Defying age, size, Etbauer continues unparalleled rise

If you see Billy Etbauer today, just call him "Timex."

The 46-year-old saddle bronc rider just keeps ticking and ticking and ticking.

The five-time world champion added to a list of rodeo milestones darn near as tall as his 5-foot-5-inch frame by winning his 50th go-round in his record 21st Finals qualification.

"Thank God for that," he said of becoming the first contestant to win 50.

"To think when we first started that a guy could get to (50 round wins) is unreal," he said. "I just feel thoroughly blessed and thank all the people who helped me along the way."

Etbauer scored 90 points on Bar T Rodeo's Son of Sadie before 17,069 at the Thomas & Mack Center.

Runner-up Jesse Kruse is half Etbauer's age and was 3 when Etbauer debuted in the 1989 NFR.

Etbauer competed in about 35 rodeos this year and plans to maintain that pace for at least another year.

"I hope it's not my body that tells me to stop," he said. "I hope I get a tip from God when it's time to stay home."

Etbauer won his first world championship in 1992 and last one in 2004. He placed fourth on opening night and tied for second Tuesday. The South Dakota native living in Edmond, Okla., started the NFR ranked sixth in the world and has moved up to fourth despite being bucked off three times.

Other seventh go-round winners were: Clint Cannon (Waller, Texas) and Wes Stevenson (Lubbock, Texas), tied in bareback riding; Luke Branquinho (Los Alamos, Calif.), steer wrestling; Derrick Begay (Seba Dalkai, Ariz.) and Cesar de la Cruz (Tucson, Ariz.), team roping; Hunter Herrin (Apache, Okla.) and Cody Ohl (Hico, Texas), calf roping; Lindsay Sears (Nanton, Alberta), barrel racing; and Corey Navarre (Weatherford, Texas), bull riding.

• NOTES -- Trevor Brazile was shut out again in calf roping and team roping while Josh Peek placed fifth in calf roping to win $4,423 and added $3,593 by tying for fifth in steer wrestling.

Brazile leads Peek by $138,294 and could clinch his seventh all-around world championship in tonight's eighth go-round that begins at 6:45. ...

It was runner-up night for Southern Nevadans. Logandale's Randon Adams and JoJo LeMond of Andrews, Texas, placed second in team roping, and Las Vegas resident Colin McTaggart was second in bull riding.

Contact reporter Jeff Wolf at jwolf@reviewjournal.com or 702-383-0247.