Rodeo 101: Saddle Bronc
The first-ever rodeo came to be as a match between cowboys trying to ride bucking broncos out on the range. Therefore, the Saddle Bronc Riding is the original rodeo event and well over 100 years old as a sport.
The saddle bronc rider sits on a specialized saddle – it has no horn, and the stirrups are set forward. His only handhold is a six-foot braided rope called the rein. When the gate opens, his feet must be above the breaks of the horse’s shoulders to adhere to the “Mark Out Rule.”
After the horse’s first move, usually a jump, the cowboy begins spurring in long, smooth strokes, in sync with the horse’s jumps – legs straight when the bronc comes down, toward the back of the saddle at the top of the jump. His free hand may not touch his equipment, his body or the horse. If the ride lasts the required eight seconds, it is scored by the judges. A possible 50 points for the rider and 50 points for the horse. The World Record Saddle Bronc score is 95.5 points held by Canadian Logan Hay.
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2025 Winner: Logan Hay
Saddle Bronc Competition: World Record Holder, Logan Hay, Takes the Win Over Four-Time World Champion, Zeke Thurston
When five-time reigning Canadian champion Zeke Thurston pumped his fist in the air following his 89.5-point ride, it looked like he was poised to take home the spurs in the Saddle Bronc competition at the 2025 Cloverdale Rodeo. His total held up until the world-record holder, Logan Hay of Wildwood, Alberta, saddled up on Double Red in the last ride of the competition. The crowd knew Logan’s performance was something special, and they were right. Moments after the ride, Brett Gardiner’s voice boomed out over the speakers in the arena, “Hey Logan Hay, you just went 90 and a half points in Cloverdale!”
“Oh, I’m pumped. I love this rodeo,” said Hay in his post-event interview. “I’ve been coming here since I was little. To compete in this arena that my dad, and my uncle, and my brothers have, it’s a blessing…The energy that this crowd brings, it’s just unmatched.”
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