First-time winners take the spotlight

Thursday, Dec. 9, 2004 | 9:08 a.m.

SUN WIRE REPORTS

Cimmaron Gerke of Brighton, Colo., and Mike Outhier of Utopia, Texas, liked their first victory lap so much, they couldn't wait to take another one.

Both came through on Wednesday during Round 6 action at the 46th Wrangler National Finals Rodeo in front of a capacity crowd of 17,236 at the Thomas & Mack Center.

Gerke posted the top bareback riding score of the night with a 90.5 point ride on Classic Pro Rodeo's Dippin' Wise Guy, and Outhier topped the saddle bronc riding field with 88.5 points on Rafter G's Rawhide.

Gerke, the reigning national college bareback riding champion who is making his NFR debut, leads the aggregate race through six rounds and is on pace to blister the 10-head record held by Jason Jeter and Cody Jessee with 839 points. Gerke is averaging nearly 86 points per ride and has placed in five of six rounds, winning an event-best $48,385.

Gerke is in third place, $24,000 behind world standings leader and reigning champion Will Lowe of Canyon, Texas.

"This horse bucks hard enough to impress the judges, and not everybody rides that horse and that's why he's here," Gerke said. "I knew I could ride him."

The Wrangler NFR, which is marking its 20th year in Las Vegas, is the world's premier rodeo. Only the top 15 contestants in each of rodeo's events qualified for the event, which will crown world champions based on annual earnings in the Jack Daniel's World Standings at its conclusion on Dec. 12.

The competition resumes with Round 7 beginning at 7 p.m. today.

Outhier is one of three saddle bronc riders to have won at least $40,000 this week, and he has needed those earnings -- and some superstitions -- to remain in sixth place in the world standings, some $36,000 out of the lead.

"Yeah, I know it sounds a little strange, but I put on the same shirt I had on in Round 1 (his other round victory)," Outhier said. "I have another superstition about shaving. It's so weird, but I promise you that if I shave the day I ride, I get bucked off."

Tie-down roper Clint Cooper of Decatur, Texas, the son of eight-time world champion and ProRodeo Hall of Fame member Roy Cooper, took his first victory lap after topping the field with a run of 7.4 seconds. Stran Smith of Childress, Texas, finished third in the round but moved past regular-season standings leader Blair Burk of Durant, Okla., into the top spot.

"It is an awesome feeling, and I cannot explain it," Cooper said. "I have always wanted to make that victory lap and go to the Gold Coast (site of the nightly go-round buckle presentation), and I finally get to do it."

Other Round 6 champions were bull rider Fred Boettcher, Tomah, Wis., 86 points on Guidry Rodeo's Dippin' XS Energy; steer wrestler Lee Graves of Calgary, Alberta, 3.2 seconds; team ropers Clay Tryan of Billings, Mont., and Michael Jones of Stephenville, Texas, 3.9 seconds; and barrel racer Sheri Sinor Estrada, Alamogordo, N.M., 13.87 seconds.