107th Clovis Rodeo Wraps Up a Successful Weekend

The 107th Clovis Rodeo closed out their five-day event on Sunday, April 25. The event generated an estimated $12 million in economic impact to the community. (City of Clovis)

The 107th Clovis Rodeo was an extravaganza made possible by the dedication of numerous volunteers, the City of Clovis and the County of Fresno.

A year after the cancellation of the 2020 Clovis Rodeop due to COVID-19, the 2021 Clovis Rodeo was prepared in just 35 days.

According to the Clovis Rodeo Association, this year’s rodeo generated around $12 million in economic impact for the community, and over $350,000 was given back to local charities and nonprofits.

Despite a shortened time frame to prepare, nearly 500 cowboys and cowgirls competed for more than $300,000 at this year’s rodeo.

Kicking off the five day event, the Professional Bull Riders (PBR) Touring Pro-Division hit the dirt with more than 40 bull riders competing on some of the best bucking stock in the sport.

Some of the top bull riders in the nation participated in the competition, including Kaique Pacheco, Joao Ricardo Vieira, Bordeaux Campbell, Derek Kolbaba and Silvano Alves.

However, Maverick Potter stood above the rest as he earned the top spot in the PBR and left with a check for $14,300 with a total of 170 points on two bulls. He earned a 85.5 ride in the short go on the re-ride bull Catfish Clinger from Bridwell Pro Rodeo, totaling 170 points on two bulls. His first ride, he had a 84.5 ride with bull Two Chains from Culp Bucking Bulls.

During the intermission, Corissa King was crowned as the 107th Miss Clovis Rodeo.

Saturday was filled with numerous displays of athleticism in the roping category. The JR Dees and Jake Long team finished with a blazing 9.4-second time, beating NFR champions Kaleb Driggers and Junior Nogueira.

And in one of the most popular events of the rodeo, Laramie Mosley (Palestine, TX) closed out the day, having the only qualified eight-second bull ride scoring 85.5 points on Bridwell Rodeo Side Hustle.

For Sunday finals, Blane Cox earned All-Around Cowboy honors for his efforts in the Steer Wrestling and Tie-Down Roping events throughout the week.

Tilden Hooper (Carthage, TX) kicked off the day with a 90.5 point ride in the Bareback event on C5 Rodeo’s National Finals Rodeo (NFR) bucking horse, Virgil.

Eli Lord (Sturgis, SD) took home the big win during the final timed events with a time of 17.3 seconds on four head steer wrestling. The roping team of Tyler Wade (Terrell, TX) and Trey Yates (Pueblo, CO) won with four runs totaling 39.1 seconds. Jake Pratt (Ellensburg, WA) won the tie down roping on four head with 39.1 seconds. 

A few days before,  Justin Shaffer (Hallsville, TX) narrowly defeated Lord in the Steer Wrestling event. Shaffer won by a tenth of a second, scoring 4.5 seconds compared to Lord’s 4.6 seconds.

California cowgirls Megan Champion (Ukiah, CA) and Nellie Miller (Cottonwood, CA) ended with 50.88 seconds and 50.96 seconds on separate three head runs.

NFR champion and all-around cowboy Stetson Wright closed the finals performance 87.5 point ride on Corey and Lange’s bull, Red Beard.

The CRA says that they are beginning to plan for the 108th Clovis Rodeo set for April 20-24, 2022.

Anthony De Leon is a journalist who started his career in 2017, covering sports for the Fresno City College Rampage, earning his Associate Degree in the process. He then moved on to Fresno State, working for The Collegian serving as Sports Editor, Managing Editor and Editor-in-Chief. He earned his Bachelor’s Degree in print journalism. In August, he will begin attending Reynold’s School of Journalism Master’s program at the University of Nevada, Reno.