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Spokane, Washington  Est. May 19, 1883

Gray rich in other ways

Injuries can’t spoil life outside of rodeo circuit

If Ryan Gray were just a cowboy he could write off 2014 as a waste.

For just the second in 10 seasons he will miss the National Finals Rodeo. In fact, his meager winnings left him outside the top 50 in the Professional Rodeo Cowboys Association bareback standings, his worst showing since 2003. 

But the Cheney native has plenty to show for 2014.

Gray’s wife, Lacy, gave birth to a son, Ransom, in January. So when injuries forced Gray, now 31, to call it a season in July when he had surgery to repair abdominal muscles and a torn groin, all was not lost.

“I was able to be home with my wife and little boy pretty much all year, spend some nice time,” he said.

The Grays also sold their ranch in Texas in the spring and moved outside of Reardan full time, which is almost as nice as being a father.

“I love it,” Gray said of fatherhood. “There’s nothing else like it. It’s kind of a cliché, everybody says it changes your life, but it’s true. It’s fun, especially being able to be here all the time.

“It’s been pretty monumental for our family. I still can’t really believe it … it’s so much fun.”

Gray returned to action late in the summer and picked up a check here and there but never much. The chase for the NFR officially ended at the end of September.

As far as rodeo goes, that closed the book on a lot of frustration.

“I was out from April until the end of August,” he said. “I don’t know how many rodeos I actually entered, less than 20 maybe.”

The initial groin injury occurred in the 10th round of the NFR last year but he wasn’t too concerned since Ransom was born just a few weeks later.

“I took a month or so off when Ransom was born so I had time to let it get healed,” he said. “When I came back, I never felt right and it progressively got worse. It got to the point I couldn’t make a good ride, couldn’t really compete at all.”

Gray, bound and determined to have a better 2015, took a trip to Kissimmee, Fla., the first weekend of October. He got on a horse called Bi-Polar and turned in a ride of 81.5 points, winning the rodeo and the $5,780 that went with it. That propelled him to the top spot in the standings with $6,575.24, which is about what a good check in the winter rodeos will bring early next year and why the Florida win is so important.

“Being out all year I’ve lost a lot of qualifications for next year,” he explained. “I need to have some money won so I can get into some winter rodeos … since I was a rookie I’ve never had to worry about that.”

Unfortunately, he won’t have the NFR to pad his bank account but it also means he shouldn’t be beat up when it comes time to hit it hard in January with indoor rodeos such as those at Denver, San Antonio, Fort Worth and Houston.

“I’ve had my share of injuries in the past,” he said. “I’ve just been fortunate I was hurt at times when had time to heal up and still had shot at making finals. I never had to miss the heart of the rodeo season. Unfortunately, this year I had to miss the good part.”

On the other hand, the best part of the year was at home.