ESTES PARK, Colo. – When “Smokey and the Bandit” came out 48 years ago, the lyrics to the title track were, “We’ve got a long way to go and a short time to get there.”
The plot centered around a couple of truckers who were bootlegging Coors beer on a quick deadline, but the same lyrics can easily be applied to Oklahoma team ropers Jake Clay of Sapulpa and Tanner Braden of Dewey.
Both have played on ProRodeo’s biggest stage, the National Finals Rodeo, though they did it with different partners. A header, Clay made it to Las Vegas in 2023 and roped with Tyler Worley; Braden made it last year and heeled for Cyle Dennison. They’re a long way from making the NFR together this year, and with less than three months remaining, they need all the help they can get.
They put the hammer down during Saturday’s opening performance of the Rooftop Rodeo before a sold-out crowd at Granny May Arena. They stopped the clock in 4.4 seconds to take the lead with five nights of competition remaining in Estes Park.
“We’ve had a little heck, but we’ve caught a few hear lately,” said Clay, 26. “It feels a lot better than it did a couple months ago.”
Their time was faster than any run made a year ago, so they stand a good chance to catch some big cash at the base of the Rocky Mountain National Park.
“The last week or so, we’ve got our run back, and that one right there felt pretty danged good,” said Braden, 36. “(Jake) ropes so sharp, and he’s good at the barrier (the start). He sets (the steer) up for me to ride around him and give me the same look every time.”
As the only true team event in rodeo, there are many factors that come into play to make a solid run. There are five brains at work during a single run: two men, two horses and one steer. It doesn’t take much to throw a wrench into things.
“I actually missed a lot to start with, but it’s starting to feel pretty good right now,” Clay said.
Part of that has to do with the horsepower both men use.
“He’s got a couple (good horses,” he said of Clay. “I’ve got a sorrel that I used last year, then I just got this (palomino) right before the finals. The last few weeks, and he’s sure stepped up to the plate.”
The steps need to continue to be onward and upward. Only the top 15 on the money list in each event at the conclusion of the regular season advance to the NFR.
“We’re just right now starting to put it together, the best time,” Braden said. “Over the fourth, we made a few good runs and won a couple rodeos. We’re leaving here winning first, and that’s all you can do. Now, it’s up to the rest of them to beat us.”