NFR notes: Hawkins’ ride matches arena best

Thursday, Dec. 9, 1999 | 12:01 p.m.

Pete Hawkins of Weatherford, Texas, notched his name in the National Finals Rodeo record book on his way to padding his lead in the bareback riding world standings.

Hawkins tied the arena record with a 90-point ride on Kesler Championship Rodeo's Icicle during the sixth go-round of the $4.4 million NFR at the Thomas & Mack.

Hawkins' round-winning ride matched the arena record set by Billy Laye on Beutler Brothers and Cervi Rodeo's Brown Bomber in 1995.

"It means the world to me," Hawkins said of tying the record. "You never know, there could be a 91 later in the week, but to (share) the record is something that I cherish; it's very dear to me.

"Every ride has another partner and that's my horse. I've got to give him just as much credit, and Greg Kesler out of Canada. Icicle, of course, is a great dancing partner."

While it was not the first time Hawkins had ridden Icicle this year, it was by far the most successful.

"I had him one other time this year and he didn't have quite the trip he had today with me," Hawkins said. "He was a little calm and just went out in the arena and circled around in laps. Today, he had some good oats and some good grain and he was feeling good. "Horses like that have always fit my style. They've got long legs and I think I've got a pretty good sense of balance and when they've got a lot of moves like that, I can show off and let my long legs fly and make him look a little better than he really is."

The win was Hawkins' fourth in six rounds and third in a row after posting an NFR-low score of 60 in the third round. He continues to lead the bareback riding world standings by more than $38,000 over Lan Lajeunesse of Morgan, Utah.

"I owe a lot of my (success) to that ride," Hawkins, who increased his NFR earnings to $51,634.84, said. "A lot of people would have let that get them down and kind of bummed out about having a 60 at the National Finals.

"To be thrown off on the first jump and to hang on, even after going out in the first round, a lot of guys might have checked out and said, 'Hey, I'll get 'em the next round,' but I just kind of kept rolling and turned out 60 points. It made me feel tough, like a cowboy."

Lajeunesse and Rocky Steagall tied for second with 83 points while Jeffrey Collins and Larry Sandvick tied for fourth. Lajeunesse retained the NFR average lead after six rounds.

Other sixth go-round winners:

* In steer wrestling, Randy Suhn won his first go-round of the Finals with a time of 3.30 and earned $12,908.71. Mike Smith took second at 3.50 seconds and Rope Myers was third at 3.60. Smith earned $10,202.04 for second and took over the lead in the world standings. Mickey Gee finished fourth and retained his lead in the NFR average.

* Defending champions Speed Williams (heading) and Rich Skelton (heeling) won their third team roping go-round with a time of 4.20 and added to their lead in the world standings. Jake Barnes and Cody Cowden tied for second with the team of Steve Purcella and Wayne Folmer at 5.10.

* Billy Etbauer won the saddle bronc riding competition for the second night in a row with a score of 83. Ryan Mapston and Steve Dollarhide tied for second with 81s and Bobby Griswold was fourth with 80 points. Five-time world champion Dan Mortensen finished out of the money and saw his lead in the world standings dwindle from more than $17,000 to less than $5,000 over Etbauer.

* Clay Cerny, who failed to post times in four of the first five go-rounds, won the calf roping competition Wednesday with a time of 7.90 seconds. Jerome Schneeberger took second in 8 seconds flat and Herbert Theriot and Jeff Coelho tied for third at 8.40. Fred Whitfield failed to cash but remained the world leader, $11,118.86 ahead of Blair Burk.

* Cory Navarre won the bull riding go-round with a score of 88 on Passport Copenhagen. Mike White was second with an 87 and Vince Stanton took third with an 83. Gregory Potter tied for fifth and retained his lead in the world standings; Mike White remained the NFR average leader.

* Defending world champion Kristie Peterson won her second go-round of the Finals with a time of 14.22. Sherry Cervi, who leads Peterson in the world standings by more than $43,000, tied for second at 14.35 with Kay Blandford and Sue Miller.

* Greg Rumohr won the third go-round of the 1999 Wrangler Bullfight Tour Finals with a score of 82. Lance Brittan was second with an 81 and Mike Matt was third with an 80.