Silver Riding for Gold at San Antonio Stock Show Rodeo
By Susan Kanode
For the San Antonio Stock Show Rodeo
A 4.3-second run in the steer wrestling earned Tooter Silver the most money of any contestant in semifinals 2 at the San Antonio Stock Show Rodeo. The Quitman, Ark., resident will compete in Saturday night’s championship finals having already won $12,617. – San Antonio Stock Show Rodeo photo by Greg Westfall.
SAN ANTONIO, Texas – Amid the back slaps from fellow competitors and his phone buzzing, Tooter Silver, from Quitman, Ark., took a moment to reflect on what had just happened at the San Antonio Stock Show Rodeo.
The steer wrestler had just stopped the clock in 4.3 seconds to win the second round of semifinals 2 and $4,277. That brought his total earnings from the rodeo up to $12,617 and puts him in first place in the money standings to qualify for Saturday night’s championships.
This was the fifth steer that Silver had run in the AT&T Center and the fifth time he earned money. It was however the first time that he got to make the victory lap around the arena for winning the round. He had second-place finishes in the other four rounds.
His success here has come aboard the 2015 AQHA steer wrestling horse of the year owned by Ty Erickson, from Helena, Mont., that they call Shake Em. Either Erickson or Clayton Hass from Terrell, Texas, were riding horseback on the other side keeping the steer running straight. All three of these men are advancing and will have the opportunity to compete for the championship here.
“I remember coming here 15 years ago and seeing the buckle they give here,” Silver said. “I’ve really wanted to win that buckle. It would mean everything. This is one of the greatest rodeos that ever was.”
This is only the fourth rodeo that Silver has entered for the 2016 season. When he is not on the road, he works in a family construction business with his father-in-law and brother-in-law. His wife, Laura Kennedy, competed in the barrel racing in bracket 4 but did not win enough money to advance to the semifinals.
“My wife and I travel together 90% of the time,” he added. “She really wants to make the NFR (Wrangler National Finals Rodeo). We’ll see what happens. Our family is very supportive and we couldn’t do it without them.”
Barrel racer Morgan Breaux knows all about family support. In 2009, she was in this arena showing a steer that was selected as the grand champion of the San Antonio Stock Show. On Friday night, they again brought steers into the AT&T center to select this year’s champions. One hour later, Breaux from Tomball, Texas, took her horse around three barrels in 14.06 seconds to win the round. She will advance to the finals and will have an opportunity to add a rodeo championship to go with her stock show championship.
The top five in each of the events based on money earned will compete Saturday night for the lion’s share of $1.65 million in cash and prizes. Action in the AT&T Center on Saturday starts at 1 p.m. with a $100,000 Xtreme Bulls competition. The championship finals of the rodeo begin at 7:30.
The following are results from the San Antonio Stock Show Rodeo which features over $1.65 million in cash and prizes.
Semifinals 2, round 2 followed by finals qualifiers (19th performance)
Bareback Riding: 1, Tim O’Connell, Zwingle, Iowa, 85 points on Harry Vold Rodeo’s Angel Face, $4,277. 2, Ty Fast Taypotat, Regina, Saskatchewan, 82.5, $3,208. 3, Mason Clements, Sandy, Utah, 81, $2,139. 4, Teddy Athan, Livermore, Calif., 80.5, $1,069. (finals qualifiers) 1, O’Connell, $10,194. 2, Taypotat, $10,158. 3, Clements, 81, $9,089. 4, Orin Larsen, Inglis, Manitoba, $8,269. 5, Teddy Athan, Livermore, Calif., $3,350.
Steer Wrestling: 1, Tooter Silver, Quitman, Ark., 4.3 seconds, $4,277. 2, Tommy Cook, Waller, Texas, 4.4, $3,208. 3, Tanner Milan, Cochrane, Alberta, 4.8, $2,139. 4, Clayton Moore, Pouce Coupe, British Columbia, $1,069. (finals qualifiers) 1, Silver, $12,617. 2, Clayton Hass, Terrell, Texas, $8,839. 3, Cook, $7,378. 4, Moore, $3,921. 5, Milan, $3,849.
Team Roping: 1, Jake Cooper, Monument, N.M., and Tyler McKnight, Wells, Texas, 4.6 seconds, $4,277. 2, Shane and John Phillipp, Washington, Texas, 4.8, $3,208. 3, Dustin Bird, Cut Bank, Mont., and Russell Cardoza, Terrebonne, Ore., 10.1., $2,139. 4, Rhett Anderson, Anabella, Utah, and Jared Bilby, Bridgeport, Nev., 10.3, $1,069. (finals qualifiers) 1, Philipp and Philipp, $10,906. 2, Cooper and McKnight, $7,699. 3, Bird and Cardoza, $7,271. 4, Kolton Schmidt, Barrhead, Alberta and Tommy Zuniga, Centerville, Texas, $6,095. 5, Anderson and Bilby, $5,631.
Saddle Bronc Riding: 1, Rusty Wright, Milford, Utah, 87 points on Cervi Championship’s Hello Dolly, $4,277. 2, Cody DeMoss, Heflin, La., 82, $3,208. 3, Andy Clarys, Riverton, Wyo., and Sam Kelts, Millarville, Alberta, 81 points and $1,604 each. (finals qualifiers) 1, DeMoss, $10,336. 2, Wright, $9,823. 3, CoBurn Bradshaw, Beaver, Utah, $6,273. 4, Kelts, $5,881. 5, Jacobs Crawley, Boerne, Texas, $5,596.
Tie-Down Roping: 1, (tie) Ace Slone, Cuero, Texas and Clint Nyegaard, Cuero, Texas, 7.4 seconds and $3,743 each. 3, Cory Solomon, Prairie View, Texas, 8.0, $2,139. 4, Jake Pratt, Ellensburg, Wash., 9.8, $1,069. (finals qualifiers) 1, Neygaard, $10,301. 2, Slone, $8,305. 3, Marcos Costa, Childress, Texas, $6,344. 4, Pratt, $5,489. 5, Solomon, $4,420.
Women’s Barrel Race: 1,Morgan Breaux, Tomball, Texas, 14.06 seconds, $4,277. 2, Michele McLeod, Whitesboro, Texas, 14.10, $3,208. 3, Katelyn McLeod, Whitesboro, Texas, 14.14, $2,139. 4, Carmel Wright, Roy, Mont., 14.20, $1,069. (finals qualifiers) 1, Wright, $9,908. 2, Michele McLeod, $9,053. 3, Kelly Schnaufer, Pueblo, Colo., $7,770. 4, Breaux, $7,699. 5, Jackie Ganter, Abilene, Texas, 5,631.
Bull Riding: no qualified rides. (finals qualifiers) 1, Tim Bingham, Honeyville, Utah, $5,988. 2, Joe Frost, Randlett, Utah, $5,703. 3, Bobby Welsh, Gillette, Wyo., $5,560. 4, Parker Breding, Edgar, Mont., $4,919. 5, Cody Teel, Kountze, Texas, $3,992.
Courtesy of PRCA