This score just in: Bulls 10, Cowboys 0

It’s making a living 8 seconds at a time.

Thirty-two professional bull riders entered the Spokane Arena Friday night, looking for a payday and vying for $5,000 in first-place prize money as the General Store/Wrangler PBR Classic opened a two-night run.

The Classic is part of the Enterprise Tour, which is separate from the main circuit and features young, up-and-coming professional bull riders. All monies earned count toward a chance to reach the world finals.

It’s rodeo stripped to its most dangerous, most exciting and most extreme event.

Each cowboy draws one bull, looking to score well enough on that one ride to qualify for a 10-rider short round, where the bulls get tougher.

Those bulls, many veterans of the National Finals Rodeo of the Professional Bull Riders World Finals, made a clean sweep – throwing all 10 cowboys.

“That’s bull riding,” Pocatello cowboy Joshua Smith said. “The good news is that we get to do it again next week.”

Out of the field of 32, 14 riders managed to score by lasting 8 seconds. The cutoff for the short round was Rio Rancho, N.M., cowboy Cole Pierce’s 78 on a re-ride after his first bull slipped in the arena dirt – which automatically qualifies for a second-chance.

Charlie Barker, from Culver, Ore., had the top ride, scoring 84½ points on a bull named Air Time.

Ephrata’s Zack Bright, 20, a former Washington State High School Rodeo champion, scored an 84 on Coor’s Pounder to share the next-highest score with Tatton Garland, from Las Lunas, N.M.

Tanner Girletz, a 19-year-old from Cereal, Alberta, scored an 82.5 on a bull named Fire Ball on the first ride of the night.

Girletz was not the youngest contestant on the night. Micha Corzine, from Sadler, Texas, just turned 19, but was unsuccessful in his professional debut.

The short go-round was a showcase for some of the best of bucking bulls from Ritzville’s Big Bend/Flying 5 ranch, which has produced six world champion bulls in the past decade. Many of bulls on display are offspring from those blood lines.

For example, National Finals Rodeo veteran Hijinks, drawn by Markus Mariluch for his final ride, bucked off all 21 riders in 2005. Ready Bo, the bull Smith drew for his final ride of the night, is the son of Bodacious, considered the greatest bucking bull in the sport’s history.

Girletz may have had a familial advantage in the short go-round, drawing Fire Bird, the brother of his first-round ride, Fire Ball.

The 14 riders who turned in a scoring ride shared what’s known as “day money,” a share of the $50 entry fee pot – amounting to less then $120 for their night’s work.

The two-day prize money will be allocated after tonight’s set of rides.

All monies earned count toward the PBR World Finals