Landingham Continues Canadian Hot Streak
by ProRodeo.com | Jun 01, 2014
GRAND PRAIRIE, Alberta – There is a case for making R.C. Landingham’s initials stand for Royal Canadian instead of the more plebian Robert Charles on his birth certificate. Over the last three weeks he has performed as Canadian royalty, at least of the bareback riding sort, with wins in three co-sanctioned PRCA rodeos in two provinces.
The Oregon native finished 16th in the world standings last year, missing the last spot in the Wrangler National Finals Rodeo by $6,086 to one of his traveling partners, Caleb Bennett. This time around he seems determined to employ a strategy to reach Las Vegas from the north. The Great White North. Canada.
Recent wins in Victoria, British Columbia, and Stavely, Alberta, were mere preamble to his latest win, at the May 28 to June 1 Grand Prairie (Alberta) Stompede where he earned $2,989 for his 89-point ride on John Duffy’s Bootlace – equal to the second-best ride by any PRCA bareback rider this season and the second-highest score of his professional career.
“I was told (Bootlace) tended to go straight across the pen,” Landingham said, “but that’s not how it went with me. He stayed close to the chutes and had a lot of kick while moving in a tight circle around to the left. He was a little droppy, but not too bad. He had a great trip.
“I went up to Canada for about eight rodeos last year and only won a little money, here and there. This year it seems like I’ve been drawing good horses wherever I go. I’ve entered four and won three (missing only in Leduc, Alberta). That’s really been the difference between this year and last … it’s a drawing contest more than anything else.”
Even so, Landingham is encouraged to about double the number of Canadian rodeos he enters this year, making a run at both the Canadian Finals Rodeo in Edmonton, Alberta, and the Wrangler NFR.
Coming so close and missing the WNFR last year taught Landingham a couple of lessons: that he should pick and choose the rodeos he entered a little more judiciously and that he shouldn’t sell himself short.
“My goal (last year) was to make the Finals and that’s not the right goal,” Landingham said. “You shouldn’t be going into this figuring on being the 15th guy. You should be thinking about what it takes to be the best.”
The other champions at Evergreen Park were steer wrestler Scott Guenther (3.8 seconds), team ropers Bryce Palmer and Jacob Miner (5.2 seconds), saddle bronc rider Tyler Corrington (86 points on C+ Rodeo’s Kiss’n Kate), tie-down roper Matt Shiozawa (7.6 seconds), bull rider Ty Elliott (87.5 points on Vold Rodeo’s Sling Blade) and barrel racer Britany Diaz (15.687 seconds).
Courtesy of PRCA