Northwest Arkansas Democrat-Gazette
Crawley brothers put on a show
SPRINGDALE — Sterling Crawley had a good ride in the saddle bronc riding event Thursday night in the 73rd annual Rodeo of the Ozarks, but his older brother, Jacobs, was better.
Jacobs Crawley posted an 87, the best score in the event over the first two nights at Parsons Stadium. That bested Sterling’s 81.5, which was third best of the night.
Jacobs credited a good bucking horse named Cam Shaft that helped him put up
a good score. But having his younger brother riding up and down the roads with him is also a boost.
“In my event, you’re judged on the rider’s technique and the kicking of the horse and their ability to show off, too,” said Jacobs Crawley, who is 29 — three years older than his brother. “That horse was solid, just a good bucking horse that allowed me to do my job correctly and that added the timing and that was why the score was what it was.
“I think any time you can be comfortable with those that you’re traveling with, it’s important. You need to have a positive influence and we’re brothers and good friends forever, so it works out great.”
The Crawleys, who grew up in Stephenville, Texas, have made Springdale a regular stop on their circuit, which includes more than 100 events in a year. Sterling Crawley said his brother has been consistent this year.
“He’s about as consistent as they come,” Sterling Crawley said. “He was beating them in the winter, beating them in the spring and beating them in the summer. He’s been riding good. Just about everything he did was right. His fundamentals are one of the strongest. He really
makes it show out in a ride.”
Both agreed moving the event off the Fourth of July week was beneficial for them.
“That was huge, kudos to the committee,” Jacobs Crawley said. “They kept the added money up, which makes it worth the while. It’s a drive over here. They’ve done a great job. Them moving it forward allows us to make it every year. We’ve been in Nevada and New Mexico. We had 12 hours driving last night and we’ve got 11 hours tonight driving back to where we were.
“It was 24 hours round trip to come get this one, but like it said, it’s a great event and we want to show support for this event.”
The rodeo continues through Saturday. Gates open at 6 p. m. each day, and the action begins at 7:30 p.m. with competition in bareback riding, steer wrestling, team roping, saddle bronc riding, tie-down roping, barrel racing and bull riding.
In other events, Steven Peebles of Redmond, Ore., posted an 84 in the bareback event — the top score of the night. Cole Edge of Durant, Okla., had a time of 4.9 seconds in steer wrestling. The duo of Bart Brunson and Ryder Ladner had a time of 7.0 seconds in team roping — one- tenth of a
second better than Thompso Berryhill and Cody Heflin.
Laura Kennedy of Quitman had the top time of 17.62 in barrel racing.
The competition concludes Saturday night, when 2017 Miss Rodeo of the Ozarks is crowned and the four-day event ends with a fireworks display. The ticket office is open each day from 9 a. m. to 5 p. m. near the intersection of Emma Avenue and Arkansas 265 in Springdale.
“It was 24 hours round trip to come get this one, but like it said, it’s a great event and we want to show support for this event.”
Jacobs Crawley