Kaycee’s Cole Reiner wrapped up an impressive National Finals Rodeo on Saturday with a sixth-place finish in the 10th and final round of bareback bronc riding at Globe Life Field in Arlington, Texas.
The 22-year-old former Sheridan College and Casper College cowboy rode Pickett Rodeo’s New Scarlet for 85.5 points. Competing in his first NFR, Reiner won two rounds and finished in the money in six rounds overall to finish sixth in the average.
Reiner entered the NFR 12th in the world standings having won $45,043 for the season. Ten days later, he had vaulted to fifth in the standings with more than $154,000.
Kaycee Feild won the round with a 91 to finish second in the average and win his fifth world championship. Feild edged out Tim O’Connell by less than $7,000 to win his first world title since 2014. Feild finished the season with more than $277,000 while O’Connell was just short of $271,000.
Hillsdale saddle bronc rider Brody Cress posted his best score of the rodeo — 90.5 points on Sutton Rodeo’s South Point — and finished third in the world standings with nearly $174,000. Former world champ Zeke Thurston (Sheridan College) tied for fourth in the round to finish fourth in the average and ninth in the world standings with more than $141,000.
Brothers Ryder and Stetson Wright tied for first place in saddle bronc with 91-point rides. Ryder, the only bronc rider to cover all 10 head, not only won the average but won his second world title.
Stetson did his brother one better. One night after winning his second consecutive all-around title, the 21-year-old also claimed his first bull riding world championship. He is the first cowboy since Ty Murray in 1998 to win world titles in both the all-around and a roughstock event in the same year.
Former Central Wyoming College steer wrestler Stetson Jorgensen entered Saturday with a good chance to win his first world title, but fell just short. Leading the average after nine rounds, Jorgensen had a 5,0-second run in Round 10, which opened the door for Jacob Edler. The NFR rookie had a time of 3.9 seconds to give him the average title with a 10-run time of 43.4 seconds. Jorgensen finished second with a 43.7.
Edler’s average title gave him enough to also overtake Jorgensen in the world standings. Edler finished the season with more than $200,000 for the season while Jorgensen pocketed almost $199,000. Surprisingly, the $1,680 difference between the first- and second-place finishers was not the smallest of the rodeo.
In team roping, Colby Lovell finished just $453 ahead of Luke Brown to win the heading standings. And Shad Mayfield held on to the top spot in tie-down roping, earning just $231 more than Marty Yates on the season. Paul Eaves, Lovell’s team roping partner, won the heeling world title.
Hailey Kinsel completed her assault in barrel racing, finishing second in the round on her way to winning both the average title and her third consecutive world championship.