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Team roping heeler Jake Long, a 12-time Wrangler National Finals Rodeo qualifier, is dealing with some adversity and still succeeding.

Long broke his right foot at the 11th Annual Cervi Pro-Am in Casa Grande, Ariz., on Feb. 22, but was still able to come back and rope at RodeoHouston and advance to the semifinals, highlighted by winning round 1 with his partner Clay Smith in their bracket with a 4.7-second time on Feb. 28.

“I was at the Mike Cervi deal team roping and a steer went down in front of me, and my horse tripped over him,” Long said. “My horse went down and broke my foot. They put a cast on my foot on Feb. 26, two days before I roped (with Clay) at RodeoHouston. I was told I would be in the cast for a month and then a couple of weeks in a walking boot.”

Although Long broke his foot, he has remained upbeat.

“It is not too bad honestly,” Long said. “I put an inner tube on for a stirrup, just a piece of an inner tube and it basically works as a shock absorber for me. It takes a lot of the hard stuff away, where it doesn’t really hurt my foot. It kind of hurts when I first put it in there because of the angle I have to put it in at. It is kind of weird because you don’t have the stability of a real stirrup obviously, but it doesn’t hurt me.

“It is not as comforting as a real stirrup, but you have to do what you got to do. I have to zone in and focus a little bit more.”

The inner tube concept was Long’s based on past experience.

“Well actually I broke my foot in high school right before the high school finals and that was an idea we came up with back then and that was my first go-to thought when this happened,” Long said.

The irony to Long’s broken foot is last summer Smith, his partner and two-time PRCA World Champion Header, broke his right leg on June 28 and he continued to rope with the injury and the duo qualified for the NFR.

“I sure hope we are done with this stuff after this,” Long said. “I wasn’t planning on being on the other end of that ever. We have had to take care of each other a lot more than you normally would. I think we both stepped up when we needed to and been helpful and we definitely have a routine down.”

Courtesy of PRCA

COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. – Winning the 2023 Permit Finals provides a bonus for contestants.

Each event winner of the Permit Finals, Oct. 7-9 in Waco, Texas, will secure entry into RODEOHOUSTON® in 2024.

“The PRCA has made a concentrated effort to better support permit holders by establishing the Permit Finals. We are excited to join in that effort and promote these up-and-coming contestants by inviting the 2023 Permit Finals Champions of Waco to Houston in 2024,” said Dr. Chris Boleman, President and CEO of the Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo.

PRCA CEO Tom Glause says this presents an incredible opportunity for the Permit Finals winners to compete against the best of the best.

“The Permit Finals gives our young, up-and-coming contestants a chance to showcase their skills as they prepare to take the next step in their ProRodeo careers,” Glause said. “The Permit Finals winners will now have the opportunity to compete against ProRodeos biggest stars at RODEOHOUSTON®, which is exciting.”

The Top 10 contestants in the permit standings will qualify to compete in the Permit Finals in Waco, with three go-rounds of competition determining the champions.

Courtesy of PRCA

Former standout Cervi Championship Rodeo’s bareback horse F42 Hostage, a multi-time National Finals Rodeo qualifier, passed away Saturday at the Cervi’s ranch in Stoneham, Colo.

“She wasn’t necessarily the best horse, but she was the most consistent,” Binion Cervi said. “She was one that cowboys could win money on every time. Cowboys knew when they drew her they may win first and if not they will place. She was so easy to ride.”

F42 Hostage was born in 1997 on Cervi’s ranch in Stoneham and retired from rodeo in 2016. She was a multiple-time competitor at the Wrangler National Finals Rodeo. Bobby Mote won Round 4 of the 2007 NFR with 85.5-point ride on the way to winning the world championship that year.

“I had that horse in San Antonio this year,” Mote said moments after his ride. “I didn’t get along with him as good then. I just didn’t bring it and didn’t make as good a ride as I could have. I had a little better game plan today. I just tried to stay as aggressive as I could and fortunately they rewarded me for it.”

At the 2004 NFR in Round 1, Larry Sandvick split second with an 86-point ride on Hostage. In 2005 at the NFR, Wes Stevenson won Round 1 with an 87.5-point ride on Hostage.

F42 Hostage has had 17 foals. Many of which have made NFR appearances, including P16 Hell’s Fire Hostage and W30 Guardian Angel.

“Hostage is one of those horses that if you had a trailer load of them, you would never have to stress being in the rodeo business,” Cervi said.

LAS VEGAS – The Professional Rodeo Cowboys Association and Las Vegas Events announced today that the 2023 Wrangler National Finals Rodeo will see an increase in the payout at the world’s richest rodeo in December for the third consecutive year.

The Wrangler NFR, which is scheduled this year at the Thomas & Mack Center in Las Vegas from Dec. 7-16, will have a record-setting competition payout of more than $11.5 million. This amount includes guaranteed prize money of $1.2 million for all NFR qualifiers and $10,301,505 in competition prize money.

Between 2015 and 2020, the NFR paid out a total of $10 million each year – $8.8 million in competition prize money and $1.2 million in guaranteed prize money to qualifiers. The total purse increased to $10,257,048 in 2021 and $10,900,098 in 2022.

Based on the updated purse in 2023, each go-round will pay a total of $99,053 per event, with the round winner taking home $30,706. The average total per event increased to $297,159, with the average winner earning $78,747 at the conclusion of the ten-day event.

The stock contractor pay – which is 30% of the contestant payout – increased to $3,450,451.

Known as the richest and most prestigious rodeo in the world, the Wrangler NFR attracts the top 15 contestants in bareback riding, steer wrestling, team roping, saddle bronc riding, tie-down roping, barrel racing and bull riding to compete for a share of the increased purse and the coveted PRCA Gold Buckle. In 2022, the event had a total attendance of 173,350 over the 10 days of competition at the Thomas & Mack Center and has sold out more than 350 consecutive performances in Las Vegas.

For more information on the Wrangler NFR, please visit NFRexperience.com or through social media at @LasVegasNFR and use #WranglerNFR. For the latest ProRodeo news and Wrangler NFR coverage, please visit prorodeo.com or through social media @PRCA_ProRodeo.

Courtesy of NFRexperience

The 65th Wrangler National Finals Rodeo (NFR) is scheduled to return to the Thomas & Mack Center in Las Vegas from December 7-16, 2023. The 10 nights of competition will feature the best 120 cowboys and cowgirls vying for a coveted PRCA World Championship. They will also be competing for their share of the $10.9 million purse, which set a record in 2022. With such high stakes on the line, you can be sure that this will be an event you won’t want to miss!