Buckle goes to local rider
ADRENALINE dripped from the railings and the roar of the crowd virtually lifted the roof off the Cairns Convention Centre as they cheered on the 22 elite bull riders in Round 1.
Amidst the chink of spurs and thud of heartbeats, silence reigned supreme as riders held on tight, while others were flung high from the equally elite bucking bulls.
Ethan Watts rode Moves Like Jagger and Nathan Burtenshaw rode Seek and Destroy to tie with 83.75 points.
Regarding the boys from Brazil – Jorge Valdiviezo lucked out, Edmilson Goncalves scored 79 points, Luis Blanco 83, and Robinson Guedes 82.5.
FNQ lad Sam O’Connor was hot on their boot heels with a score of 82.75 points.
Round 2 brought the roar of the crowd to ear-splitting heights, sending vibrations rocketing through the grandstands.
The leaders, Watts and Burtenshaw, had targets on their backs as the other 20 bull riders fought it out tooth and nail.
The Brazilians fought hard, Robinson Guedes scoring 83 points, but Jorge Valdiviezo, Luis Blanco and Edmilson Goncalves lucked out.
Local bull rider Kurt Shepherd gained the lead to the appreciation of the crowd.
The championship round found Shepherd, Kleier, Robinson, Williamson, Woodard, Schafferius, Burtenshaw and Watts going head to head in the battle for the title.
With none of the eight riders making the eight seconds, Kurt Shephard showed his home crowd exactly how it was done, walking out of the arena with the champion buckle after scoring 166.25 points.
Next up on the PBR Australia calendar is the annual Last Cowboy Standing at the Brisbane Entertainment Centre. Tickets are available from ticketek.com.au or pbraustralia.com.au.