California Bulldogger Tucker Allen Breaks Through with Win in Sikeston
Over three-plus years on the ProRodeo trail, steer wrestler Tucker Allen hadn’t experienced many breakthrough moments.
That all changed Saturday night at the Sikeston (Mo.) Jaycee Bootheel Rodeo.
The 22-year-old from Oak View, Calif., took down his second-round steer in 4.4 seconds, giving him a split of the two-head average title with Laramie Warren with a total time of 8.3 seconds. The $4,339 earned will certainly give him a big bump after entering the famed rodeo ranked 46th in the most-recent PRCA|RAM World Standings. He’ll also earn key points in the ProRodeo Tour presented by Pendleton Whisky.
“This is one of my biggest wins, and this is a rodeo everyone hears about all across the country,” Allen said. “I had no luck here last year, but it’s cool to do well here, especially how far from home I am. I know my family is happy to see it.”
Aside from his family in Southern California, about 90 minutes northwest of Los Angeles, there is Allen’s other family, consisting of traveling partners Justin Shaffer, world standings leader Jacob Talley and none other than five-time world champion and certain ProRodeo Hall of Famer Luke Branquinho.
“I wouldn’t be here without the crew I have around me,” Allen said. “We all push each other to get better, and Luke has taught me everything I know about rodeo, in and out of the arena. I grew up about two hours away from him. He’s a winner, and he has proven that, and his attitude toward winning has helped me a lot.”
Aboard Sam Dixon’s bulldogging horse Hippo, Allen took top honors in the first round with a 3.9-second run during the rodeo’s opening performance on Aug. 11, then didn’t try to do too much with his second-round steer knowing what was at stake.
“I knew I had a really good one, and I didn’t want to press too hard and get that barrier,” Allen said. “I just saw what I wanted and made sure I just laid him down and not try to do anything out of the ordinary.”
No matter how high Allen rises in the standings after his Sikeston windfall, he plans on keeping the same approach for the final six weeks of the ProRodeo regular season.
“Honestly, everyone wants to make the (Wrangler National) Finals, and if it works out that way, I’d love that,” Allen said. “But I’m not going to push myself and make myself start to make mistakes because I’m pushing too hard. I just have to try to make the best run I can on every steer I drop and let everything else take care of itself.”
Other winners at the $177,320 rodeo were all-around cowboy Zack Jongbloed ($5,889 in steer wrestling and tie-down roping); bareback rider Kaycee Field (88.5 points on Cervi Championship Rodeo’s Organic Outlaw); team ropers Chad Masters/Joseph Harrison (11.9 seconds on two head); saddle bronc rider Rusty Wright (88 points on Cervi Championship Rodeo’s Ricky Bobby); tie-down roper Blake Ash (19.6 seconds on two head); barrel racer Molly Otto (16.16 seconds); and bull rider Dustin Bouquet (88.5 points on Cervi Championship Rodeo’s Anarchy).
Courtesy of PRCA