Seasoned bareback rider Ty Taypotat entered the weekend with $191 in earnings. But a couple of big wins at Sundre Pro Rodeo and Wainwright Stampede, both SMS Equipment Pro Tour rodeos, changed things dramatically for the 2022 Canadian Champion.
He comes out of the weekend solidly in the top twelve in Canada and well-positioned for a 13th CFR qualification come season’s end. The Nanton, Alberta hand spurred out a terrific 86.5 points on Calgary Stampede’s B-65 Born Fearless for the first place cheque of $3158.93 at the Sundre Pro Rodeo and followed it up with an 86 pointer on John Duffy Rodeo’s 55 Reservation to split the top prize at the Wainwright Stampede with Richmond Champion and collect another $3294.
The 14 year pro is very clear that he’s taking a different approach to the season.
“All last year I was injured and struggled pretty much the whole season. I wasn’t having any fun and I needed to take some time off. After CFR I took six and a half months off. I needed to heal the body up. I’m not 18 years-old anymore,” Taypotat acknowledged.
The Saskatchewan-born cowboy added that managing the wear and tear of riding bareback horses as he gets a little older is going to be important as the season progresses. “I’ll be picking and choosing a little more and trying to get on the ones that are known to be good and honest in the past.”
That was exactly the case with the horses he drew this weekend.
“I was pretty excited to see the horses I’d drawn at Sundre and Wainwright and to be honest I was disappointed that High River had to re-schedule because I’d planned to win that one too,” Taypotat chuckled.
And most importantly the 33 year-old (he’ll be 34 on Christmas Day) feels great after his two winning rides. “Yeah, I feel really good. I’ve been working out a tremendous amount. I’ve lost about twenty pounds, been going hard in the gym and riding my spur board lots and even doing Pilates with my wife for the flexilbility.”
The new regime is definitely working as his two rides this weekend showed. And a healthy, motivated Ty Taypotat spells trouble for the bareback riding community. Because when the former champion is right, there aren’t a whole lot of guys who ride better. The timing for his resurgence couldn’t be better as the rodeo community gets ready for Cowboy Christmas and the busy early July schedule upcoming.
Ty Taypotat wasn’t the only veteran competitor lighting it up on the weekend.
Four time CFR barrel racer Suzanne DePaoli posted a 17.33 second run at Wainwright for a share of top spot (with Texan Grace Gardiner). DePaoli’s $5465 cheque, when added to a second place finish at Sundre (17.63 seconds, $5347) netted the Longview, Alberta cowgirl over $10,800 and will see her move up several spots into the top five (unofficially) in the Canadian standings.
On a weekend where contestants and committees battled significant rain, cold and wind at times, DePaoli recognized that her ten year old gelding Swing On Bye (aka Redtag) ran in conditions that suited him well. “Redtag likes deeper heavier ground and that’s what we drew this weekend, so it worked out great.”
The ‘Redtag special’ 15.2 hand high gelding, bred in Manitoba, is special in more ways than one. DePaoli recounts a bit of his history.
“I bought Redtag two years ago this weekend, from Baylee (Graham) Haeberle. He’s by Little Western Swing, a Dash Ta Fame-Dash For Perks stallion and out of a Crimewave mare. The Graham family actually bought Redtag off Craig’s List,” DePaoli explained. “ Baylee brought him along as a young horse and went to a few amateur rodeos on him.”
DePaoli was excited about Redtag from the outset.
“I always knew he had it. He’s got this perfect pattern. But he’s very stressy and I have to manage that. I could see (his ability) right from the beginning. I’d only owned him two weeks and he placed at Teepee Creek.”
The Longview barrel racer pecked away a little bit that first year, earned some cheques then gave the gelding some time off last year to recover from an injury. A long-time advocate of helping her horses achieve their best, DePaoli also studied up on what her gelding needed to stay on top of his game, including breathing and ulcer management (and pasture time at home).
Fast forward to 2025. “Red didn’t get to see these rodeos last year; he came back in the late fall. He was running decent, but he wasn’t in really good shape. He’s 10 this year and he’s just getting into his prime.”
With 2008 her last Finals appearance, a return trip to the CFR is definitely on DePaoli’s radar, and she’s excited about her season so far. “I still really enjoy barrel racing. I’d love to get back to the CFR once more in my career… and I would love to go to Rogers Place.”
Additional weekend highlights included Dawson Hay’s dual wins. The Wildwood, Alberta bronc rider marked 89.5 points on Vold Rodeo’s 32 Alberta Moon in Wainwright and posted an 85.5 ride on Calgary Stampede’s E-81 Easy Margie at Sundre for a share of first (with Dylan Young). The $7200 cash total should see Hay move up in the Canadian standings and add to his World earnings where he sits in second place.
Tie-down roper Kyle Lucas increased his Canadian and World earnings as well by “forty precenting” his event at the Wainwright Stampede. The Carstairs, Alberta cowboy won both goes and the average (17.5 seconds on two runs) for a total of $7371. Lucas is currently ninth in the World standings.
For complete weekend results, upcoming in-progress results and current standings, go to rodeocanada.com
Next up on the CPRA event schedule is a favourite weekend in rodeo circles across North America as Cowboy Christmas gets underway. Canadian rodeos include:
– Midnight Days Pro Rodeo (Fort Macleod, AB) June 24-26
– Ponoka Stampede June 25-July 1
– Williams Lake Stampede June 27-30
– Airdrie Pro Rodeo June 29-July 1
– Raymond Stampede June 30-July 1