Money wasn’t everything for champ Allen

Thursday, Dec. 3, 1998 | 4:17 a.m.

Earning a pre-National Finals Steer Roping record of $60,399 was satisfying, but it wasn't enough for steer roper Guy Allen to classify 1997 as a great season.

It would take more than that to make "The Legend" happy.

With his seventh consecutive and 12th overall world title all but assured, Allen wanted to end the year with a winning performance at the NFSR, Nov. 28-29 in Guthrie, Okla.

"The last couple of years I've gone in with a pretty good lead that allowed me to win the world title even though I didn't really do well at the Finals," Allen, of Lovington, N.M., said.

While he has accomplished more than most could dream about since qualifying for his first NFSR 21 years ago, Allen has only two NFSR average titles to his name -- a sign that things simply haven't gone his way at season's end.

"I roped pretty good again this year," he said. "So when the Finals came around I wanted to go in there and rope just as well as I had all year."

In 1997, Allen won more in three rodeos than many of the PRCA's top 50 steer ropers did all season. Wins of more than $5,000 in Odessa, Texas, Cheyenne, Wyo., and Clovis, N.M., allowed him to leave the competition far behind prior to the NFSR.

But as always, the 39-year-old cowboy didn't want a great season to end when he walked through the doors at the Lazy E Arena.

In an effort to put together a better two-day run at the '97 NFSR, Allen bumped his horse Bullet, the AQHA/PRCA steer roping horse of the year, to second-string status and grabbed the reins of 11-year-old Jeremiah for competition at the 39th NFSR.

"Jeremiah is supposed to be a little freer at the line, where Bullet is normally quicker," Allen said.

Jeremiah's efforts gave Allen an opportunity to win each of the first three rounds the second night of NFSR competition.

Of course, carrying a $20,000 lead into the Finals, Allen could have won the world title riding a tricycle. But that wouldn't have allowed him to accomplish his goal of putting together 10 solid runs at the NFSR.

In the process of turning in the best Finals performance of his career, Allen further cemented his place in the PRCA record books. His Finals earnings of $23,925 broke Arnold Felts' 1993 NFSR record and pushed Allen's season total to a PRCA record of $84,324 in steer roping.

Allen has laid claim to the steer roping gold buckle each year since 1991 -- a PRCA record for the most consecutive world titles in a single event.

"I just had a Finals that was unbelievable," Allen said.

As usual the modest Allen took his 1997 success in stride as he returned home to Lovington.

While Allen has seldom set out to make history, his name now appears beside nearly every PRCA record in steer roping. And he's still got plenty of time to take care of the few records he doesn't already own.