No shortage of talent in Cheney

Bull rider J.C. Bean hopes he doesn’t cool off as temperatures drop to a more comfortable level.

The Goldendale, Wash., cowboy earned more than $19,000 last week, highlighted by a win at the Dodge Xtreme Bulls Ride Hard Tour stop in Lexington, Ky. He is currently sitting 19th in the Professional Rodeo Cowboys Association standings with $37,000 in winnings.

He is just one of the top names entered in the Cheney Rodeo, which features most of the best cowboys and cowgirls in the Northwest and a spattering of national contenders for the three-day PRCA event that opens tonight and runs through Sunday.

Big Bend Rodeo Co. out of Ritzville is the stock contractor.

Almost all of the leaders in the Columbia River Circuit are entered, including Bean, who is third in the bull riding standings, and B.J. Campbell of Benton City, Wash., who is second in the all-around race on the strength of leading the circuit in steer wrestling and standing third among heelers in team roping. Campbell, who is 12th in the national all-around standings, is up tonight in both events, teamed with Riley Minor of Ellensburg, who is second in the team roping header standings.

Another top hand entered in tonight’s performance is bull rider Zeb Lanham of Sweet, Idaho. He is the defending circuit champion and current leader as well as sitting 10th in the national standings with more than $46,000 in winnings.

Also scheduled to compete tonight is barrel racer Kelly Kaminski, the defending world champion, who is in 10th so far this season.

Bareback riding takes center stage on Saturday with Sandpoint’s Rowdy Buechner, the defending circuit champion, scheduled to ride. After making his first Nationals Finals Rodeo appearance in December, Buechner has battled injuries and is sitting 18th despite riding in just 21 rodeos. Also entered for Saturday are Jess Davis of Payson, Utah, and Paul Jones of Elko, Nev., who are sixth and seventh, respectively, in the national standings.

Saturday’s show also features tie down calf roper Brad Goodrich of Hermiston, Ore., the defending champion and current leader for the CRC.

Two young local standouts are set for Sunday’s performance, saddle bronc rider Kayle Gray and bareback rider Andy Bolich.

Gray, a Cheney graduate, is third in the circuit standings after finishing third last year. Bolich, a Mt. Spokane grad who now lives in Belgrade, Mont., after an outstanding collegiate career at Montana State, is the reigning Montana Circuit champ.

Ryan Gray at Calgary

Gray’s older brother Ryan, who finished sixth in the world bareback standings last year, is not entered because he is up at the revamped Calgary Stampede that starts tonight. The Stampede, which is not sanctioned by the PRCA this year, has a new format with only 20 of the highest-ranked competitors in each event participating.

In the tournament-style format, half the field competes for four straight days, followed by the second 10 for four days.

The top four each day win $4,000 down to $1,000.

The top four in each pool advance to the finals on July 16, the bottom six go to a wild-card round July 15 with the top two joining the finals.

Sunday’s top 10 is cut to a top four for the Showdown Round with the winner getting $100,000. Overall, the payout is $1,600,800.

“Even though the money doesn’t count, you can’t pass that up,” Gray said.

Buechner is in the second section of bareback riding with current national leader Andy Martinez. Columbia River Circuit champion and defending Cheney bareback champion Bobby Mote of Culver City, Ore., is in the first pool along with Gray and defending world champ Will Lowe.

Zach Oakes of Tonasket, who is ninth in the world standings and is married to Bolich’s sister, is in the first pool of bull riders. Lanham is in the second pool.

Gray just returned to action last weekend after breaking a leg at a rodeo in early May, which kept him from competing in the College National Finals Rodeo last month.

“I cracked back out last week,” Gray said. “I got on five or six horses. I didn’t do any good anywhere, but it was nice to get back out there and get on a few.”

On May 20 he got married in Phoenix. He has also completed his degree at Texas Tech except for an internship with the Resistol Hat Co. His wife Lacy, who he met at Tech, is also interning for Resistol.

Despite the inactivity, Gray is 12th in the national standings with almost $27,000 in winnings. He has just 16 rodeos toward his season allowable 100 to his credit, and less than half of all but two bareback riders ahead of him.