The performance side of the 2013 Clovis Rodeo started out with a PBR Touring Pro event on Thursday night. I haven’t shot PBR events in quite some time because of a rights-grab waiver they used to make photographers sign. They don’t seem to be doing that anymore, so I got my first chance to shoot guys like Valdiron and Ben Jones who also ride in the PBR Built Ford Tough series that runs on TV.
Bull rider Valdiron de Oliveira of Goias, Brazil works on his rope at the PBR Touring Pro event in Clovis, CA.
Bull rider Ben Jones rolls up his sleeves before his ride at the PBR Touring Pro event in Clovis, CA.
I shot the first section of bulls from across the arena, trying to take advantage of the late evening sun:
Bull rider Tim Myers of Brentwood, CA gets bucked off Full Tilt at the PBR Touring Pro event in Clovis, CA.
Bullfighter Mitch Coleman steps in to protect Scottie Knapp from High Time at the PBR Touring Pro event in Clovis, CA.
There was some comic relief:

One of the Brazilians, Simao da Silva, wanted to know about the bull he drew, 700 SFB of Kish’s. Someone told him to ask John Growney. Simao speaks ZERO English. He asks John, and John launched into a story that Simao understood absolutely none of. I reminded John that he needed to show him what the bull did, and John (talking slower and much louder) kept saying “HE’S A LITTLE FLAT BUCKER.” Surprisingly this didn’t work at all, and one of the other Brazilians had to come over and translate. As Simao was walking away, John said “Don’t worry, I’ll learn your language.” Who wants to teach John Growney Portuguese?
By the time Simao rode SFB, I had climbed up to the roof of the announcer’s stand:
Bull rider Simao da Silva of Coacatuba, Brazil rides SFB at the PBR Touring Pro event in Clovis, CA.
Bull rider Chase Outlaw of Hamburg, AR rides Timber Wolf for the win at the PBR Touring Pro event in Clovis, CA.
It was good to be able to shoot a PBR event after several years, but the combination of the lack of variety (just bull riding) and my lack of familiarity with most of the riders, made me thankful when the actual rodeo started.
The behind-the-chutes area at Clovis is great for pictures. Here’s Steven Peebles invading my space while I was trying to make a picture of someone else. This one was way better than what I was trying to do:
Bareback rider Steven Peebles of Redmond, OR prepares to ride at the Clovis Rodeo in Clovis, CA.
In this picture I managed to make Jared Smith look tall via a very low angle:
Bareback rider Jared Smith of Cross Plains, TX prepares to ride at the Clovis Rodeo in Clovis, CA.
2011 PRCA bull riding champion Shane Proctor does in fact put his boots on one at a time:
Bull rider Shane Proctor of Grand Coulee, WA prepares to ride at the Clovis Rodeo in Clovis, CA.
Saddle bronc rider Sam Spreadborough of Snyder, TX tapes up before his ride at the Clovis Rodeo in Clovis, CA.
Trey Benton III flew in from another rodeo and didn’t have enough time to dry his gear. Luckily there was a giant cooling fan behind the chutes and Trey took advantage:
Bull rider Trey Benton III of Rock Island, TX uses a fan to dry off his gear at the Clovis Rodeo in Clovis, CA.
It was 90+ (degrees, not points) for most of the week, and riders took to the shade as much as possible:
Bull rider Keith Roquemore of Cottonwood, CA tries to stay cool at the Clovis Rodeo in Clovis, CA.
I shot the roughstock action from all over the place, the corners, the stands, announcer’s box roof and more:
Bareback rider Micky Downare of Hartsel, CO rides Blue’s Man at the Clovis Rodeo in Clovis, CA.
Cody Wright won the saddle bronc riding on Friendly Fire, a horse no stranger to winning at Clovis. Cody passed $2 million in career earnings with this ride, making it the second time in 2 seasons I’ve seen a rider do that after Bobby Mote did it in Red Bluff in 2011.
Saddle bronc rider Cody Wright of Milford, UT rides Friendly Fire for the win at the Clovis Rodeo in Clovis, CA.
Saddle bronc rider Sterling Crawley of Stephenville, TX rides Lunatic Fringe at the Clovis Rodeo in Clovis, CA.
Bareback rider Bobby Mote of Culver, OR rides Raggidy Ann at the Clovis Rodeo in Clovis, CA.
Saddle bronc rider Ty Atchison of Jackson, MO rides Frontier at the Clovis Rodeo in Clovis, CA.
Bareback rider Josi Young of Buhl, ID takes a re-ride at the Clovis Rodeo in Clovis, CA.
I shot a section of saddle broncs from behind the cute, and came away with a couple of pictures:
Saddle bronc rider Jacob Huserik of Hemet, CA prepares to ride at the Clovis Rodeo in Clovis, CA.
Flankman Chad Burch takes a smoke break at the Clovis Rodeo in Clovis, CA.
I shot the bull riding all three days from the announcer’s box roof:
Bull rider Tyler Smith of Fruita, CO rides Yes Man at the Clovis Rodeo in Clovis, CA.
Bullfighter Eric Layton gets thrown by Simple Man while protecting bull rider Chris Roundy at the Clovis Rodeo in Clovis, CA.
Hometown boy Kaycee Rose won the bull riding:
Bull rider Kaycee Rose of Clovis, CA rides Wildly Legit at the Clovis Rodeo in Clovis, CA.
It’s always good to see my man JJ Harrison clowning around:
Barrelman JJ Harrison of Walla Walla, WA performs at the Clovis Rodeo in Clovis, CA.
Barrelman JJ Harrison of Walla Walla, WA performs at the Clovis Rodeo in Clovis, CA.
**For more from the 2013 Clovis Rodeo, check out my timed-event post.**
