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Show 16 Vernal Express Wednesday, July 7, 1999 Rodeo full of surprise performances While glittering world champion titles, currently high rankings and previous winning totals may appear intimidating to fellow competitors, the Vemal Dinosaur Roundup Rodeo is full of surprise performances perfor-mances that keep the big name competitors on their toes. In 1998, the top money in most events went to "dark horse" cowboys, especially in the rough stock and steer wrestling contests. Again this year, many of the Professional Rodeo Cowboy Association (PRCA) elite will be using the Dinosaur Roundup Rodeo to help position themselves for the National Finals Rodeo to be held later this year. Only the top 15 in each event will qualify for the NFR, many of these will be on hand for the Vernal blowout this week. In classic saddle bronc riding, Dan Mortensen of Manhattan, Mont., came to Vernal leading all competitors in the 1998 standings. He scored 74 on his ride and shared 7th place money with 2 other cowboys. cow-boys. Little known Johnny Hammack, won the event with an 82 score to win the $2,918 prize money. Hammack, from Redmond, Ore., finished the season with winnings win-nings totaling $12,842 placing him 48th overall. Mortensen went on to qualify for the NFR and ended the 1998 season as the world champion winning $227,378 on the year. Mortensen is currently in second place in the unofficial 1999 PRCA earnings and will do his best to take the Vemal top money. Rod Hay currently leads the saddle bronc race w ith total earnings of $62,184. Hay, from Wildwood, Alberta, will also be in Vemal hoping to extend his lead over Mortensen. Rough stock rider Ty Murray was also stifled in his bid for local prize money last year. He went on to complete a stellar 1998 year by winning the world championship in bull riding and an unprecedented 7th crown as the world champion all-around cowboy. Murray is scheduled to compete in all three rough stock events on 3 separate nights. The bare back competition awarded award-ed the second largest purse in the 1998 rodeo with $2,873 going to Matt Weishoff from Molalla, Ore. Weishoff finished the 1998 season in 38 place and stole the Vemal money from the top names in the bare back event Weishoff won with a mark of 80 followed by Clint Corey and Pete Hawkins who shared second place with scores of 79. Mark Gomes of Nickerson, Kan., finished the Dinosaur Roundup in 4th position last year Football By Shellie Anderson Express Writer As we enter the mere peak of summer, you might not think that the students of Uintah High School are even beginning to think about the upcoming school year. However, for a handful of students, and more particularly, athletes, the upcoming sports season has already begun. Many of the students who are involved in athletics during the school year attend camps and seminars semi-nars throughout the summer so that they are better prepared when their sporting events begin. And the future football players at Uintah High are no exception. Several of the athletes who plan to play football this fall attended a football camp at Weber State University June 14-17. This camp was basically a fundamentals funda-mentals camp where the athletes broke up into their different skill positions, whether offensive or defensive. The camp was hosted by the Weber State University football staff and members of the staff worked with each of the athletes to teach skills and football fundamentals. fundamen-tals. Those athletes who attended stayed on the campus of Weber State in the dorms where they were also fed their meals. Their days generally began around 7 a.m. and ended around 7 p.m. On the final day of the camp a 7 on 7 contest was held and the Uintah High team was in the championship cham-pionship game. They played Bountiful High School which is a 5A team and lost to them in the final seconds. i try v;- T 1 0 7 47 jLi , Mark Gomes, world champion bareback nder from Kansas could be one of the competitors at the Dinosaur Roundup Rodeo. but continued on to win the NFR championship. This year's bareback event should also provide world class competition. World Champion Gomes is scheduled to ride again this year, as are Corey, Hawkins and Mark Garrett. Pete Hawkins of Weatherford, Texas has won $43,498 to date giving him second place in PRCA standings. Gomes is chasing Hawkins with earnings of $31,466 and third place. Corey is in 10th place while Mark Garrett of Nisland, S.D., is in 8th. Mike Moore of Wellington, Colo., rode in 1998 scoring 85 to win the $2,800 top prize money in the local bull riding event. He finished the season in 23 place with earnings totaling $41,066. Moore entered the PRCA in 1998 and is currently in fourth place overall in 1999 with earnings to date of $30,362. As noted earlier, Ty Murray competed in Vemal bull riding last year and is again slated for 1999. Mike Smith, steer wTestler from hopefuls attend Danny Morton, Jesse Rowell, Mitch Lamb, Pat Mayes, Jason Wood, Allan Belcher, Paul Justice and Todd Stewart were all chosen for the All-Star team and individual awards were also presented with two first place awards going to Allan Belcher for the highest vertical verti-cal jump and the fastest 40 yard dash. Others who attended the camp included Darrin Nyberg, John Coyle, Clay Barker, J.D. Natani, Jesse Merkley, Beau Reynolds, Daniel Curtis, Todd Haskell, Kade Hancock, D.R. Horrocks, Mike Spendlove, Trevor Shiner, J.D. Siddoway, B.J. Honeycutt, Matt Miller, Robert Goodrich and ft- w llVi J J v . r V M UHS Football players, Cole Horrocks, Ben Batty, Daniel Curtis, Elgin McCurdy, BJ Honeycut and Mike Spendlove participate in fundraiser community service project at Dinosaur Inn. Baton Rouge, La., has his hat in the ring again this year. In 1998, he finished fin-ished 5th at Vernal while Marvin Dubose of Lampasas, Texas won the first place purse of $1,537. Dubose completed the 1998 season winning $15,251 for 68 place overall over-all while Smith won the world championship and totaled $161,862. Smith is currently in 11th place in 1999 total winnings with $22,831. Dubose won the 1998 Vemal steer wrestling dazzling the audience with an eye twinkling time of 3 seconds sec-onds flat. World Champion PRCA rodeo cowboys raise the competition level for contestants and also bring world class action to Vemal each year in the Dinosaur Roundup Rodeo. Starting today and running through Saturday, the Dinosaur Roundup Rodeo begins at 6:30 p.m. with the Westemaires pre show, an equestrian precision drill team, followed fol-lowed by the toughest action in the west beginning at 7:30 p.m. Jeremy Peterson. The coaching staff who attended the camp included Head Coach,. Curg Belcher, and Assistant Coaches, Shannon Johnson, Mike Peterson and Frank Barker. Corey Goodrich also helped to provide transportation. Not only do the athletes who attend these camps learn the skills and fundamentals that are necessary for a winning team, but they learn how to work together as a team and learn that being part of a team is more than just playing a ball game. In addition to the Weber State Camp, the athletes have also been busy this summer participating in If worfldl's After a long year of hauling and competing at over 30 rodeos in the last year, the Uintah Basin High School Rodeo Team finished up with the Utah State Finals held in HeberCity June 15-19. Alissa Sue Vincent, the daughter of Randy and Tamara Vincent, who will be a senior at Uintah High School, competed in the girl's cow cutting. Alissa went into the state finals tied for first place. In the first go-round she placed first, second go-round she tied for second place, then on Saturday in the short-go she placed first. Alissa won the average of the two days and on Saturday won the Utah High School Rodeo Finals Girl's Champion Cutter for 1999. Alissa was presented with plaques, belt buckles, a coat and a saddle. She will compete at the National High School Finals in Gillette, Wyo., July 19-25. Randan Vincent, the son of Randy and Tamara Vincent, who is a recent graduate of Uintah High School, competed in the boy's cow cutting. Randan went into state in third place. In the first go-round, tied for third place, second go-round go-round placed seventh, then in the short-go placed third. Randan finished fin-ished third place in the state. Randan received a belt buckle along with plaques. Randan will also go to the National High School Rodeo Finals and compete. Josh Wilkerson, the son of Chad Co-ed softball registration to begin The 1999 ASA Slow pitch Co-Ed Softball league is beginning its fall season. The League is for any man or woman 16 years of age or older. Players under the age of 1 8 must have a parents signature to play. League play will start 'Aug. 16, 17, 18. Games will be on Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday nights. There is a cost of $365 per team that must be paid in full by the registration reg-istration deadline. The deadline for registration is Aug. 10 at 5 p.m. Teams will not be put on the schedule sched-ule until payment is received. A managers meeting will be held Thursday Aug. 12 at 7 p.m. at the recreation office For more information call the recreation office at 781-0982 during dur-ing regular business hours. camps fund raisers to raise the money they need for the upcoming season. One of the latest fund-raiser included a project at the Dinosaur Inn where the athletes spent several hours cleaning. Not only was this a fund raiser for the athletes but is was also an opportunity for them to help support the community members mem-bers who have shown tremendous support for the athletic programs at Uintah High School. For all of those athletes who are interested, the 1 1th Annual Uintah High School Football Mountain Camp will be held this year on Aug. 3-6. Additional information will be forthcoming. L..,.,y., t V ft' ... 1 JO V II I J v.. W S 1 JL Dairgestl: and Tammy Wilkerson, who is a recent graduate of Union High School, competed in steer wrestling, and team roping. Josh placed fourth in the first-go in steer wrestling, and sixth in the average. Josh finished fourth in the state. He was presented with plaques and a belt buckle. Josh will also travel to the National Finals in Gillette. Placing in the Top 10 were, Ashley Famsworth, poles eighth, Galen Wilson, saddle bronc fifth, Les Wilens, bull riding tenth. Other members of the UB High School Rodeo Team that qualified and competed at the state finals were Galen Wilson, bull riding, bareback. Bill Massey calf roping, team roping, Jesse Nash, team roping. rop-ing. Dirk Olsen, calf roping, team roping, Jazlynn Richard, barrels, breakaway, team roping, Stephanie Robb, goat tying, Sam Searle, bull riding, Laci Sutherland, queen, Chase Walker, bull riding. Alissa Sue Vincent, Randan Vincent, and Josh Wilkerson have earned a position on the Utah High School Rodeo Team and will be traveling with fellow teammates to ' Gillette from July 19-25 to compete at 51st Annual National High School Finals Rodeo (NHSFR). Featuring over 1,500 contestants from 38 states and four Canadian Provinces, the National High School Finals is the world's largest rodeo. In addition to competing for over $70,000 in prizes. NHFSR contestants will also be vying for more than 150,000 in college scholarships schol-arships and the chance to be named the National High School Rodeo Dode Rolfe plays in the Ladies Low Am and Invitational and was honored hon-ored for reaching her 90th year. Lady goOfeir celebrates 90 years Dode Rolfe celebrated her 90th birthday playing in the Ladies Gold Association Annual Low Am and Invitation Tournament. Birthday cake was served to all participating in the tournament Under the direction of Nina Pease, chairperson, the Low Am tournament was held June 16 and the Invitational was held June 17. Prizes were given for "Closest to the Hole" on the par 3's. Winners were Glenda Brown, Hole 2; Jeri . Buckalew, Hole 4; Barbara Steenburg, hole 11; and MarLynn Dart, hole 17. Longest drive winner for "A Flight" was Annette Hatch. Longest Drive winner for "B Flight" was Tammy Johnston. A Flight winners were, Gross: Jeri Buckalew and Jo Ann Caldwell tied for first with a score of 83; Connie Norton, third with a score of 84; and Barbara Thome, fourth who scored 90. A Flight winners Net were: Barbara Steenburg and Helen Atwood tied for first with scores of 66; Darcy Lee, third, scoring 67; and Marsha Mackay, fourth, scored 68. B Flight winners were, Gross: irodeo Champion. To earn this title, contestants con-testants must finish in the top 20 after two go-rounds of this competition competi-tion before advancing to Sunday's final championship performance. This year, the Sunday championship champi-onship performance will be televised tele-vised nationally on TNN on August 15 at 1 p.m. in all time zones with the top finishers being featured. Along with great rodeo competition competi-tion and the chance to meet new friends from all across North America, NHSFR contestants have the opportunity to represent their team in a volleyball tournament, to participate in a huge downtown parade, enjoy nightly contestant dances, shop the ever-popular NHSFR trade show, and visit sojne of the best attractions in the nation such as Mount Rushmore, Devil's Tower, Yellowstone National Park and the Grand Tetons. The Uintah Basin High School Rodeo club will hold their annual high school rodeo on Sept. 3 and 4 at the Western Park in Vernal. Last year's rodeo hosted over 700 contestants con-testants from all over the state of Utah and it is projected that this year's event will be bigger and better. bet-ter. The queen contest will be held Saturday, Sept. 3 at 9 a.m. in the indoor arena with cutting contest to begin at 5 p.m. On Saturday, the rodeo will begin at 9 a.m. with action in both arenas. Anyone interested inter-ested in joining the Uintah Basin High School Rodeo Club can contact con-tact Tammy Wilkerson at 722-5635. 722-5635. The club will be holding a membership meeting on August 10 at the USU building in Roosevelt at 7 p.m. Carol Chandler, first, score 84; Tammy Johnston, second, score 91; Fem Baker and Corrine Pease tied for third, score 94. B Flight winners were Net: Pam Moon, 1st, score 61; Lucy Cook, second, score 66; Helen Kimber, third, score 67; and Beth Cooney, fourth, score of 68. C Flight winners were, Gross: Pam Gardiner, first, score 101; JoAnn Timothy, second, score 104; Barbara Gilson and Beverly Jacobs tied for third, score 105. C Flight Winners were Net: Jolynn Morgando, first; Shar Benson, 2nd; Monica Amnetag, third; and Pattie Spence, fourth. Low Am Devin Baily's team, Corrine Pease, Fay Yack, and Jean Johnston won first place with a score of 109. Second place team, W.D. Martin, Ilene McLean, Beverly Jacobs and Bo D'Mitrich. score 1 12. Third place team tow am was Scott Monsen, Nina Pease, Cindy Mortenson and Carol Chandler, score 113. Fourth place team was Joe Hobbs, Marilyn Zeller, Rose Hutton and Darcy Lee. Fifth place team was Rory Mortenson, Tiffany Coon, Joyce Eldridge and Shauna Dottcr. |