As Regular Season Winds Down, Rodeo Athletes Zone in on Securing First NFR Berth

After a lot of hard work to reach the top 15 in the World Standings, competitors like Tucker Allen, Jace Trosclair and Dylan Hancock are focused on remaining there with a month left to go.

Tucker Allen just missed out on his first trip to NFR in 2023. This year, the steer wrestler has used that shortcoming to fuel his rise to the top 10 of the PRCA World Standings / Fernando Sam-Sin/@fsamsin

Tucker Allen pointed his frustration at the person responsible for his disappointment – himself. 

When the 2023 Professional Rodeo Cowboys Association season wrapped, Allen had set a personal high in earnings with more than $71,000 to his credit, putting him 20th in the World Standings, his best finish ever. 

And still, it wasn’t enough. Allen was five spots away from qualifying for his first Wrangler National Finals Rodeo. 

“I was not happy for a long time after that for sure,” Allen said. “I already have high expectations for myself and when you get close enough to see it and then you don’t get it, it got me pretty fired up and ready to work that much harder at.”

Tucker Allen stops the clock at 3.6 seconds in Colorado to cinch the Douglas County Fair and Rodeo title as he zeroes in on his first NFR Qualification. pic.twitter.com/V0IWSXcveG

— The Cowboy Channel (@Cowboy_Channel) August 5, 2024

A year later, the Ventura, Calif., steer wrestler controls his own destiny and is refusing to leave anything to chance. 

With approximately a month left in the regular season, Allen is sitting among the top 10 in the PRCA World Standings with more than $85,000 in earnings, putting him in position to be a first-time qualifier to rodeo’s championship showcase. 

And he isn’t alone. 

There are eight world rankings for the seven events that compete at Thomas and Mack Arena during NFR – bareback, saddle bronc and bull riding in roughstock; steer wrestling, tie-down roping, barrel racing and team roping (headers and heelers) in timed events. 

If combined, the top 25 of those eight lists totals out to 200 slots. As of August 27, among those 200 are 56 different competitors who are either in position to remain in a qualifying spot or trying to make a push over the next month to climb the ranks and reach NFR for the first time. 

Maturity got Dylan Hancock to this point. In 2023, the tie-down roper finished 25th in the world standings. A year later, he’s sitting 10th and approaching $104,000 in earnings for the season. 

Hancock made a lot of self-described “rookie mistakes” last year, costing him a few dollars along the way that ultimately led to falling short of Las Vegas. This time around, he credits past experience as a big reason he’s on the verge of breaking through. 

The San Angelo, Texas, cowboy is also grateful for a strong support network that has helped him stay focused. His travel partners, Riley Webb and Cole Clemons, have picked him up on bad days, challenging him to stay the course. It’s why all three men are among the top 15 in the rankings and could be headed to NFR together. 

“We feed off each other and I feel like that makes a world of difference for sure,” Hancock said. “Having two buds there that you know they’re wanting you to do just as good as they’re trying to do, everyone’s on the same team and it’s just been fun.”

Getting into the top 15 is difficult. Staying there might be even harder. 

With about four weeks of action left to unfold, the standings certainly have the potential to see major shifts given what’s ahead. Along with big regular season rodeos like the Puyallup (Wash.) Rodeo and the Pendleton (Ore.) Round-Up, there’s also qualifier-only events like the North Dakota Roughrider Cup and CINCH Playoff Series Championship that can quickly take someone from barely in the top 25 to a guaranteed spot at NFR. 

To stay in contention a bull riding world title, Jace Trosclair is making sure to keep his focus sharp over the final few weeks of the regular season. / Chuck Miner/@cm_4_bar_c_photos

While bull rider Jace Trosclair is currently sitting fifth in the World Standings with nearly $165,000 already secured, he knows the tone of his first visit to Las Vegas in December could change in an instant. 

Right now, he’s a bonafide contender for the title. But a few bad trips to shift that tenor. His goal – keep it simple and don’t think too far ahead. NFR is the destination, but today’s ride is the journey to get there. 

“Just stay as confident as possible. Don’t let one little buck-off get in your head and start making you fall off. You have to just stay positive about everything,” Trosclair said.