SUNDRE – After getting bucked off during the first round of performances at the 2023 Canadian Finals Rodeo, a local bull rider bounced right back to earn the best score on the second night of competition.
This year’s CFR kicked off on Wednesday, Nov. 1 at Westerner Park in Red Deer and Wyatt Gleeson’s first ride didn’t pan out as he might have hoped with the bull sending him flying before he could clock eight seconds and score any points.
Unfazed by the result, the professional cowboy was ready to get right back into the arena during the second round of performances on the evening of Thursday, Nov. 2, when he bounced right back to secure the highest score of the night with 86.75 points after staying on Outlaw Buckers’ Afraid To Nod for the full eight seconds, earning him the first-place cheque of $9,335 and bumping him up to sixth in the standings.
WATCH GLEESON'S WINNING RIDE HERE:
VIDEO: Canadian Professional Rodeo Association / CFR Red Deer
“The bull was really good,” Gleeson told the Albertan earlier this morning – Friday, Nov. 3.
“I had lots of timing and I had a pretty good get-off, so nothing is sore and I’m ready to go into the next round here,” he said.
Gleeson said he was feeling pretty good about his run at the CFR so far.
“I got to just stay on some bulls and win some rounds, and then I’ll hopefully at the end of it be a Canadian champion; that’s all of our goal,” he said.
“I still have some more work to do, but I’m feeling pretty confident in my ability to do so,” he said, recognizing that all of the other contenders are equally hungry to test their mettle and prove themselves.
“It’s pretty steep,” he said about the competition.
“All of the guys, they’ve been riding really good coming up to this point. And then when you get to the finals, it adds that little bit more pressure, a little bit more money, the crowds are a little bit louder, everyone rides to the occasion,” he said.
“There’s some rookies that just made the CFR for their first time, and I think they all got a bull rode last night,” he said. “So, everyone is starting to come into their own and feel good; the competition’s definitely going to be tough, but I’m looking forward to it.”
And the high-quality livestock is also not to be taken lightly.
“We select the best bulls in Canada. We have a list of a few hundred bulls and we go through them and see if they’re good enough to be there,” he said.
“There won’t be any duds at the CFR here; all these bulls buck pretty hard and they’re fired up, ready to go.”
Gleeson returns to the arena tonight for the third round of performances that start at 6 p.m., with two rides lined up for tomorrow – Saturday, Nov. 4 – and the final showdown on Sunday.
