Rickey Green, who passed away Oct. 10, 2018, left a hole in the hearts of the BFI family. Green won the BFI title in 1984 with Mark Arnold, with a time of 57.99 seconds on six head, the first time the event was held in Reno.
“Rickey could go win the go rounds or win the average at the BFI,” event-founder Bob Feist said. “If he got tapped off, he could settle down and go for the average. Rickey was an all-around hand at the BFI. He could rope fast or he could rope consistent. If he needed to rope fast, he could do it. He was probably one of the fastest heelers we’ve ever had there. And then to come around and be able to put it all together to win the BFI was great.”
[READ MORE: Remembering Rickey Green]
Feist hauled Green after he got out of high school for one summer, and remembers the strength of Green’s character that carried on throughout his life.
“He was a humble person; very sincere,” Feist added. “He was very giving. He would help anybody. He had his own method of roping and it’s followed today by many people.”
Green had $24,755.80 in BFI earnings in his career, and he competed in the NFR in 1977–1978 and 1982–1989. In 1988, Green won the NFR average roping with Charles Pogue.
