The night’s activities began as announcer Greg Simas introduced a special tribute to our military members, first responders, and health care workers by having them stand to a prolonged ovation from the fans. Prayer, the national anthem, and the grand entry with all the competing cowboys and cowgirls circling the arena on horseback concluded the opening ceremonies.

Bareback bronc riding kicked off the competition with six of the 12 cowboys making successful rides. Matthew Smith from Lake Luzerne posted the highest score for the second consecutive night with an 82-point ride on a bull named Voodoo Blue. Tate Papszycki of Jersey Shore, New Jersey, was second with 78 points.

Steer wrestler Brayden Mahon from Lake Luzerne threw his steer to the arena mud in a very fast 4.6 seconds. He was followed closely by A.J. Williams of New Providence, Pennsylvania, at 5.9 seconds. Only two other cowboys out of the 10 entered posted times with several of them coming up covered in mud.

The team roping where one cowboy ropes the steer’s head while his partner ropes both hind legs saw five of the 10 teams be successful. Two New York ropers, Robbie Erck of Fort Edward and Fred Brunelle of Schuylerville were fastest at an excellent time of 5.6 seconds, followed closely by T.J. Smith of San Mateo, Florida, and Scott Brown of Mount Joy, Pennsylvania, at 6.3 seconds.

OBSERVER Photo by Tim Frank Matthew Smith of Lake Luzerne holds on for dear life in the bareback riding.

Only three of the 10 cowgirls were able to successfully rope their calf in the breakaway roping event with only two-tenths of a second separating the top two. Danni Cloer traveled from Clifton Hill, Missouri, to take first with a time of 4.2 seconds, while Kelly Jo Stein of Scottsville was second at 4.4.

The saddle bronc event had 15 riders entered and eight of them made successful rides, with Joe Farren of Cottondale, Florida, having the top score at 77 points while Tyler Pruitt of Chesnee, South Carolina, ended up only one-half point behind at 76.5.

The tie-down roping competition was very close as only eight-tenths of a second separated the top three ropers. JC Fisher of Milton, Pennsylvania, was tops at 13.3, followed by Charlie Goerlach of Greenfield Center at 14.0 and Colby Clement of Pedricktown, New Jersey, at 14.6.

In addition to the competition, fans were brought to their feet by the skillful and dangerous moves of trick rider Courtney Schum as she raced around the arena on the backs of her two trained horses. Funnyman Robb Gann entertained throughout the performance with his humor, which ended with an explosion that shook the entire arena. Veteran announcer Greg Simas did his usual skillful job as he kept the fans informed nonstop for nearly three hours about each event while adding information about each contestant and animal involved.

The rodeo continues at 8 tonight and 8 Saturday night with more than 200 professional cowboys and cowgirls trying to win a piece of the more than $50,000 in prize money. The barbecue beef dinners are served both evenings from 5-8 p.m. in the air-conditioned dining room. The midway, with more than 20 vendors, also opens at 5 p.m.

OBSERVER Photo by Tim Frank The large crowd stands for the national anthem.

A free kids’ rodeo will be held at 4 p.m. on Saturday afternoon in the rodeo arena for kids ages 3-8 where they will play rodeo-related games supervised by rodeo personnel. Each kid will receive a back tag, and a belt buckle will be awarded for the best-dressed little cowboy and cowgirl. Registration is at 3 p.m.

Tickets for the performances today and Saturday may be ordered online at the rodeo website www.gerryrodeo.org or by phone at 716-985-4847 or 1-888-985-4547. Additional information is also available at these sources.

The results of the cowgirls barrel racing and the bull riding were not available at press time.