Coleman Proctor and Ryan Motes have no plans to let up after winning $433,333 at RFD-TV's The American, $50,000 of which counts toward the PRCA world standings and skyrocketed them into NFR contention in March.
"There’s no back off," Motes said. "Our goal has been to win the world. That’s my main goal. It’s my only goal as far as what’s left in my rodeo career. For me, there are two ways of looking at it. I’ve got the NFR made, I can stay home. But that’s not good enough for me. We had a good blessing and a big win at The American. I should take full advantage of that."
Motes lost the world by less than $5,000 to Kollin VonAhn in 2015, when his then-partner Aaron Tsinigine won the gold buckle. That shortfall isn't lost on the Weatherford, Texas heeler.
"It's true that our rodeo schedule is going to be a little simpler," Motes said. "But we’re still going to go everywhere that’s good. I’m not going to skip off. The rodeo count is down to 55 this year, so we’re going to 55. Last year, my final week was brutal. This year, it’s not going to be nearly as bad with sending rights and flying across the country and barely sleeping. We’ll have a nice calm trip to Stephenville the last week of the regular season. But otherwise, I’m going to California this spring. It’s not going to change a whole lot. We’re still going to rodeo—but the all night drives and the dumb things we’ve done, we’ll probably do less of them. We're giving ourselves the best chance and trying to take advantage of the best rodeos we can."
The only time you'll see the team back off is toward the end of July, when Proctor and wife Stephanie are expecting their second daughter.
"I want to be able to pump the brakes then," Proctor said. "Steph was joking that we'd have the baby during the short round of Cheyenne. I told her that's perfect, because for the last 15 years, that hasn't been an issue. I get up in that last set, and by Saturday night, I'm crossing back into Mason County. But just in case, I've got drivers lined up already."
Proctor is behind Ty Blasingame in the PRCA world standings thanks to the latter's win at RodeoHouston, $71,831.94 to $61,886.96. Motes has the edge over Blasingame's Houston partner Kyle Lockett, $70,165.95 to $69,180.13. TRJ
