Hill up on opening night of rodeo

Beau Hill figures he will get to spend about 12 hours in the Flathead Valley this week.

He’s hoping eight of those precious seconds will be time well spent.

The West Glacier cowboy is scheduled to ride tonight during the opening performance of the Northwest Montana Fair PRCA Rodeo at the Flathead County Fairgrounds. Action begins at 7:30 p.m. with bareback riding.

“I’m glad to be home,” Hill said Wednesday in a telephone interview from Bozeman.

“It’s always fun.”

And sometimes nerve-racking.

Hill said after last year’s fair rodeo that he gets more nervous for this one than the PBR Finals because of the pressure to do well in front of family, friends and fans.

Hill returns to the Treasure State after competing in a PBR event in Nashville earlier in the week. He flew into Bozeman late Tuesday and was in Helena on Wednesday for another PBR outing.

“Rode one bull, bucked off one, so not very good,” he said of his showing in Nashville.

Hill split 12th and 13th place with Austin Meier of Kinta, Okla., in Round 2 in Nashville. Meier wound up finishing second overall.

On Friday, Hill flies back to Tennessee for a PBR event in Memphis.

“June through September it’s pretty much every weekend,” he said.

“It’s pretty much throughout the week, too.”

Hill is currently 27th in PBR qualifier standings. He tops the Montana PRCA standings in earnings.

Last weekend at the Western Montana Fair PRCA Rodeo in Missoula he finished second.

“I’ve been staying on them, which is always a good thing,” Hill said of his bull riding success this summer.

Hill finished third at this rodeo a year ago with a 79-point ride on U Turn during the final performance. This year he’s up on the first night on a bull called Black Top.

“I heard a few things,” Hill said of his bull.

“A good bull, but hard to ride, tricky to ride. He was out three times in Helena (PRCA Fair Rodeo) and they never rode him there.”

Which should make for an interesting matchup.

“Sounds like he has some pretty good markings,” Hill said of Black Top.

“If a guy can stay on him, you have a pretty good chance of winning. That’s what you want. I want something I can win on for sure.”

All that remains is for “me to do my part.”

The three-day rodeo will feature three of the top five bareback riders on the PRCA circuit — Ryan Gray of Cheney, Wash., is first, Steven Dent of Mullen, Neb., is second, and Jason Havens of Prineville, Ore., is fifth. They will compete Saturday night, along with the No. 4-ranked steer wrestler Trevor Knowles of Mount Vernon, Ore.

Several area cowboys and cowgirls are scheduled to go.

LeRoy Eash of Fortine and Gerald Eash of Trego will ride bulls tonight. LeRoy Eash will be on Cuttin Corners and Gerald Eash has drawn Shake Down.

Maddie Matelli of Kalispell is out tonight in barrel racing.

On Friday, Matt Triplett of Columbia Falls will compete in bull riding and Tim Bagnell of Polson is scheduled to go in tie-down roping. Triplett will ride Chili Pepper.

J Hanson of Kalispell and Shawn Little of Essex will team rope on Saturday, along with Cy Murer of Bigfork and John Robertson of Polson.

Also up on the final night is Jessica Robertson of Polson and Matea Meilicki of Kalispell in barrel racing.