Foltyn not foiled by Firebird

RENO " Clayton Foltyn remembers his last ride on Big Bend Rodeo Company's Firebird, and it wasn't a pretty memory.

"It was in Billings (Mont.), and he nearly swung me out of the arena," Foltyn said Thursday night. "I knew I was going to have to do more than I did the last time."

Foltyn did exactly that, posting a 95 in the short round for a two-round total of 181.50 to win the Dodge Xtreme Bulls Tour event at the Reno Livestock Events Center.

Foltyn's second ride was enough to unseat defending champion Wesley Silcox, who finished with a two-ride total of 158 following s second-round 83. Those were the only two finalists to have two successful rides.

IFoltyn, who is nursing an injured elbow, said he is only concentrating on bulls from now on. In the past, he has also done bareback riding.

"I don't know if it's too hard on the body," said Foltyn, who won $13,596 on the night. "I'm just really trying to focus on one thing.

"I don't know that bulls is harder than bareback. It all depends on who you are on that day. I think I was pretty competitive in both."

Silcox was disappointed with his effort. He knew that 158 probably wasn't going to hold up for first place.

"It (the night) was OK," Silcox said. "I'll take second place. I expected fifth place.

"I'd had that bull (Golden Ghost) before . It usually is a little better. I had it a couple of years ago at 90."

Third place went to Jake Wade, who had what can only be termed as an interesting night.

Wade was awarded a re-ride on three consecutive rides, one of which came when the bull he was riding fell down, dumping him in the process. He was dumped on his fourth ride.

Wade, who won $2,385, was one of four riders, who was selected based on time.

"I thought they were joking," said Wade, who is from Alamo, Nevada. "One guy told me but I knew he was joking. Sean Procter told me. I knew he wouldn't lie to me. I waited until I saw the judge's sheet. I can't remember that happening before."

Wade didn't waste the opportunity, scoring a 92 above Hawaiian Ivory.

"I hadn't had him (Hawaiian Ivory) before," Wade said. "I'd heard of him. People told me he was pretty good. I got a good ride."

Colin McTaggart from Las Vegas led after the first round with an 87 aboard Pud. He was one of nine riders who failed to post a score in the second round, however, but still managed to finish fourth in average.

"I'd seen him a bunch, but it was the first time I'd been on him," McTaggart said. "He's kind of a handful. He took me for quite a ride.

"Ideally, you don't want to go that far out. You want to stay close to the chutes and hope the bull just starts turning (spinning)."

Right behind McTaggart was Nat Fly, who posted a first-round 86 aboard Little Marvin before being dumped moments into his ride in the short round. Fly said he was unfazed by the fact that only Jesse Bail and Steve Woolsey were successful in the first and second round, respectively.

"The best bull riders in the world are here," Fly said. "You know that everybody here can ride. Sometimes they don't get a good bull. I'd never seen that bull before, but Jake (Wade) said it was a good bull to get on. You have to ride technically correct."

Chance Smart, who was ranked No. 1 in the world, didn't last long on his first ride. He was dumped in 3.4 seconds by Hawaiian Style.

Notes: J.W. Harris took a nasty spill on his first round and suffered an injured right ankle. He left the arena on crutches ... The cowboys had a rough night, as they were successful just 11 times in more than 30 attempts ... The Lettermen, a popular singing group, performed the Star Spangled Banner.

- Contact Darrell Moody at dmoody@nevadaappeal.com, or by calling (775) 881-1281