Spencer Turner

I decided to stay close to the house and enter a rodeo in Warsaw, MO which was put on by C-R Mckellips Rodeo Company. I had the day off work so I was relaxing and doing stuff around home and wasn’t too worried about time because Warsaw is less than an hour from the house. Well I kind of lost track of time (and to be honest I overslept my nap). I hurried down there and got there about 15 minutes before they bucked broncs. I had got a phone call from a buddy on my way down there and he had told me what horse I had drawn. It was branded 502.  I made a phone call to another buddy and found out that the horse was a pretty common horse but fun to ride. So I knew what to expect and didn’t have to ask guys after I got there.

Like I said I pulled in 15 minutes or so before they bucked broncs. I paid my entry fees and got ready. I found my horse and saddled him. He was a little black horse who stood really well in the chute. It came my turn and I crawled down on him. He became a little nervous when I sat on him and moved from side to side. I put my feet in the stirrups and got ready to nod. This is when I pulled a rookie mistake. I was getting ready to nod and I was putting my rein hand out in front of me and I kind of pulled on the rein which caused the horse to rear up and try to jump out of the front of the chute. I stayed on him while he did this and thrashed around some more. When he calmed down I nodded and he came out of the chute pretty hard.  He was pretty quick and kicking hard. He angled across the arena. I felt really good on him and pretty aggressive. He came to the fence and made a tight circle to the left and the buzzer went off. I felt really good about the ride. The rein measurement was good, my saddle felt good and I was happy with the ride. I rode good enough and the horse bucked well enough for me to win the rodeo, which was a Blessing from the Lord!

Until Next time God Bless and be careful on the rodeo road!

Hello Rodeo Fans!

Date, Rodeo Name and Location
Last Friday I went to a rodeo in Ottawa, KS

Which horse did you draw?
I drew a horse branded H9

Stock Contractor?
The contractor in Ottawa was Grand River Rodeo Company out of Grand River, Iowa

How was your horse in the chute?
Well I knew he wasn’t going to be good, after guys asked me what I had drawn, they all made sure to tell me to tie him in…
So I took their advice and tied him in the chute, he didn’t give me too much trouble, but he did test the rope a little.

Did you learn about the horse before hand?
I have seen the horse over the years but have never been on him nor have I really paid attention to him a lot. It’s been awhile since I have been to any Grand River Rodeos. I made some calls to a buddy who I know has been on him, and he told me what to expect and what kind of rein to give him. He said that he has a couple of trips, one is outstanding and bucks good around a big circle to the right, the other isn’t good and is around to the left.

Tell us about your ride, did you feel strong, did the horse perform the way you thought it would?
The horse did rear out of the chute and kind of hit me on the gate post, then he went back into the chute and bucked a couple times, then ran me down the gate. After all that, he bucked OK, for a couple jumps, until he came to the fence. I felt good on him, considering I haven’t been on a bronc in awhile. After he came off the fence he wasn’t that good. He covered a lot of ground and was long and fast and didn’t buck, it was more of a run buck. I did spur him pretty good though, considering he wasn’t bucking that good. Before the rodeo I was going through my gear (which I haven’t done since I rode last, a couple months ago) and I realized that I hadn’t repaired my spur since the last bronc ride where the horse threw a fit in the box and smashed my boot and bent my spur into a pretzel.  I made some calls to guys I knew where at the rodeo who where Farriers, who I might have their horseshoeing tools, like hammer and anvil, which I could fix my spur. I had no luck with that. While I was making calls, my buddy Roy reached into his gear bag and said “well I have these new ones if you want to try them”. They were a different style bronc spur with a different shape. A friend of ours makes them, and a couple of the top PRCA cowboys have been riding them. Roy has had them for a couple weeks but hadn’t rode them yet cause he wasn’t sure about them. So I didn’t have much choice and I figured, why not. They worked well and I really liked how they felt. When I got home I ordered a pair. They felt good even though the horse wasn’t bucking all that well. He didn’t buck well and I did ask for a reride, but the judges declined. It was extremely hot all day there and the heat index was around 112 degrees, and there wasn’t much wind where we were to cool things down that evening. None of the horses really bucked liked they usually do. Sometimes I don’t understand why things happen but I know that the Lord has plans for everything. I wanted a reride and was declined but I still placed 3rd and won some money. So it all worked out in the end.

Comments about the rodeo? Committee, hospitality, etc.
I have been to this rodeo several times over the years and have done good there. The committee is nice and have provided food for us, and in years past they have given out Jackets or Buckles to the winners.

Hello Rodeo Fans!

On June 4th I went to the IPRA rodeo in Altenburg, MO. I have been there a couple of years ago, the committee is really great and have a good hospitality tent for the contestants, the added money is good, and they hand out custom wooden clocks to the event winners which are really nice and unique awards.

I didn’t know what horse I had until I got to the rodeo, but I know that Mark Johnson and Universal Rodeos have good horses and anyone can win on just about any horse or bull they have.  I drew up on a horse branded 395 and called Velvet Revolver. None of the cowboys at this rodeo had ever seen this horse buck. I ask Mark and his hired hands and they said that she was a sister to Captain Buck (a bareback horse that has been to Wrangler National Finals Rodeo in Vegas and the International Finals Rodeo in Oklahoma City, and a horse that if the bareback rider rides he usually places or wins). I was excited to hear that. They said she bucks pretty good and takes a little more than average rein.

When they loaded her in the chutes she stood fine while I saddled her, then something got to her and she came unglued in the chute and threw a fit. We got her calmed down and I climbed on. She was leaning on me pretty good but I just kept trying to move her around so I could get my stirrups on my feet.  Right before I nodded my head she laid down in the chute. I stayed on her for a little bit hoping she would stand up. I did this for two reasons.. one, I didn’t want to get out and start all over and if she stood up I would be ready and call for the gate.. and the second reason I didn’t get off of her was because she had my foot pinned underneath her and leg pinned against the chute. After a bit of trying to get her to stand up, I gave in and climbed up and off of her, but in this process I had to pull my leg out and my boot stayed pinned underneath her. We got her standing and rolled her up a chute, (all the while I just had on one boot). After we got her rolled up a chute and got her tied in, I went after my boot. She had stepped all over it and had bent my spur. I didnt have time to fix it and just went on with my business. They let her stand for a while and they bucked the rest of the horses and that gave me time to repull my saddle and check thing out after the fit she threw. When it was my turn again, I climbed in and got my stirrups, she was trying to lean again but with the help of fellow cowboys I got her standing straight and called for the gate, She came out real wild and crashed in to the gate. She took a stride or so then blew up and jumped straight in the air real high, kinda western looking. She then kept jumping high like that all the way across the arena. I was spurring her pretty good with the left foot but the right one was having a little problem. When she had that first big blow up jump, It was what we call an empty jump, and that jump got my right foot a little loose in the stirrup, so the whole ride my right stirrup was at the very, very end of my foot (and if a stirrup comes off the foot it is a disqualification). I was still spurring with my right foot but not as good as with m left. The horse was really flinging her head around too. The ride was real western and a crowd pleaser. The horse was getting real high in the air and flinging her head around but wasn’t really kicking out, the judges saw this and it reflected in my score along with my stirrup almost coming off so I only scored a 73. I didn’t win anything, but was pleased with the way I rode for the most part and I had a lot of fun, and as I like to say about things and just life in general..”if you aren’t having fun it’s your own fault”. I Hung out with my buddies at the rodeo until it was over but as soon as it was over I jumped in the jeep and headed north. I had a weekend planned at Church Camp of fishing, camping, family time and Worshiping!  Until Next time God Bless and be careful on the rodeo road!

Hello Rodeo Fans!

I’m a little behind on the updates, and I apologize for that. Friday May 28th I went to the PRCA Rodeo in Braham, Minnesota. I have been here before and I did good and won some money and really enjoyed the crowd and rodeo, so I was looking forward to heading up there. I had drew up on a horse branded 4E3 and named Edmenton from Barnes Rodeo Company from Cherokee, Iowa.

I made a few calls and found out the scoop on the horse. Wade Sundell told me that he had been on him before a couple times and hadn’t ever got him rode and he didn’t think that he had ever been rode. He said that he took a ton of rein, he said that he took the rein at the cantle of the saddle and it worked fine the last time he got on him, he did get bucked off right at the buzzer but the rein felt good, the horse was just extremely bucky and kept getting stronger as the ride went. In case you don’t know, that is a LOT of rein to give a horse from the start. Most horses take it closer to the swells of the saddle or a little past. Wade mentioned that a lot of cowboys call him and ask him about that horse, and he always tells them that they should take the rein at the cantle. Nobody that has called him has ever taken his advice, and everybody he has talked to has bucked off. That is a lot of rein to give a horse, but the horse must really put his head on the ground and almost in between his front legs, so I thought that I would go ahead and take the rein at the cantle. What’s the worst that could happen, I get bucked off like everybody else haha.

At the rodeo I talked to a few guys about the horse and everybody pretty much agreed that he really really bucked. I did find out that one guy had ridden him, it wasn’t pretty and the guy didn’t spur, and just kinda hung on for 8 seconds. He was kind of a bigger horse for the pen of horses that was there. He acted up a little bit in the chutes so I had Bo Casper tie him in for me. The whole time i was saddling him and waiting my turn, I kept thinking about the rein measurement I was going to give him. I wanted to listen to Wade, but then again I knew that taking the rein at the cantle was a big risk and nobody else seemed to think that I should do it. Well, it is now my turn to go, so I made the executive decision to take the rein at the cantle and take my chances.

As I climb in the chute and put my feet in the stirrups, the horse started leaning on me. I moved him around until he stood up and I could nod my head. When I called for the gate and it flew open the horse put his head on the ground and proceeded to come out of the chute backwards. He got bound up in the front of the chute and was trying to buck but had nowhere to go, he turned out backwards and hit his head on the back of the chute and then hipped himself on the way out, causing him to almost fall down. There really wasn’t much I could do but just hang on while he was doing all of that stuff. After he gathered himself up and started bucking, I then realized that I was pretty much in the wrong place to start a good ride. He was extremely bucky and didn’t give me a chance to catch up. He was kicking way over his head and way past vertical. He was kicking so hard and high that he was almost coming completely over frontwards. Like I said I was in the wrong place at the wrong time and was trying to play catch up, and when a horse bucks that hard it makes it difficult to do so. I tried for a few jumps but was just not working. He bucked me off pretty good like. The jump that I got bucked off on, He bucked so hard and high and almost came over frontwards that he had to walk on his front feet to keep from flipping over frontwards I got bucked off so hard, and when I did, My foot hung in the stirrup for just a split second but long enough to jerk me face down in the dirt. The first thing to hit was my nose and then the rest of my face, then my legs and bottom felt like the hit me in the back of the head (of course they didn’t but that’s what it felt like, it felt like I got folded up backwards and face first haha). When I got up, I couldn’t help but laugh cause I had a face full of dirt and my hat was bent straight up in the front. My nose is now a little crooked. I hit hard, I haven’t hit the ground that hard in over a decade. If rodeo was like golf, then I would have had to replace the divot I left with my face haha.

I didn’t really get a fair start on that horse and wish things would have started better but that’s rodeo. Next time I think that I would still give him that much rein. I didn’t really get to see how the rein felt but by the way he was bucking I think that it would be fine.  I was a little sore and beat up but I can laugh at it because I know that everything will work out because The Lord has plans for everything and He is in control. And besides its hard not to laugh at a guy with a face full of dirt and a hat bent completely straight up in the front, even if it is me .

On Saturday the May 15th, I was entered in the PRCA rodeo in Franklin, Tennessee. This is always a great rodeo, and I have attended it for years. The contractor is J-J rodeo company. The Horse I drew was, 145 Faded Charm. I knew this horse because I had ridden it last year at Franklin, and made and awesome ride but I missed my mark out. I was excited to have the horse again. Last year it bucked really well and was pretty bucky.

So I was feeling pretty good about my draw, and waiting to see how it turned out this year. They loaded the horses in the chute, and most of them were standing pretty good in the chutes, including mine. Faded Charm stood pretty well for the most part while I got my saddle on and pulled tight. I got on and knodded, and we came out of the chutes in a hurry and a little high in the air. I made sure and made a good mark out this time. The horse was bucking good and I started the ride OK. The horse went straight down the pen and was kicking and bucking good but was changing leads. Towards the middle of the ride I kinda got a little bit forward with my upper body, then I got to bicycling my feet, which means I would spur with my left then my right, kinda like when your riding a bike. After the ride, I didnt feel totally great about how I rode but was satisfied with how things turned out since I havent been on a lot of horses so far this year. I was 73 points and that wasnt good enough to place at the rodeo. Although I did recieve a bonus cause it was Tough Enough To Wear Pink night and they give a bonus to the contestant who has highest score or fastest of run of the night in each event who is wearing a pink shirt for Breast Cancer Awareness. There was and 80 point ride the night I was there but he wasnt wearing a pink shirt and I had the second highest score that night so I got the bonus. Which was nice cause it was enough to pay for all the fuel and entry fees plus had a little extra. That was a real blessing. 
   

Keep checking back to On The Rodeo Road for updates from upcoming shows. Thanks and God Bless

Catch up with Part One

Spencer Turner, Winning Ride at IFR 2009

As soon as I was done riding in Marion, I jumped in the Jeep and headed for Stilwell, OK. It was after 3:30 and Stilwell started at 8:00 and was about 320 miles away. As I mentioned before a few miles before I got to Marion, my transmission started acting a little funny. I was hoping that whatever was wrong would hold out until after I got to Stilwell. Well my hopes didnt last long when, after about 15 miles on the highway my transmission started slipping and then it started jerking the Jeep. It would drive okay for few miles then it would act up again. I just kept on trucking cause I knew it was goin to be close to get to Stilwell before the bronc riding started and either I was gonna make it or I was gonna break down trying. There wasnt much I could do. After an hour of the transmission acting up, I needed fuel and while I was getting off the highway I found an auto parts store. I ran in and got some transmission fix, slip stop additive, I added this hoping it would be a quick, non-expensive fix. My Jeep Grand Cherokee has over 320,000 miles on it, and I have have had it for 4 and half years and put over 200,000 miles on it and havent had any real major problems. I knew this day was coming but didnt really want it to happen now. The additive I put in didnt really help (even though the bottle said immediate results). I continued to drive on to Stilwell the next several hours with the transmission acting up.

I called a buddy that was already at the rodeo to see what horse I had drawn and to see if the rodeo was running on time. He said that I had a horse branded 14, a little mouse colored horse that was OK. I havent really been to any of Rolling B rodeo company’s rodeos that much over the years, so I didnt really know any of the horses. by the time I limped the Jeep into Stilwell it was 8:30. That was plenty of time to get ready, the were in the middle of announcing the queen, which takes a while. We had about 20 minutes or so to get ready. I found my horse and waited for them to load it in the chute. It was a little squirrelly in the chute and the tied it in, just to be safe. The horse was a little hard to set my saddle on, it kept leaning on which ever side I was trying to work on. I finally got pulled and climbed in and nodded. When the gate opened the horse stalled and wouldnt leave. My buddy Jim had just rode and was hurrying back to help me. When the horse stalled, Jim was running to help me and jumped up on the chutes to make the horse leave. When he jumped up on the back of chutes it spooked the horse and it reared up and smashed me and turned on its hind legs and reared out hitting me on the corner post. After all that, the horse bucked alright across the arena, and I finally did my part and got things rolling and spurred pretty good. The horse came to the fence and threw its head up in the air and then turned back and the ride became very Un-fun, but only lasted a couple seconds before the buzzer went off. I was 77 points and that was good enough for a 3rd place. I definately thank the Lord for his Blessing of getting me to the rodeo without breaking down and then riding well and placing.

So I left as soon as I could after I rode so that I could try and start getting my Jeep home.  I was planning on making calls or getting a tow somewhere once it finally did quit for good on me, which I figured would be on the way home. After several hundred miles and several hours of driving with it slipping, jerking and other things on the way to Stilwell, I was expecting a long ride home. Well I kept it under 70 miles and hour for most of the trip home then when I got with in 60 miles of home, I drove a little faster, I was very surprised that the whole trip home of 6 hours that my Jeep did not mess up once. That really blew my mind. Im glad I got it home, and now I am going to have to find out whats wrong for sure and try and fix it. It was a very long day, I left at 5 a.m. saturday and drove 1100 miles went to 2 rodeos in 2 states, helped a traveler,  I had Jeep problems and made it home my 8 a.m Sunday to spend Mother’s Day with Brandy. Lots of Fun!

Im off to Tennessee this weekend and possibly Oklahoma, Check back for updates… Have a Great Week and God Bless!

I haven’t been rodeoing much this year yet, so I thought I would make up for that and enter two rodeos in one day. The only catch is that they were on opposites sides of a state. I decided to enter and IPRA rodeo in Marion, Arkansas at 2 p.m. and then another IPRA rodeo in Stilwell, Oklahoma at 8 p.m. It was gonna be a long day of traveling by myself but I was looking forward to it. I left my house at 5 a.m. to head to Marion which is near West Memphis. As I was heading down I-70, I stopped at a rest area. As I was getting out of my Jeep, a Hispanic guy in his late 20′s approached me. He proceded to tell me that he had this GPS that he did not know how to use it. He wanted to get to Dayton, TN.  As I was handed the machine I realized that he had it on the Spanish language settings. I didnt change it to English cause I figured it would take too long to get the map set and then change it back to Spanish, and I thought that I could figure it out, I mean I did take Spanish class in High School (which was 16 years ago haha). So after several minutes of trying to figure it out and occansionally pointing and asking Him “whats this mean?”, I finally got the GPS set for him. He Thanked me and left in his car for Tennessee. As I got back in my Jeep I couldnt help but laugh and think about all the funny and weird things that happen on the road. Later that morning (after I knew Brandy would be awake), I called her and told her the story, She laughed and told me that I should pay more attention when her Girls are watching Dora the Explorer, so I can keep up on my Spanish.

I rolled on down the highway headed to Marion and excited to get on some broncs. Universal Rodeo Company had the stock at this rodeo. I have been to several of their rodeos over the years. They put on both IPRA and PRCA shows and put on good rodeos and have good stock. As I was nearing the end of my 7 hour drive to Marion, AR, I noticed that my Jeep was acting a little funny but it wasnt to bad, and I was only a few miles from rodeo so I just went on to the show.

Once at the show and settled in I found the horse I was to get on. It was branded 24 and was a roan paint.  The Contractor Mark Johnson said that the horse was going to be pretty good. A buddy of mine Ty Atchison was there watching and taking a weekend off from rodeoing hard, he is ranked in the top 5 in the PRCA world standings right now, Ty said that he has seen the horse a few times and it was gonna be a good match for me. I was pretty happy with the draw and just plain happy to be rodeing again and especially seeing all my rodeo buddys and the other OnTheRodeoRoad guys and girls, like Amber and Scotty.

OTRR Crew...Scotty, Amber, Spencer and of course our mascot, Memphis

 When the horse was in the chute he stood really well. It was a bigger horse and when I climbed in the chute He started leaning on me and squating. Ty helped me get him over off my leg, but we just couldnt get him to stand up. So I called for the gate and nodded my head even though he was squating. When the gate was opening he stood up and reared out and started bucking pretty good. He was bailing high in air but not really kicking really high. I was trying to spur him but I just couldnt get things rolling. My feet were “trapped” in the back and I just couldnt get them to the front. Since my feet were in the back, when he was bucking he kept gettin my chin, (which means he kept throwing my head back). All in all, I was very Dissapointed in my preformance. I should have spurred that horse and won the rodeo, but I didnt and I didnt place. I climbed on the chutes disspointed and sayin how I was still rusty from not goin hard like I usually do, Ty then said that everybody get rusty after time off like I have had and that it will all come back soon enough. I realized He was right and stayed positive and kept my head up and started looking forward the next rodeo (which was over 300 miles away and started in 4 and half hours). I left as soon as I was done riding so I could head to the next rodeo, but the rodeo in Marion is a good one. They have a lot of fair, carnival things to do there and tons of food vendors. but I couldnt stick around, maybe next year.