Jake Smith and Jonathan Torres both won their first year-end circuit titles, claiming the 2024 Wilderness Circuit heading and heeling titles.
Smith claimed the heading title with $41,138.34 won on the circuit front after roping with Douglas Rich this year, and Torres won the heeling with $43,414.02 after heeling for Nelson Wyatt.
For Smith, 2024 has been a year to remember as he’s heading to his first NFR in December, and winning the Wilderness Circuit was the cherry on top.
“I’m just tickled to death,” Smith, 31, said. “I’m excited. I was wanting to do better at the circuit finals than I did—I didn’t do a great job for Doug, and it wound up costing him winning the year-end. I was really wanting him to win it with me. But don’t get me wrong, I’m still excited that I did end up winning the year-end, and I’m excited get to rope with Torres at the NFR Open.”
Torres, who’s ready to heel at his third NFR, won a tight battle atop the Wilderness Circuit standings after the circuit finals Nov. 1-2, in Heber City, Utah.
“My main goal is making the NFR, but then going up there and winning the circuit’s still pretty cool,” Torres said. “Obviously the prizes are cool—saddle, buckle—and then you were the champion of that circuit for the year. It’s a lot of work, a lot of determination, a lot of goals. A guy has to meet his rodeo count. So just connecting all the dots makes it feel like you’ve accomplished your task or your goal.”
Wilderness works for Smith
Oklahoma’s Smith is actually a Prairie Circuit cowboy, but with trying to make the NFR, the Wilderness Circuit had more money up for grabs and worked easier logistically.
“Last year we counted up, and we went to like 18 Wilderness Circuit rodeos last year, and that wasn’t even our circuit,” Smith said. “We went to that many. So I was like, well, heck, we only got to go to a few more in that circuit. And it seemed like it’d be way easier; I knew there were a few that we didn’t go to just because we didn’t even really know about all those rodeos. It just seems like those rodeos are getting better and better out there, too.”
Smith and Rich kicked off their circuit season with a $5,515-a-man trip to the Clark County Fair & Rodeo in Logandale, Nevada, Apr. 10-14. They headed out a few weeks early for the Reno Rodeo—held at the end of June—to enter some more circuit rodeos, and they kept the ball rolling with $6,245 apiece on the circuit front in June.
The beginning of July brought in $4,264 a man before their biggest hit of the year: Utah Days of ’47 Rodeo. Smith and Rich took home the Salt Lake City win and pocketed $14,623 apiece, giving Smith a nearly untouchable lead in the circuit.
“Salt Lake obviously was huge—which I don’t even think it’s going to count for next year—but Salt Lake was a huge, huge hit for us,” Smith said. “Right there at the beginning, I know we won the one in Eagle Mountain, and we won a few thousand there it seemed like for the first couple weeks at those circuit rodeos.”
For the first-time NFR qualifier, making the circuit finals hasn’t even been on his radar the past few years, until the addition of the NFR Open.
“For the last several years, I haven’t even attempted to do it,” Smith admitted. “But the NFR Open is so good and it’s gotten to where you see how much that rodeo pays and everything, and it seems like it’s hard to miss it.”
Torres’ Wilderness strategy
Like Smith, the Wilderness Circuit was easier to work for Florida native Torres.
“The rodeos are great—Utah has a bunch of really good rodeos and they pay really good,” Torres said. “I just thought while we’re out there already traveling around, going to the best rodeos and stuff, it’d be nice to get the circuit in, too. I hadn’t made a circuit finals in a while just because I was Southeastern; well, that’s hard to make. Then I was Texas, and that’s a little tricky.”
Torres was on the money with his decision—literally. His biggest circuit hit came in Reno where he won second and pocketed $9,861 during his trip. June, in general, was a huge month for Torres as he picked up $18,317 on the circuit front that month.
When the season came to a close, Torres and Rich were neck and neck heading into Heber City with Torres trailing by just $217.32. Torres wanted to win as much money as possible, considering the circuit finals counts for the 2025 world standings, but he was also hopeful he and Rich could both make the NFR Open.
“We’re pretty good buddies and, obviously, the way it turned out, it wasn’t that great,” Torres admitted. “I was hoping we could win the average and win the year-end because then it would’ve dropped down where he could have roped with Jake, and I would’ve roped with Rhen. But, unfortunately, It didn’t work out that way.”
Smith and Torres will take on the NFR Open in Colorado Springs July 8-12, 2025.
