March 2008
March 27, 2008 It must be springtime as the weather has been beautiful and I am back in California for the spring rodeos in my circuit. Looking back, I had a pretty good winter and I hope to pick-up some good paychecks while in my homestate of California. March was a busy month that found me competing at RodeoHouston, the Timed Event Championship in Guthrie, Okla., Rodeo Austin, the Dodge National Circuit Finals Rodeo in Pocatello, Idaho, and I just returned from the Laughlin River Stampede in Laughlin, Nev. It was a bit of an up and down month for me but it was a good month for our traveling group. I got the month started with a trip to RodeoHouston and I was really wanting to win that $50,000 this year. Unfortunately, it wasn’t in the cards for me. I started off well with a 4.5 second run, but it was just out of the top three times that picked up checks. In Houston, you compete against nine other guys and then the top four money winners, after three rounds, advance to the semifinal round. So not only is it important to be fast but it is important to get some checks along the way. I knew my back was against the wall after my second round run when the clock read 16.1 seconds. However, because of the format, I still had an outside shot to do something in the third round to keep my hopes alive. It was too little too late though after stopping the clock in 5.8 seconds and finishing out of the money. My traveling partners Jason Miller, Curtis Cassidy and Gabe Ledoux had some much better luck than I did and was able to leave the big Texas town with a little money in their pockets and in the standings. I think Jason pocketed about $9,000, while Curtis picked up close to $19,000. I am not sure what Gabe did but overall the traveling group did well in Houston. We all have our work cut out for us now though with Wade (Sumpter) winning the $50,000. I think he is winning the average in Laughlin (Nev.) as I type this, so he is definitely finding is groove. From Houston, I headed to Guthrie, Okla., for the Timed Event Championship. This is always a fun event because you get to compete in events you don’t normally do every day and you get to see all the other guys competing in events they are not used to. I started out pretty good with the first two rounds but then ran into a little trouble in the steer roping, which cost me in the end. I turned in the fastest time in the first round with a total time of 51.1 seconds and was able to leave town with about $3,000. Congratulations to Daniel Green for winning the event. My brother, Casey, also had a good event finishing third behind Green and Trevor Brazile. Good job, bro! It was then back to Texas and the rodeo in Austin. There wasn’t much to report in the first round but I stopped the clock with a 3.7 second run in the second round to finish in a tie for first. However, I didn’t qualify back for the finals, so it was off to Pocatello, Idaho, for the Dodge National Circuit Finals Rodeo. I ran my first one on Wednesday night. I had a good steer and got a good start, which resulted in a time of 3.6 seconds. That put me on top of the leaderboard but I had to wait until the round ended on Thursday night with the second half of the field competing before I knew if I had won. As it turned out, my time held and I finished first in the first round, which was good for a check worth $3,957. I ran my second one on Saturday afternoon and I am not sure if it was a 24-hour stomach bug or if I had a slight case of food poisoning, but I wasn’t feeling 100 percent that day. In rodeo, it doesn’t really matter how you feel because if you want a check you have to compete. So I told myself to “Cowboy Up” and go throw one down. I did and luckily for me I stopped the clock in 3.7 seconds, which placed me in a tie for first and another check worth $3,462. In addition, the two times combined put me atop the leaderboard in the average with a total time of 7.3 seconds and I pocketed another $3,957. It also meant that I would move onto the semifinals and as a result of winning the average I would be the last to go. I added a little excitement to everything when I finished with a 5.0 second run, just squeaking into the final four. Since I was the last to qualify, I had to run my steer first and I stopped the clock in 4.6 seconds. That time held until K.C. Jones nodded his head and stopped the clock in 4.3 seconds. Texan Mickey Gee was the last to go (since he won the semifinals with a time of 3.8 seconds) but it wasn’t meant to be for him and he finished with a 6.0 second run. So K.C. got the win and the use of a Dodge truck for the year. I walked away with the most money in the steer wrestling with $15,334, so it wasn’t all bad. I thought it was a good DNCFR and congratulations to all the winners. While in Pocatello, Idaho, I took in some skiing at the annual downhill ski event they have there. The weather was nice the whole time we were there, which was unusual and the committee always does a good job there. Jesse Peterson let me use Gunner there, so after the finals I caught a ride with Troy and Stacy Dial to Laughlin, Nev., where I met back up with my traveling partners. I had taken my rig home after Austin, so my brother, Casey brought it out to Laughlin. I didn’t have any success in Laughlin, so I am now back home for a few days before I head off to San Francisco. I will be using the grey horse, Skids, for these spring rodeos, as Curtis (Cassidy) is giving Willie some rest down in Texas. Be sure to check out my rodeo schedule on my website (www.lukebranquinho.net) to see where I will be next. It is nice to be home and besides needing a little more rain, all is well at the place. We have green grass but it is still a little short, so a little rain wouldn’t hurt. Gas and diesel prices continue to soar. Here in Los Alamos, it is always more expensive with diesel prices already totaling $4.70. I think the most I saw between Laughlin and here was $4.07. It is a little scary when you think how high the prices are getting. I am hoping they will start going down soon. Thanks for reading and I will talk to you later, March 4, 2008 Well another month has already come and gone. Although February is a short month, it still went by faster than it should have. Now we are into March and I am at RodeoHouston hoping to come out the big winner. With the amount of money on the line here, it can drastically change a guy’s season. I hope to have great news to report upon its conclusion. So far this year things have been going well for me. Each week I keep chipping away and placing pretty much everywhere I go. It is always nice to win first everywhere but if you can’t do that at least pick-up a check everywhere you go. I had a pretty good event in Tucson finishing fourth in the average and walking away with about $3,680 after three rounds. My wife, Lindsay, came to Tucson and it was good to see her. After Tucson she headed back to California and then she will fly out later this week to watch me at the Timed Event Championship (more on this in a little while). From Tucson, we headed back to San Angelo (Texas) and finished there over the weekend. I was second in the short round and tied for fourth in the average when it was all said and done with a four-head total of 17.7 seconds. I was lucky enough to get another $5,567 out of there. Then it was off to Houston. We ran our first one in Houston last night and I was 4.5 seconds, so we will see what happens the next two nights. From Houston, I will be heading to Guthrie, Okla., for the Timed Event Championship. Between rodeos, I have been preparing for this event and doing a lot of roping. This will be my fifth time to compete at this event and it is always an event I look forward to. This year they are planning on using fresh steers in the steer wrestling so it should be interesting. In the past, they have used steers that had been used quite a bit, so it wasn’t too tough for the guys that aren’t used to steer wrestling. However, since they are using fresh steers this year, maybe a bulldogger will have a chance to win it all and I wouldn’t mind if it was me. The best I have done is finish third, so we will see what happens. If you have never been to this event it is pretty fun watching. After the timed events, I will head to Austin for two rounds and then hopefully be back on the 15th for the finals there. Depending on how I do in Houston will determine if I go to the Dodge National Circuit Finals Rodeo in Pocatello, Idaho. If I do well in Houston, then I will turn out of the DNCFR and let Troy Dial go in my place as there is no way to work both. So stay tuned to see what I decide. Other than that Jason (Miller) and I have just been on the road trying to stay out of trouble. Wish me luck in Houston and at the Timed Event Championship. Until next time, |
 |
 |
 |
