Jordan Spears

Jordan Spears – Redding, Calif. ($121,548)
4-time WNFR qualifier

There has been a common denominator in two of Jordan Spears’ Wrangler National Finals Rodeo qualifications.

He is a two-time winner of the Ellensburg Xtreme Bulls Tour Finale held in September in conjunction with the Ellensburg Rodeo. The first time he won it was in 2017, the last time he competed at the NFR. He won it again this year and is headed back to Las Vegas to ride at rodeo’s championships. Combined, the two wins have added $66,856 to his checking account.

This year, $27,470 of his $121,588 in regular-season earnings came from Ellensburg. He got a good win at the San Angelo (Texas) Stock Show Rodeo last winter. He won at Clovis, California in the spring and San Juan Capistrano, California in the fall, and other rodeos along the way. He will start his fourth NFR in ninth place.

Jordan was born and raised in northern California, still calls Redding home, but also has an address in Redmond, Oregon. The bull rider has always ridden horses, loves to hunt and fish and do pretty much anything outdoors. He is a fourth-generation cowboy, and the third to compete in rodeos.

The bull riding part of him has been the most successful, but he also really enjoys team and tie-down roping. In fact, he enters those events at rodeos in the Columbia River Circuit any chance he gets.

He spent a lot of time in the spring gathering cattle and helping with brandings working in the occasional rodeo. The first of June, he was 28th in the world standings. He didn’t crack the top 20 until after the Rancho Mission Viejo Rodeo in San Juan Capistrano. Then he won the Xbulls at Ellensburg and tied for first at the Walla Walla (Washington) Frontier Days. After Labor Day, he was sitting pretty at eighth place. The last six weeks of the season, he won $66,261.

Now he is hoping that momentum carries over to the NFR. He’ll have family and friends in the stands hoping it does as well. Among those fans are NFR team roper and all-around hand Russell Cardoza who has been helping Jordan at that end of the arena.