Rodeo stocked with talent

Rodeo fans are in for a treat this weekend, with a stacked card featuring world ranked competitors in every event at the Northwest Montana Fair Rodeo.

A total of 65 competitors enter the three-day event ranked in the top 50 of the PRCA world standings. Sprinkle in high-quality stock and a handful of local cowboys and cowgirls and fans should expect to get back the price of admission and some all weekend.

The rodeo opens at 7:30 p.m. tonight with a loaded field, including a pair of local riders.

Fortine’s LeRoy Eash is scheduled to compete in saddle bronc and Kalispell’s Tammy Carpenter in barrel racing on the opening day. They’re joined by fellow Montanans Jessy Davis of Power, currently ranked 15th in the bareback world standings and Helena’s Ty Erickson and Timmy Soaring, who are 11th and 26th, respectively, in steer wrestling.

Ryan Watkins, the ninth ranked tie down roper amd Carlee Pierce, the eighth ranked barrel racer, are also on the schedule for the opening night.

Steer wrestling will have five of the top 26 cowboys in the world competing just today, with even more in store for Friday. The world’s top steer wrestler this season, Trevor Knowles, will compete on the second day of competition, joined by fellow top 12 bulldoggers Dakota Eldridge and Blake Knowles.

Friday’s rodeo is set up to be one of the best in recent memory, with 28 world-ranked riders on the program, including 12 ranked in the top 10 of their events.

In addition to the steer wrestlers, second-ranked tie-down roper Matt Shiozawa, seventh-ranked saddle bronc rider Jacobs Crawley, three teams of top-10 ropers and fifth-, ninth-and 10th-ranked barrel racers Britany Diaz, Kassidy Dennison and Christine Laughlin are set to compete on Friday.

West Glacier bull rider Beau Hill, currently ranked 19th in the world, will cap the night.

Saturday’s competition also features ranked competitors in every event, led by saddle bronc rider Cort Scheer, fourth in the world, and bareback rider Caleb Bennett, seventh.