With the final two 2011 Canadian Professional Rodeo Association rodeos held this past weekend at McCord, Sask. and Hanna, Alta., most of the rodeo hands have packed their saddlebags and ridden off into the sunset.
Results of these rodeos were not known at press time.
Still, for those cowboys and cowgirls who qualified for the Canadian Finals Rodeo being held at Rexall Place in Edmonton from Nov. 9-13, their dreams of a Canadian Championship are still alive because they will be competing in the most important rodeo on the 2011 calendar.
Through the years, Central Alberta, stretching from Airdrie to Red Deer, has been a hotbed for CPRA champions. Excluding the results from Hanna and McCord, it appears three area contestants will be packing their saddlebags one more time and trekking to Edmonton to participate in the CFR, which attracts the top 10 money earnings in seven disciplines, saddle bronc riding, bareback riding, bull riding, tie-down roping, steer wrestling, ladies barrel racing and team roping.
Olds team roper Travis Gallais, along with his partner Kevin Schreiner, has secured a spot into the year-end finale as they have $11,376 in earnings to date. They are comfortably in fifth place in the team roping standings.
Qualifying for the CFR is old hat for Gallais as he has tipped his hat at the CFR for 11 years now. And while tossing a lasso at a critter in Edmonton, he has ridden away with three Canadian team roping championships in 2003, 2005 and 2009.
Meanwhile, two Cochrane steer wrestlers, Straws and Tanner Milan, will be vying for their first Canadian steer wrestling championships. Straws has pocketed $20,932 in earnings with Tanner tucking $17,002 into his jeans' pockets.
Another Cochrane rodeo hand, Steven Turner, has wrapped up the 2011 all-around championship by pocketing $28,364 in working the steer wrestling and bullriding events.
With earnings of $15,622, Penhold saddle bronc rider Todd Herzogg is on the bubble of qualifying for his third CFR. He is currently in ninth place.
Since there is now a break in the current 2011 CPRA schedule before the hands will be heading to Edmonton, several participants will be heading south to the United States to participate in Professional Rodeo Cowboys' Association sanctioned rodeos. While rodeoing down south, they will be trying to improve on their PRCA standings in an effort to qualify for the 2011 National Finals Rodeo being held at Las Vegas, Nev., in December.
The only area cowboy to recently capture an NFR World title was Didsbury saddle bronc rider Glen O'Neil.
For the past several years, American cowboys and cowgirls have been participating on the CPRA circuit and several have ridden away with Canadian championships.
At the Canadian Finals Rodeo, all contestants have an equal chance at winning a Canadian championship.
