2016 ERA World Championship

ERA Worlds Day 1 Recap

ERA Worlds Day 1 Recap

Recap from Day 1 at ERA Worlds

Dec 18, 2016 by Willie Saylor
ERA Worlds Day 1 Recap
by Hope Sickler

History was made tonight in Dallas as the first round of the Elite Rodeo Association World Championships was held at the American Airlines Center. Rodeo fans across the country got to witness the best in the business compete against one another in a chance at the very first ERA World Championship Titles that will be determined on Sunday after the final performance.

Watch the inaugural ERA World Championships LIVE Nov. 11-13 on FloRodeo and the FloSports Roku & Apple TV 4
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Tonight's action was nothing short of amazing with the singing of our great National Anthem and honoring those who have served, currently serve and will serve our country for our freedom in light of Veteran's Day.

With a small stage and a large audience, the ERA World Championship's first round was a success as fans watched as the World Championship Standings leaderboard changed throughout the evening!

In the bull riding it was Chandler Bownds riding Jeff Robinson's Doc Mosely for a score of 85-points who got the win. Bownds is now sitting first in the World Championship Standings after adding 600-points to his name. Neil Holmes sits in second with 1625 points.


Crowd favorites Clay Tryan and Jade Corkill spun their steer in a blistering 4.05-seconds which got them the W in the first round of the team roping. Tryan and Corkill bumped their way to the top of the standings after their win in the first round, ahead of Derrick Begay and Clay O'Brien Cooper who sit in second place, only 150-points behind Tryan and Corkill. Begay and O'Brien finished third in the round with a time of 4.63 on their first steer.

Wes Stevenson rode the hair off his bronc in the bareback riding to score an 82.5 and a victory for night one. Stevenson was down a ways in the World Championship Standings prior to tonight but with 600-points added to his standings, he now sits third in the race for a world championship.


In the classic rodeo event of the saddle bronc riding Cort Scheer rode his bronc to the tune of 8-seconds and a score of 85.5-points and just like that, Scheer had clenched his first round win of the Championship Finals. Will he have another? Scheer is leading the pack in the World Championship Standings while Zeke Thurston stays hot on his heels in second. Thurston tied Chad Ferley for second place in the round tonight with a score of 82-points.


Bray Armes started the weekend off on the right foot (literally) when he jumped his horse and wrestled his steer to the ground in 3.97-seconds in the steer wrestling. Armes sits in the driver's spot after tonight in the World Championship Standings and doesn't show any sign of slowing up or letting his lead go anytime soon. Luke Branquinho, who sits second in the standings, had a smooth run in the first round with a 4.21-second run to place him third.


Last Chance Qualifier Kassie Mowry came to American Airlines with only one thing on her mind: smooth is fast. The veteran futurity horse trainers blazed the cloverleaf pattern in 12.91-seconds, the only sub-13-second run tonight in the barrel racing. Since she is new to the point system having qualified to the Championship Finals after her win at the Last Chance Qualifier on Wednesday, she will be down a ways in points but with another couple wins like tonight, she may be knocking at the door for a championship! Lisa Lockhart is still number one in the World Championship Standings and finished third in the first round with a time of 13.06-seconds.

In the tie-down roping, 2015 World Champion Caleb Smidt took top honors when he tied his calf in a smokin' fast time of 6.95-seconds! With his win tonight, Smidt climbed into second place in the World Championship Standings behind another World Champion, Shane Hanchey. Hanchey also had a good go at it in the first round, placing 5th with a 7.79.