PROMOTIONAL SECTION Friday night festivities before, after NFR NFR PAGE 2 LAS VEGAS REVIEW-JOURNAL • FRIDAY, DECEMBER 13, 2013 NATIONAL FINALS RODEO It’s all about experience O’Brien Cooper an old hat when it comes to team roping JOHN LOCHER/LAS VEGAS REVIEW-JOURNAL Clay O’Brien Cooper, left, and Jake Barnes compete in the team roping event during the seventh round of the National Finals Rodeo at the Thomas & Mack Center on Dec. 9, 2008. By PATRICK EVERSON enough in a season to earn an NFR LAS VEGAS REVIEW-JOURNAL CLAY O’BRIEN COOPER berth. Event: Team roping “When you start out the year, you World standing/earnings: 14th, $65,643 have the expectation of hopefully lay O’Brien Cooper is old Residence: Gardnerville having a good year,” O’Brien Cooper enough to be the father of National Finals Rodeo qualifications: said. “But somewhere along the line, many of his team roping peers. 27 (1981-95, 1997-98, 2000-04, 2006-08, each year is gonna present its obstacles. C Yet Father Time still hasn’t 2012-13); seven world titles (1985-89, You just have to be committed to press caught up to the 52-year-old, who is 1992, 1994) through. competing in his 27th National Finals Noteworthy: O’Brien Cooper, a team “Our year started off where we didn’t roping heeler, is still making hay at the Rodeo, his 23rd at the Thomas & Mack age of 52, competing strongly enough to do really good at rodeos that counted Center. put himself in world title contention. In toward the NFR. But then we won at O’Brien Cooper made his first NFR 2012, O’Brien Cooper roped with Chad Houston, which was good even though in 1981, and he’s bagged seven world Masters and won the NFR average title, that one doesn’t count in the standings. championships in the past 32 years. Last with a total time of 73.4 seconds for 10 Then we had a really good spring, and year, he made another run at the team rounds, and he finished second in the we established ourselves in the top 15 in roping title, working with Chad Masters. world standings with $189,666 — just the standings.” The two won the NFR average — the $1,131 behind Jade Corkill. O’Brien It was a rough summer, and the best aggregate time over the 10 rounds Cooper is roping this year with 31-year- two were in and out of the top 15 in old Justin Van Davis. — helping Masters win the header world their respective standings, but did crown as O’ Brien Cooper took second in just enough late in the season to hang the heeler world standings, just $1,131 on. O’Brien Cooper finished 14th with short of the title. partner, Justin Van Davis, a 31-year-old other for 15 years, but they’ve roped O’Brien Cooper, a Gardnerville making his NFR debut. The two are together only a few times several years ▶ SEE EXPERIENCE PAGE 4 resident, is back this year with a new hardly strangers, having known each ago, and Davis had never tried to rope Going strong at 52 RODEO Family Owned and Operated Complete Auto Repair &Maintenance Home of the $10 Oil Change SALE OFF ANY SERVICE OR REPAIREPAIR OF $200 OR MORE. FullyyFull Functional livemusicperformanceby 30-30! In JimJim( (and(andJ Jimmy)immy) WWeeTTrruustst Seth Turner andthe Applied to total parts &labor invoice Limit one per customer,may not be combined with any other coupons, discounts or advertised specials. High Desert Drifters Must be presented at time of written authorization. Expires 1/31/14 The Bull Hide - thursday,friday,saturday $ Basic 10/30 Oil GreatGreat 129.95 ParlourBar 6p.m –10p.m. $ 00 -Made in USA &Filter Change Americancaneri Up to 5qts. Plus tax and disposal fee, canister filters 10 extra, most cars and light trucks. 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Page 2 • Friday, December 13, 2013 a Las Vegas Review-Journal NFR Today’s Wrangler National Finals Rodeo events Brett Eldredge FRIDAY, DEC. 13 Las Vegas Convention Center 12 p.m. – 1 p.m. — Outside the Barrel Tip of the Day — More than 40 hotel with Flint Rasmussen properties in Clark County show the 12 p.m. – 2 p.m. — Wrangler NFR Wrangler NFR on live satellite feed. Autograph Session (Saddle Bronc Viewing is in high definition at select Riders), Las Vegas Convention Center properties. NFR IN ARENA NFR 9 – 5 6:45 p.m. National anthem singer — 8 a.m. — 27th annual Spurs & Spikes Daryle Singletary Golf Tournament (ticket required) 7 p.m. Ninth Go-Round NFR 10 a.m. – 5 p.m. — Cowboy FanFest, performance, Thomas & Mack Center Las Vegas Convention Center 10 a.m. – 5 p.m. — Cowboy Christmas, NFR AFTER DARK Bill Engvall 6:30 p.m. – 4 a.m. — Rodeo Vegas 2013, 8 p.m. — Sinbad, The Orleans The Mirage 8 p.m. — JayZ, Mandalay Bay 8 p.m. – 2 a.m. — Gary Leffew’s 9 p.m. — Damsel, LoCash Cowboys Legendary Buck ’n Ball, Gold Coast and Neal McCoy, 10 p.m. 9 p.m. – 3 a.m. — Gold Buckle Zone, 9 p.m. — Bill Engvall, Treasure Island MGM Grand 10 p.m. — Merle Haggard, Golden 10:30 p.m. – 11:30 p.m. — National Nugget Finals Tonight Show, Gold Coast 10 p.m. — Jerrod Neimann, The 11 p.m. – Go-Round Buckle Mirage Presentations, South Point 10 p.m. — Rodney Carrington, MGM Grand ENTERTAINMENT Highlight of the Day — Brett Eldredge 7 p.m. — Aaron Watson with Wolf performs at Gary Leffew’s Legendary Creek, South Point Buck ’n Ball at Gold Coast. Admission is 7:30 p.m. — Shania Twain, Caesars free, doors open at 8 p.m. Palace For a complete listing of events, 8 p.m. — Brett Eldredge, Gold Coast go to www.NFRexperience.com or 8 p.m. — The Black Crowes, Hard follow us on Facebook or Twitter at / Jerrod Neimann Rock LasVegasNFR #WranglerNFR. �������� ��� ��� �� �� ���� ����� ������ ����� ����� �������������������� �������������� ��� ���������� ���������������� ��� ����� ���� � ��� ����� ���� ������ ����� �� �������� ������ ��� ����� ������ ������ � � �� � ���� ������������ ���� ����� � ��� � ��� ����� �������� ���� ����� ���� ������ �������� ���� �������������� ���� ���� �� ������ ���� ���������� �������� ����� �������� Las Vegas Review-Journal a Friday, December 13, 2013 • Page 3 NFR Judges relish pressure-packed duty ports fans love to yell at referees and officials. It’s a hobby for some, who Sblurt out profanity-laced diatribes like they’re going out of style. The practice is much more subdued in ProRodeo, but the sport’s officials aren’t immune to the attacks. Neal Reid IN THE ARENA At the Wrangler National Finals Rodeo, the 14 judges and pro officials who don the black-and-white-striped- vests to decide scores in the roughstock events and oversee the timed events receive mostly good-natured ribbing when fans don’t agree with their marks or calls. Highly trained and specially selected by rodeo administrators, ProRodeo judges and officials are immensely important to the $6.25 million event. They decide whether they think NEAL REID/SPECIAL TO THE LAS VEGAS REVIEW-JOURNAL saddle bronc riders miss their horses Wrangler NFR judge Mike Todd is one of 14 men tasked with deciding scores and making calls at the 55th staging of the world’s richest rodeo. out of the chutes, determine whether roughstock cowboys make it to the year. “There’s stuff that happens while doing their work, unless they get was made to move the Finals to the eight-second whistle and determine that’s minute that is going to make a run over by an animal, make a tough or “Entertainment Capital of the World” in whether they think the timed-event difference between whether a guy wins questionable call or input a score that the early 1980s. contestants have broken the barrier. a world championship or he doesn’t.” puzzles spectators. They are students of “I was in Oklahoma City when they Judges can’t miss the slightest detail Judging the Wrangler NFR presents the sport who know its history, legacy announced the Finals were moving to or fail to see anything that happens in unique challenges. and traditions and who often come from Las Vegas, and there were quite a few the arena because tens of thousands of “It’s the best against the best, and a long line of rodeo people. people from Oklahoma at the table I was dollars and gold buckles are on the line. there are so many similar animals First and foremost, Wrangler NFR sitting at,” Gibbs said. “They said, ‘It’ll And they often draw the ire of some and rides,” said Steve Knowles, who judges are huge rodeo fans who love never work. You’ll be back here in two of the more than 17,000 fans filling the is judging the Finals for the 15th time. living the Western way of life. to three years.’ And look where we’ve Thomas & Mack Center each night. “So, you have to decipher between “You enjoy watching a great ride gone now.” “We’re going to get booed,” said those and pick a winner, and that’s a lot where an animal really bucks, or a great The two veterans admitted that, George Gibbs, who has been a judge at more difficult here.