Smithville, Tennessee, header Clark Adcock and Ozan, Arkansas, heeler Ben Runyon won $133,200 in the #14.5 Riata Championship at the Lazy E Arena in Guthrie, Oklahoma, with 27.46 seconds on four head aboard Sevens Brazos Flash and Jesses Pick.

They finished 0.14 seconds ahead of Wesley Thorp and Chance Anderson. Adcock bought his horse in January wanting a Riata nominee; Runyon learned his was nominated after he’d already decided he wanted him.

The 5-year-old Sevens Brazos Flash is by Two Eyed Brazos, the 2004 palomino son of Two Eyed Red Buck out of Hilda Jo Jack that stands at Marshall and Lezlie Wier’s Wier Ranch in Lipan, Texas. He’s out of Sevens Princess by Dashing Cartel. Marshall S. Wier bred him; Adcock owns him.

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Jesses Pick, a 2016 model, is by the 6666 Ranch’s Jesses Topaz, a 2011 buckskin son of Mr Jess Perry out of Paddys Topaz by Paddys Irish Whiskey, and out of Stylish Pick by Sixes Pick. Burnett Ranches LLC bred him, and Brittan Tyler Driggers is listed as his owner.

The Head Horse

Adcock bought Sevens Brazos Flash in January. The horse had been in Guthrie a year earlier, under the rider who sold him.

“Ben and Sarah Nailen sold me that horse. I think Ben rode him here last year, took him back home. Ben ended up breaking his foot or his leg, didn’t get to ride him. I got to go in January and ride the horse and they sold him to me, so…” Adcock said.

The tryout didn’t go well.

“Funny story on that. One of my buddies, Logan Moore, actually trained the horse when he was 2 and 3 years old. When I went to try the horse, then we didn’t have a great go of it. But it worked out good,” Adcock said. “Ben and the horse had bumped heads a little bit. They weren’t getting along great, so … We had to do a little more training, but I knew he was a good horse, and he was still, he was 4 at the time.”

He took the chance because he wanted a horse to ride at the Riata.

“Yeah, I was definitely, I was definitely wanting to buy a Riata horse, and I knew he was a great horse, regardless, so it worked out good.”

He leaves the bloodline calls to the man who started the horse.

“I didn’t know the bloodlines, but my friend Logan that trained that horse really bragged on him and he trains almost all of my colts,” Adcock explained. “So I lean on him for the pedigrees. He tells me if he likes those or not, because I send them to him to ride, so whatever he wants, that’s what we try to do.”

The Heel Horse

Runyon’s horse came out of Hot Springs, Arkansas, by way of the Driggers family.

“Britt and Jimmy Driggers. They’re in Hot Springs. A guy, neighbor of theirs, raised him, and they bought him as a baby, and then they sent him off to whoever and broke him, and then rode him, roped on him and everything. You can head on him, heel on him … My wife’s going to be back here in a couple weeks, run him in a Pink Buckle. So, yeah, he’s a jack of all trades,” Runyon said.

The Riata nomination was news to him.

“No, I just kind of stumbled on the Riata part. I wanted the horse anyway. I’ve been hunting for one for a while. And I really like him. And then they’re like, oh, yeah, by the way, he’s Riata and all this. You know, it’s just bonus. Yeah, we just kind of stumbled on that. Wasn’t part of the plan, exactly,” Runyon said.

“No, not really. I mean, that one was just, he was a good horse. He was kind of what I was looking for. In that particular case, the Riata deal was just a bonus.”

His wife is the one who follows bloodlines.

“She knows a lot more about it than I do. You know, on the Riata, not so much. She runs barrels, she don’t rope. So, I mean, she’s kind of all about the Pink Buckle and the Ruby Buckle and Fortunes and this and that and the other, but … I’ve been getting educated.”

He’s had the horse two years and was in this spot a year ago.

“Oh, I mean, I rode him at the rodeos some, and jackpotted on him some, and like I said, won one here and there. I’ve had him for two years now. We actually, I rode him here last year and we were third callback, I think, in this roping last year. And it didn’t come together there at the end, but I didn’t have any doubt he’d be back there again,” Runyon said.

The Short Round

Adcock said the short round was softer than he expected, so he gave a little back at the barrier.

“No, honestly, they didn’t make it as tough as I thought they were going to. It seemed like nobody missed for the first 20 teams. They let up on us a little bit at the end. So we went back down just a little bit. … I didn’t want to break the barrier and go catch it,” Adcock said.

Runyon had to wait on his last steer.

“Yeah, I mean, I felt like I had to be a little bit patient on that last one. I made it hard on him. He was a little rough right there in the corner. But I did finally rope, he had cleaned up and he was good then, but it just kind of waited it out just a little bit. Luckily, we had enough time that we could wait it out for a little bit,” Runyon said.

“I think I leaned up and showed him the shot. So yeah, he was ready to go left. So I bobbled my dally just a little bit, but it all worked out. He’s forgiving.”

The Check

Adcock sells real estate and works as an auctioneer. Runyon runs mama cows and preconditions yearlings.

“Man, it’s just a great opportunity. I don’t know. I guess we’ll pay some bills off and probably pay some taxes out of it,” Adcock said.

Runyon said the money won’t go to cattle.

“I would guess it’s going to be a new horse trailer or some more Riata horses so we can come back here,” he said.

Riata #14.5 Results

All results are unofficial and do not include stallion and first-nominator money.