A10
Pendleton Round-Up
wallowa.com
September 21, 2016
Wallowa County Chieftain
Kolbaba defends crown
Walla Walla
native feeds off
crowd for PBR
Classic win
“
The fans
are truly
unbelievable
and you
don’t get it
anywhere
else, that’s for
sure.”
By Eric Singer
East Oregonian
PENDLETON — When
Derek Kolbaba plans out his
travel schedule during the ro-
deo season, there is one city
that is always priority No. 1
— Pendleton.
The 20-year-old cowboy
from Walla Walla, Washing-
ton frequented the town for
the Pendleton PBR Classic
and the Round-Up every
year when he was growing
up, which is why those two
events are always staples for
him.
On Tuesday night, Kol-
baba took center stage in
front of his (pretty much)
hometown crowd looking to
defend his PBR Classic title
from 2015. And after two
rock solid rides with those
fans behind him, Kolbaba
was successful in his efforts
as he scored a 175.5 on two
to capture the 2016 Banner
Bank Pendleton PBR Classic
crown.
“It’s all just unbelievable,”
he said. “When I say it’s one
of my favorite events, I’m
not lying. The atmosphere is
great, the crowd is right there
on top of you and I have all
my family and friends here
which makes it that much
sweeter.”
The crowd support for
the Washington cowboy
was evident from the intro-
ductions when the packed
house at Happy Canyon are-
na boomed when Kolbaba’s
name was announced. It con-
tinued during his irst ride,
just four riders into the event,
with booming cheers and
high-pitched screams belting
for the eight-second ride be-
fore erupting into borderline
pandemonium after Kolbaba
dismounted and was awarded
an 88.5 point ride — the top
Derek Kolbaba
E.J. Harris/East Oregonian
Derek Kolbaba of Walla Walla rides No Dice during the
Pendleton PBR Classic on Tuesday in the Happy Canyon
Arena in Pendleton.
score of the event.
“It makes you feel just
awesome to have that support
behind you like I do here in
Pendleton,” Kolbaba said
with a big smile. “The fans
are truly unbelievable and
you don’t get it anywhere
else, that’s for sure.”
Kolbaba’s ride boosted
him easily into the Top 10
for the Tuesday night inals,
penciling his name into the
last spot in order. As the nine
other riders took their turns,
none of them cleared the
173.5 threshold set by Key-
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shawn Whitehorse on Mon-
day night. With an 88.5 point
score already in his pocket,
Kolbaba got set on his bull —
Light um Up from Jeff Rob-
inson’s Bulls — needing at
least an 85 to secure the title.
And he was pretty coni-
dent he could get that.
“I didn’t really know what
I had to beat, to be honest,”
Kolbaba said of his prepara-
tion. “I knew I had a great
bull underneath me and was
lucky enough to put a good
score on the board earlier so
I knew if I just kept my hand
shut, kept working (the bull)
and stayed in there I knew it
would go in my favor.”
Once he was ready and the
chute gate swung open, Kol-
baba stayed steady as could
be on his bull, which spun
him around in tight circles,
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BARGAINS the
MONTH
Allard takes
bullighting crown
In the inaugural Bullight-
ers Only competition at the
PBR Classic, Vinita, Okla-
homa bullighter Evan Allard
took home the championship
after an 86-point performance
on Tuesday — edging out
Meeteese, Wyoming’s Dusty
Tuckness (85.5). Allard com-
peted and won with a pair of
broken ribs sustained a few
days prior and was in obvi-
ous pain before and after his
60-second bullight.
“It feels good to have a
(Bullighters Only) win un-
der my belt and to do it at
such a prestigious place (like
Pendleton) makes it better,”
Allard told the crowd during
the awards presentation.
Shane Erickson
best all around
Oregon cowboy
wins 106th
Pendleton
Round-Up
By Eric Singer
East Oregonian
Before he was a profes-
sional cowboy, Shane Erick-
son knew the prestige of the
Pendleton Round-Up.
The Terrebone resident
and Washington native at-
tended Blue Mountain Com-
munity College for one year
in 1999, and after experienc-
ing the Round-Up that year
he started to dream about
someday winning the rodeo.
Fifteen years after earn-
ing his pro card, Erickson’s
dream became a reality by
winning the all-around ti-
tle at the 106th Pendleton
Round-Up on Saturday af-
ternoon.
“I’ve been wanting one
of these buckles for a long
time,” Erickson said with
a big smile. “It’s one of the
rodeos you always want to
win, and it’s so tough here
because of all the elements.”
“I will be proud wearing
the buckle, I know that.”
It’s also the irst time in
four years that someone oth-
er than Trevor Brazile won
the East Oregonian Let’er
Buck Trophy, as the legend-
ary Texas cowboy departed
the PRCA after the 2015 sea-
son to help start Elite Rodeo
Athletes. Erickson said while
it would have been sweeter
to beat out the best, Brazile’s
absence doesn’t lessen his
victory.
“You just have to place in
more than one event, which
isn’t easy,” Erickson said.
Erickson clinched the all-
around title on Saturday by
placing in both team roping
and calf roping throughout
the week, winning a grand
total of $3,496 in both events.
In team roping, Erickson and
heading partner Andy Carl-
son inished tied for eighth in
the irst round with a time of
6.5 seconds and qualiied for
the short round. Erickson saw
better success in calf roping,
where he inished ifth in the
second round (10.0 seconds)
and then seventh in the aver-
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age (31.5 seconds on three).
“It inally hit me after
hitting the (victory) lap,”
Erickson said. “I’ve seen so
many people make it and it
feels good that everybody
cheers for you — they’re all
standing up. You just can’t
describe the feeling ... it’s
awesome.”
The Round-Up has long
been at the top of his list of
favorite rodeos, and he said
it takes a different kind of
mentality to ind success in
Pendleton.
“It’s a rodeo that you
have to have no fear, you
can’t rope with fear of the
grass ield,” Erickson said.
“I’ve never had fear for the
grass, I pasture rope at home
so that doesn’t bother me;
my horses know the grass,
they live on it.”
The 37-year-old doesn’t
compete nation-wide in ro-
deos anymore, choosing
to stay close to home in
the Paciic Northwest and
competing in the Columbia
River Circuit to stay close
to his family. He also oper-
ates his own small business,
a trucking company based
out of Terrebone. Before
the Round-Up Erickson
was fourth in the circuit all-
around standings with more
than $8,700 in earnings —
trailing fellow Terrebone
resident Russell Cardoza in
irst with $13,783.
Aside from the trophy,
Erickson took home a tro-
phy saddle, a Weatherby/
Leupold .257 trophy rile,
trophy buckle, hand-crafted
Justin boots, embroidered
leather jacket, Pendleton
Woolen Mills blanket, Le-
upold McKenzie binocu-
lars, American Hat Co. felt
cowboy hat, engraved silver
pocket watch, custom-made
spurs, custom YETI cool-
er, 14-karat bucking horse
charm, bottle of Pendleton
Whisky, bottle of Let’er
Buck cologne, and a Bucks
Bag gear bag.
“They give so much stuff
... it’s probably truly one of
the best rodeos you can win
because of all the stuff they
give,” Erickson said. “They
appreciate you coming and
they do a great job here.
“And hopefully maybe
I can do it again before my
career is over.”
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Another local makes it
through
Hermiston native and
Stanield resident Cody Ford
had a tough start to his 2016
PBR Classic, as he turned in
no scores on Monday and his
irst ride on Tuesday.
But Ford made it through
to the Top 10 inals on Tues-
day night after not enough rid-
ers qualiied. And he did not
disappoint, either. Going irst
in the inals, Ford got a good
grip and a good position and
stayed solid atop his bull —
Big Red from Jeff Robinson’s
— for the necessary eight
seconds which turned into an
85-point ride.
With those early no-scores,
it wasn’t enough to compete
for a title, but it was enough to
make Ford feel good in front
of the hometown fans, as he
thumped his chest a few times
and celebrated with the crowd
after the ride.
Staff photo by Kathy Aney
Shane Erickson does a happy dash around the Pendleton
Round-Up track Saturday after winning All-Around Cowboy.
®
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7
hugging the far fence row as
it did everything to try and
send Kolbaba lying off. But
it was to no avail.
When the eight-second
horn sounded for the success-
ful ride, Kolbaba jumped off
the bull to a standing ovation,
tossed his helmet while let-
ting out a big “Woo,” climbed
the fence and ist-pumped a
few times to the crowd in cel-
ebration.
“I didn’t really know if
it was good enough but I
was just pumped,” Kolbaba
said of his celebration. “The
crowd went crazy and it was
just an overwhelming feel-
ing.”
But when the score was
revealed on the scoreboard
— an 87-point ride — a huge
smile broke out on Kolbaba’s
face. Another win, another
championship belt buckle to
take home with him.
“It’ll look great next to
the irst one,” he said. “This
one means just as much if
not more than that one, and
I’m just really lucky to take
it home two years in a row.”
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