HEMPSTEAD, Texas – Bodee Lammers has always been athletic, and a decade ago, it took him to west Texas to play football at Sul Ross State University.
After a year, he had an opportunity to test his hand at being a bronc buster. He was hooked, and he’s been chasing that rodeo high ever sense. On Friday night, he matched moves with Pete Carr Pro Rodeo’s Wilson Sanchez for 80 points to take the bareback riding lead at the Waller County Fair and Rodeo.
“Coming down here to this rodeo, it’s kind of a mixed pen of horses,” said Lammers, 28, of Tolar, Texas. “You’ve got some young ones, you’ve got some horses that have been around for a while, and then you’ve got horses like that, so I was real tickled to draw an NFR horse at this rodeo.”
Wilson Sanchez has been selected to the National Finals Rodeo eight times and has been one of the go-to bucking broncs in the mix when the animal arrives in Las Vegas. Cowboys have won multiple go-rounds on the back of the powerful mount. Carr is well known for having some incredible bucking horses, so it’s a natural fit for a Texas bareback rider to be matched with a Texas bronc.
“I go to quite a few Carr rodeos, because he puts on a lot of rodeos in our (Texas) Circuit,” said Lammers, who just wrapped up his 2024 regular season 48th in the world standings. “I go to a lot of smaller rodeos, so making the circuit finals is a big deal for me.”
There are a dozen or so regions in ProRodeo, and money not only counts toward the world standings, but dollars earned in the Lone Star State count toward in the circuit, and the top 12 earn the right to compete at the championship, which takes place next week in Waco, Texas. That’s been a goal for Lammers, who suffered through two years of injuries and didn’t return to the game until this past March.
“I got a late start to the 2024 season anyways, so I was just happy to finish the year out,” said Lammers, who finished the year with eight victories, including wins at Texas rodeos in Longview and Cleburne. “I had some goals to finish a little higher than I did, but with this rodeo being so close to the house, I figured I’d come down here and get a little circuit money for next year. I’ll go to Rosenburg (Texas) tomorrow then go to the circuit finals, and after that I’ll take a little time off and just get healed up for January.”
Riding bareback horses isn’t for the weak. Cowboys strap their riggings tightly around the animal’s chest, then wear specially designed gloves with binds that they wedge into the rawhide handles. They are virtually locked onto the bronc as it bucks, which helps make bareback riding the most physically demanding event in rodeo.
Lammers has had to overcome three bulging discs in his neck and a broken pelvis, but he’s back riding at the top of his game.
“I started to feel like I was getting the hang of this in the spring of 2021,” he said. “I went to the college rodeos that fall (2020), and I was thinking things were making progress. Then, for whatever reason, the light bulb went off in the break between the fall and spring semesters, and when the spring rodeos rolled around, I just started placing at those college rodeos and would hit some small ProRodeos and go to some good amateur rodeos and was just placing everywhere.
“I thought, ‘Maybe I do have this figured out a little bit.’ ”
Waller County Fair and Rodeo
Oct. 3-5
Hempstead, Texas
Bareback riding: 1. Bodee Lammers, 80 points on Pete Carr Pro Rodeo’s Wilson Sanchez; 2. Anthony Thomas, 77; 3. Kade Sonnier, 74; 4. Tim Murphy, 70; 5. Hayden James, 65; 6. Lane McGehee, 64; no other qualified rides.
Steer wrestling: 1. Brandon Harrison, 3.6 seconds; 2. Landris White, 4.6; 3. (tie) Emmett Edler, Cole Walker and Ryan Nettle, 4.7; 6. Cade Staton, 4.8; 7. Logan Mullin, 5.1; 8. Chance Howard, 5.3; 9. (tie) Gary Gilbert, Garrett Curry and Riley Westhaver, 5.3.
Tie-down roping: 1. Tanner Green, 8.0 seconds; 2. (tie) Chantz Webster, Cash Fuesz and Clint Singleton, 8.2; 5. Treg Schaack, 8.4; 6. Paul David Tierney, 8.6; 7. Marcos Costa, 8.8; 8. Adam Gray, 8.9; 9. Hagen Houck, 9.0; 10. (tie) Troy Reese, Connor Atkinson and Tate Teague, 9.8.
Breakaway roping: 1. (tie) Shayla Hall and McKenna Brennan, 2.1; 3. (tie) Hali Williams, Britta Strain, Carlee Martinez and Haley Mason, 2.2; 7. Rylee George, 2.3; 8. Aspen Miller, 2.4; 9. Cassidy Boggs, 2.5; 10. Payton Scalzo, 2.6; 11. (tie) Lari Dee Guy and Bailey Jay, 2.7.
Saddle bronc riding: 1. Skinny Parsons, 82 points on Pete Carr Pro Rodeo’s Beer Thirty; 2. Dean Wadsworth, 77; 3. (tie) Liam Pauley and Roper Kiesner, 72.5; 5. Cooper Lane, 72; 6. Nick LaDuke, 71; 7. Warwich Southern, 70; 8. Bryan Huey, 66.
Team roping: 1. Coy Brittain/Colton Brittain, 4.3 seconds; 2. Billy Bob Brown/Josh Patton, 4.4; 3. (tie) Manny Egusquiza/Eddie Medina and Jace Bland/Tyson Thompson, 4.5; 5. Bubba Buckaloo/Joseph Harrison, 4.6; 6. (tie) Cory Kidd/Dustin Davis and Joshua Torres/Caleb Hendrix, 4.7; 8. (tie) Colby Lovell/Ty Arnold and Curry Kirchner/Tyler McKnight, 4.8; 9. (tie) Paul David Tierney/Casey McCleskey and Chris Francis/Cade Passig, 4.9.
Barrel racing: 1. Steely Steiner, 14.27 seconds; 2. (tie) Acey Pinkston, Brittany Pozzi-Tonozzi and Katie Halbert, 15.32; 5. (tie) Liz Pinkston and Molly Otto, 15.41; 7. Aspen Adams, 15.42; 8. (tie) Rachelle Riggers and Jane Fabro, 15.43; 10. Ilyssa Riley, 15.45.
Bull riding: 1. (tie) Jacob Carige, on Pete Carr Pro Rodeo’s Deviant, Tyler Kippes, on Pete Carr Pro Rodeo’s Grindstone, 85 points; 3. Cutter Kaylor, 84; 4. Kolt Achenbach, 77; no other qualified rides.