About seven seconds into his eight-second ride on Frontier Rodeo’s Night Fist during Friday’s first performance of the Guymon Pioneer Days Rodeo, Tray Chambliss was in a bind.
“I felt my glove slipping out of my rigging; it was do or die right then,” said Chambliss, 30, of Fort Davis, Texas. “It was, ‘Gas it even harder and stay ahead of the horse or safety up,’ but there ain’t no money in safetying up.”
It worked to the tune of 87 points and the bareback riding lead in the Oklahoma Panhandle for the Alabama-born cowboy who moved to Texas about a decade ago to learn more about the craft and what it means to compete in ProRodeo.
Though he’s never qualified for the National Finals Rodeo, Chambliss was a rising star in the game. Four years ago, an injury forced him to the sidelines, and he slowed down his schedule considerable since. He skipped the 2017 season altogether, then got on just 17 horses in 2018-19 combined.
“In one of the oddest years ever, I decided to go pretty hard,” he said, noting that his Friday night ride on the powerful Frontier horse was his 10th of the season, which he started in early June. “You have to want to do this. If you don’t want it, you better not come, because you’re either going to get hurt or it’s going to be for nothing.
“There are a lot of other guys that want it as bad or worse than you do, and they’re going to be working hard to make it happen.”
While he’s not old by any stretch of the imagination, some cowboys in their 30s struggle in bareback riding because of the physical toll it takes on their bodies. With his time away from the arena, Chambliss knows he’s got plenty of years left. Besides, there’s also mind over matter.
“I don’t think age has anything to do with it,” he said. “I think your circumstances, where you are in life and where the good Lord is speaking to you is where you’re at. One of my good friends and mentors, Clint Cannon, didn’t make the finals until he was 31.”
Cannon then qualified for the NFR five times, and Chambliss still believes he has the ability to make it to ProRodeo’s biggest stage.
“I don’t want to be the guy on his death bed who knew he had the talent and ability and just didn’t keep trying,” he said. “I don’t want to have any regrets.”
He doesn’t regret returning to Guymon after four years away from the Oklahoma Panhandle, especially knowing he was matched with Night Fist.
“She was really electric,” Chambliss said. “I didn’t ask anybody about her, because I didn’t want a bunch of people’s opinions about her. I had a game plan: Visualize my ride and do everything perfect.”
It worked out just fine.
CURRENT LEADERS IN GUYMON
BAREBACK RIDING: 1. Tray Chambliss, 87 points; 2. Clayton Biglow, 86; 3. Will Martin, 82; 4. Kash Wilson, 80; no other qualified rides
TEAM ROPING: (first round) 1. Nick Sartain/Blaine Vick, 4.2 seconds, $2,506 each; 2. Luke Brown/Patrick Smith, 4.8, $2,179; 3. (tie) Cody Snow/Junior Nogueira and Chad Masters/Wesley Thorp, 5.2, $1,689 each; 5. (tie) Cooper White/Tucker White and J.C. Yeahquo/L.J. Yeahquo, 5.3, $1,035 each; 7. Jaxson Tucker/Cole Davison, 5.4, $545; 8. (tie) Paul David Tierney/Thomas Smith and Erich Rogers/Paden Bray, 5.5, $109 each. (second round) 1. Erich Rogers/Paden Bray, 4.4 seconds; 2. (tie) Dustin Egusquiza/Marty Yates and Clint Summers/Douglas Rich, 4.5; 4. Jeff Flenniken/Tyler Worley, 4.6; 5. Coleman Proctor/Ryan Motes, 4.9; 6. Laramie Allen/Truman Magnus, 5.0; 7. (tie) Paul David Tierney/Thomas Smith and Clay Smith/Jade Corkill, 5.3
STEER WRESTLING: (first round) 1. (tie) Chase Crane and Clayton Hass, 4.0 seconds, $1,680 each; 3. (tie) Taz Olson, Walt Arnold, Blake Knowles, Eli Lord, Dalton Massey, Cade Goodman and Tanner Brunner, 4.1, $636 each. Second round: 1. Blake Knowles, 3.5 seconds; 2. Dirk Tavenner, 3.7; 3. Dylan Schroeder, 3.8; 4. Mike McGinn, 3.9; 5. Jacob Edler, 4.2; 6. (tie) J.D. Struxness, Blake Mindemann and Payden McIntyre, 4.3
SADDLE BRONC RIDING: 1. Chase Brooks, 89.5 points; 2. (tie) Allen Boore and Kolby Wanchuk, 86; 4. Leon Fountain, 81; 5. Kash Deal, 79; 6. Ross Griffin, 77.5; 7. Cash Wilson, 75; 8. Mason Loviolette, 71
TIE-DOWN ROPING: (first round) 1. Marty Yates, 8.1 seconds, $3,101; 2. (tie) Ryan Thibodeaux and Caleb Smidt, 8.2, $2,494 each; 4. Shane Hanchey, 8.3, $1,888; 5. (tie) Hunter Herrin, Riley Pruitt and Quay Howard, 8.5, $1,079 each; 8. (tie) Ryan Jarrett and Blake Ash, 8.7, $135 each. Second round: 1. Tyler Prcin, 7.7 seconds; 2. (tie) Reese Reimer and Cody McCartney, 7.9; 4. (tie) Cody Huber and Tuf Cooper, 8.0; 6. Bryson Sechrist. 8.2; 7. Adam Gray, 8.3; 8. J.W. Kirkham, 8.4
BARREL RACING: (first round) 1. Shelley Morgan, 17.11 seconds; 2. Wenda Johnson, 17.27; 3. Shannon Lillard, 17.42; 4. (tie) Kelly Yates and Stephanie Fryar, 17.47 each; 6. (tie) Ilyssa Riley, Tracy Nowlin and Paige Jones, 17.49 each
BULL RIDING: 1. Toby Collins, 86 points; 2. Lon Danley, 79.5; 3. Wyatt Rogers, 71; no other qualified rides
STEER ROPING RESULTS: (first round) 1. Landon McClaugherty, 11.5 seconds, $1,670; 2. (tie) Corey Ross, Scott Snedecor and Cole Patterson, 11.7, $1,094 each; 5. Mike Chase, 12.6, $518; 6. Cody Doescher, 13.0, $288. (second round) 1. Vin Fisher Jr., 10.2 seconds, $1,670; 2. Landon McClaugherty, 10.4, $1,382; 3. Roger Branch, 10.7, $1,094; 4. Jace Bland, 11.1, $806; 5. Taylor Santos, 11.2, $518; 6. Tuff Hardman, 11.6, $288. (third round) 1. Tuf Cooper, 10.3 seconds, $1,670; 2. Martin Poindexter, 10.5, $1,382; 3. Trevor Brazile, 10.7, $1,094; 4. Trey Wallace, 11.5, $806; 5. Clay Smith, 11.8, $518; 6. Cody Lee, 12.2, $288. (fourth round) 1. Scott Snedecor, 9.6 seconds, $1,670; 2. Jace Bland, 10.1, $1,382; 3. Landon McClaugherty, 10.8, $1,094; 4. Roger Branch, 10.9, $806; 5. Trevor Brazile, 11.1, $518; 6. Mike Chase, 11.2, $288. (average) 1. Clay Smith, 53.0 seconds on four head, $3,339; 2. Cole Patterson, 57.6, $2,764; 3. J. Tom Fisher, 58.5, $2,188; 4. Jess Tierney, 67.0, $1,612; 5. Ora Taton, 67.1, $1,036; 6. Chet Herren, 68.7, $576
Press Release courtesy Guymon Pioneer Days Rodeo
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