Cole Reiner leads Gooding Pro Rodeo with 90 points

Cole Reiner deserves it. A 90-point ride. An ice-cold Coors Light and a strong start to the week.

Reiner, who has competed in the National Finals Bareback Rodeo four times, led the field with this ride Wednesday night in his first appearance at the 99th Gooding Pro Rodeo.

The ride on the Game Trail at the Summit Pro Rodeo was Reiner’s highest score since June 2, when he scored 92 points at the Darby Xtreme Bareback.

This is a pleasing result for the cowboy from Wyoming, who is ranked 15th in the world eight weeks before the end of the regular season. The best 15 in each discipline qualify for the NFR in Las Vegas in December.

“This rodeo has brought in a lot of money and will have a great importance in the world rankings at the end of the year,” Reiner told Times-News.

His week continues Friday at the Canby Rodeo in Canby, Oregon.

“It’s going to be a matter of making every dollar count, and I haven’t really gotten into the swing of things yet,” he said. “This is a good way to go. When you’re 91 at the start of the week, the first rodeo of the week, it’s a great way to get momentum going for the rest of the week.”

The raucous crowd at the Gooding Pro Rodeo deemed Reiner’s ride “beer worthy” in keeping with the rodeo’s long-standing tradition. A seating area on the west side of the arena determines whether a ride is “beer worthy” and rewards participants with a beer.

“I’ve been 80 before and I’ve drunk beer,” Reiner said. “I think it’s just a matter of attitude, right? No, being 91 is huge for me.”

Reigning bareback world champion and world number one Keenan Hayes took second place on Wednesday with a ride of 88.5 points.

Texas’ Lane McGehee, ranked 22nd in the world bareback rider rankings, delivered the first Beer Worthy performance of the evening, scoring 84.5 points on Summit Pro Rodeo’s Lost Lakota.

“Man, I’ve been here a couple of years now and I’ve never been beer-worthy, so being beer-worthy today is almost as good as being first,” McGehee told the Times-News.

The evening performances will continue on Thursday at 8 p.m.

Riding without a saddle: 1. Cole Reiner, 91 points on Summit Pro Rodeos Game Trail; 2. Keenan Hayes, 88.5; 3. Cooper Cooke, 86; 4. Lane McGehee, 84.5; 6. Mason Clements, 83; 7. Taylor Broussard, 81.5; 8. Richmond Champion, 81.

Saddle bronco riding: 1. Zac Dallas, 87.5 points on Big John of Summit Pro Rodeo; 2. Wyatt Casper, 86; 3. Noel Johnson, 83.5; 4. Traylin Martin, 81.5; 5. Brady Hill, 81; 6. Leon Fountain, 80.5; 7. Sterling Crawley, 80; 8. (simultaneous) Bailey Small and Ross Griffin, 74.5.

Breakaway rope technology: 1. Addy Hill, 2.1 seconds; 2. Shai Schaefer, 2.7; 3. Brylee Smith, 2.9; 4. Janey Nicholson, 3.0; 5. Dally Mendenhall, 4.4; 6. Sidney Nelson, 11.9; 7. Jetta Bott, 12.0; 8. Marvel Murphy, 12.6; 9. Jessica Brinkerhoff, 12.8; no other qualifying heats.

Bull riding: 1. Stephan Tonita, 85.5 points on Big River by Macza Pro Rodeo; 2. Trevor Reiste, 83.5; 3. Jeff Bertus, 83; 4. Mason Moody, 80; no other qualifying rides.