that night she signed her first big music contract at the old outdoor Stampede arena and the rest is history.
We also featured the clowns, especially when there was an event called "Bull Fighting" where clowns went one on one with bulls as the clowns tried to score points by getting as close to the bulls as possible and live to tell the story.
That's what folks wanted, so we showed nightly highlights of cowboys being thrown from bulls or horses because an 8-second ride didn't sell, fans wanted guys flying out of their seats or the bull besting the clowns. There really wasn't a final score or key play or turning point in the contest. Fun to watch but hard to find a story line other than cool highlights.
None the less pictures of the Snake River Stampede always appeared on the front page of the local newspaper, TV reporters were live at the arena but all that is changing.
After two nights of competition there hasn't been one word about the Stampede in the Idaho Statesman which I read everyday. I say this more as an observation than a critique. It appears the newspaper is wondering the same as I did all those years. Is this a sports event or just an evening of entertainment.
Either way I have seen less reporting on the Stampede than ever before. It'll be interesting to see if attendance numbers match previous years.
That being said here are the results from Wednesday night's action:
Wednesday, July 19, 2017
Bareback Bronc Riding
Tyler Scales- 66 pts.
Levi Nicholson – 62 pts.
Tyler Nelson – 73 pts.
Casey Breuer – 71 pts.
Ty Breuer – 81.5 pts.
Aus Tanner – pts.
Bill Tutor – 82 pts.
Evan Jayne – 81 pts.
Wyatt Bloom – 78.5 pts.
Ty Fast Taypotat – 56 pts.
J.C. Hester, Jr. – No Score
Austin Foss – 41 pts./Reride Option
Steer Wrestling
Errol Frain – 4.7 sec.
Tyler Pearson – 3.8 sec.
Matt Deskovick – No time
Kyle Irwin – 13.6 sec.
Blaine Jones – No time
Mike Bates, Jr. – 4.3 sec.
Jace Melvin – 4.3 sec.
Calder Johnston – No time
Timmy Sparing – 4.0 sec.
Rowdy Parrott – 3.7 sec.
Team Roping
Ryan Opie & Dayton Stafford – No time
Charly Crawford & Joseph Harrison – 10.9 sec.
Tyler Wade & Clint Summers – 14.2 sec.
Kelsey Parchman & Chase Tryan – 5.8 sec.
Trevor Brazile & Patrick Smith – No time
Clay Smith & Paul Evans – 5.2 sec.
Lane Santos & Dalton Pearce – 11.4 sec.
Jace Mitchell & Ryan Powell – No time
Aaron Tsinigine & Ryan Motes – 9.4 sec.
Saddle Bronc Riding
Chet Jonhson – 77 pts.
Cort Scheer – 77 pts.
Tyler Corrington – No score
Audy Reed – 64 pts.
CoBurn Bradshaw – 84 pts.
Jesse Wright – 79.5 pts.
Jake Wright – 75 pts.
Alex Wright – 73 pts.
Nathan Duckworth – No score
Ryder Wright – No score
Spencer Wright – 71 pts.
Sam Harper – 54 pts.
Ryan Mackenzie – 68 pts.
Tie-Down Roping
Shane Hanchey – No time
Ryle Smith – No time
Trevor Brazile – No time
Tyson Durfey – No time
Chase Williams – 20.3 sec.
Cory Solomon – No time
Chad Finley – No time
Ace Slone – 12.8 sec.
Cody Quaney – 7.6 sec.
Seth Hopper – No time
Barrel Racing
Dena Kirkpatrick – 15.80 sec.
Jane Melby – 21.73 sec.
Jennifer Arnold – 16.77 sec.
Laura Kennedy – 20.99 sec.
Britta Thiel – 21.32 sec.
Cassidy Kruse – no time (broken pattern)
Jeni Cerise – 17.16 sec.
Shelby Janssen 16.36 sec.
Bull Riding
Tyler Bingham – 85.5 pts.
Roscoe Jarboe – 75 pts.
Markus Mariluch – No score
Brennon Eldred – No score
Elliott Jacoby – 76 pts.
Douglas Duncan – 82.5 pts.
Bryce Barrios – 77 pts.
Dalan Duncan – No score
Garrett Smith – 84.5 pts.
Jory Markiss – No score
Riley Blankenship – No score
Cody Miller -No score
Wesley Silcox – 83 pts.
Mike Sparks – No score
Dave Mason – No score
Corey Waterson -No score