ProRodeo 20 Years Ago: Montgomery 2000
Twenty years ago, the Southeastern Livestock Exposition Rodeo in Montgomery, Ala., featured a mix of seasoned veterans and rising stars – many of whom are still familiar names two decades later.
In 2000, Herbert Theriot won the all-around and steer wresting titles in Montgomery and split the win in tie-down roping. At the time, the 33-year-old Mississippi cowboy was already a household name in ProRodeo after winning the 1994 world championship in tie-down roping.
Click here for the original ProRodeo Sports News Article from April 5, 2000
Theriot made 12 trips to the Wrangler National Finals Rodeo – 10 times in tie-down roping (1988-90, 1993-94, 1996, 1998-2001) and twice in steer wrestling (1996 and 1998) – which helped him rake in $1.46 million in prize money from 1986-2007.
Theriot wasn’t the only Montgomery rodeo winner that year to go on to compete at the Wrangler NFR.
James Boudreaux won the Montgomery bareback riding in 2000 with an 81-point ride on Harper and Morgan’s Blow Out. Boudreaux was a six-time qualifier for the Wrangler NFR (1996, 1998, 2000-03). The Texas cowboy earned $656,894 from 1995-2008.
Tim Pharr shared the tie-down roping win in Montgomery with Theriot with a time of 16.9 seconds on two head. Pharr’s ProRodeo career has been ongoing since 1998. The Georgia cowboy has won $656,412, thanks in part to winning the Montgomery rodeo four times (2000, 2014, 2016 and 2019).
Tami Fontenot won the barrel racing with a 16.9-second run and went on to compete at the Wrangler NFR in 2001 and 2002.
Bull rider Chad Castillo won the bull riding with an 87-point ride on Harper and Morgan’s High Time. One year after winning the Montgomery rodeo, Castillo won the RAM Texas Circuit Finals Rodeo in bull riding. Castillo competed from 1998-2006 and won $146,344.
Unfortunately, the 2020 Montgomery rodeo that was originally set for March 19-21 has been postponed due to the coronavirus pandemic. Updates on this rodeo’s status and others can be found on ProRodeo.com.
Courtesy of PRCA