The 2024 edition of the SMS Equipment Pro Rodeo Tour wrapped up on the Labour Day weekend with the final Tour event and the Tour Finale taking place at the IPE and Stampede in Armstrong, B.C. And some familiar names are among those who took home the 2024 Championship Spurs.
Reigning Canadian Champions Scott Guenthner and Lynette Brodoway were repeat SMS Equipment Pro Tour winners as was Canadian Champion Heeler, Jeremy Buhler. All are hoping to parlay their success into Canadian titles at the upcoming CFR October 2-5 at Rogers Place in Edmonton, AB
Four time Canadian Champion, Guenthner was quick to point out the impact of the SMS Equipment Pro Tour on the rodeo athlete’s season.
“The tour and the Tour Finals are huge here in Canada,” Guenthner stated. “It’s so important for getting to the CFR and even the NFR. And it’s really cool to have a championship in Canada at that time of year. I drove from Filer, Idaho to get to Armstrong for that last Tour rodeo and the Finals. It means a lot.”
Making trips to the SMS Equipment Pro Tour Champion’s circle were:
Logan Bird (Tie Down Roping)
Lucas Macza (Saddle Bronc Riding)
Jordan Hansen (Bull Riding)
Dantan Bertsch (Bareback Riding)
Trey Gallais (Team Roping Header)
Jeremy Buhler (Team Roping Heeler)
Macy Auclair (Breakaway Roping)
Scott Guenthner (Steer Wrestling)
Lynette Brodoway (Barrel Racing)
Overall, the final weekend of the 2024 Canadian professional rodeo season certainly lived up to the hype. For some there was joy as Canadian Finals Rodeo dreams were realized. For others there was bitter disappointment as their efforts to secure a roster spot for CFR 50 fell (in some cases) mere dollars short. And in virtually every event there was high drama in British Columbia as CPRA athletes gave their all en route to the regular season’s finish line.
Nowhere was that drama more evident than in the saddle bronc riding where, heading into the weekend, six men were vying for the final four qualifying berths. And when it was over the unofficial results showed that less than one thousand dollars separated those six cowboys. What changed however was the order of the six.
Four-time CFR saddle bronc qualifier Kole Ashbacher was the man with the biggest mountain to climb as he sat in 14thplace as he and the others made the journey west for the IPE and Stampede and SMS Equipment Pro Tour Finals in Armstrong, the Nicola Valley Pro Rodeo in Merritt and the Valley West Stampede in Langley.
Things didn’t start well for the tall 28 year-old when he was blanked at the Armstrong Rodeo and Tour finale. That meant Ashbacher would need to be at or near the top of the leaderboard at both Merritt and Langley.
Job one—Merritt. The Arrowwood, AB cowboy drew a horse he’d had a week before at Nanton – Macza Pro Rodeo’s Pearl Harbour. Ashbacher had been 84 points. History repeated itself and Ashbacher was once again 84 for the win. The first-place cheque of $1671 would take a bite out of the almost $4000 he needed to challenge for a CFR berth.
Job two – the tougher one. “I wasn’t super-pumped when I saw the draw for Langley. (Duane Kesler Championship Rodeo’s Perlich’s Killin Time). I don’t think anybody has actually gotten a score on that horse this year. So I knew I had my work cut out for me.” the defending Langley bronc riding Champion said. “I knew I was a long shot and that I’d have to do something crazy to make it. To be honest I didn’t think I had much of a shot after I didn’t place in Armstrong and didn’t make it into the Tour Finals.”
Ashbacher climbed down on the horse and the ride started. “That horse really bucked. He’s pretty tricky; there’s a lot going on and I never did feel really comfortable. It was all I could do to be there for the next jump. I felt like I was just surviving.”
The ‘survival’ came with a major reward – 88 points and a $4888 win that meant Kole Ashbacher would be packing his bags for an October 2-5 trip to Edmonton. But there another chapter to the story, one with a distinctly human side. The Ashbacher family had suffered the loss of Kole’s mom Judy one month to the day before the ride in Langley.
“What made this special was being able to push through with everything that’s happened to our family this year. I know Mom would have wanted this and I was trying my heart out for her. Dad (stock contractor Duane) told me I’d have somebody up there looking after my draws for a while but when I saw this draw I thought she was maybe being a little sneaky.”
With Ashbacher’s huge move, and a strong weekend for Wyatt Casper, the final (unofficial) standings look to be #9 Wyatt Casper; #10 Kole Ashbacher; #11 Sawyer Eirikson; #12 Kolby Wanchuk; and on the outside #13 Kyle Wanchuk (less than $50 behind his brother) and #14 Dawson Dahm.
But the drama didn’t end with the bronc riding. In the tie-down roping, both Popescul brothers – who had been hovering around those critical last couple of CFR spots for most of the year – were knocked out of the race by former season leader Jason Smith who was in 14th place in the standings (behind Jesse in 12th, Tyler in 13th) prior to the BC fireworks. Smith put up a fourth place 7.9 second run at Armstrong for $2261 and added an eighth place $228 cheque to punch his ticket to the CFR.
For barrel racer Jackie Ganter, it was a combination of two modest cheques at Armstrong and Langley and a third place $1500 payout in the SMS Tour Finals that earned the Texan and three time CFR qualifier the coveted 12th place just ahead of Blake Molle, Kirby Pentilla and former Champion Justine Elliott.
The bull riding rankings saw some movement as well. Lacombe, AB’s Ashton Sahli, by virtue of placings at the Pro Tour Finals (86 pts for 2nd and $2250) and Merritt (6th, $340.75) managed to overtake Foremost, AB cowboy William Barrows to secure the final spot in his event. Lonnie West of Cadogan, AB, who came off injury in late spring, made a significant run at a CFR berth. The six time CFR qualifier won over $13,000 between mid August and the end of the September long weekend – falling only a few hundred dollars short of the top 12 bull riding roster.
And Curtis Cassidy will make his 23rd CFR appearance in the steer wrestling as last week’s big move coupled with a 5/6 split at Merritt for $962 means the superstar veteran will return to the CFR after being on the outside looking in 2023. Olds, Alberta’s Matt Richardson managed a fifth place 5.0 second run at Armstrong that was enough to get the two-time qualifier’s name in the CFR program. Richardson’s good fortune came at the expense of Oregon bulldogger Jesse Brown whose quest for a 2024 CFR spot came up just short.
For complete unofficial results, see rodeocanada.com Look for updated official Canadian standings over the next few days.
The 2025 Pro Rodeo Canada season kicks off over the month of September with four events: Coronation Pro Rodeo Sept 6-7, Medicine Lodge Fall Round-Up Sept 7, and Oldstoberfest and Hanna Indoor Pro Rodeo Sept 13-14. Coronation marks the final stop in the Precision Rodeo Tour and all four events count toward the 2024 Maple Leaf Circuit Finals as well.
PHOTO: Scott Guenthner, SMS Equipment Pro Tour Finals photo by Covy Moore