Owens to compete in national rodeo
Contributed photo
Cody Owens will take his rodeo skills to the national level, later this month, in North Dakota.
By Richard Zowie
Highlander Sports Editor
Cody Owens’ earned a position on the Texas National Junior High Rodeo Team, and his next venture will take him to close to the other side of the country.
An eighth grade student at Faith Academy, Owens has qualified to compete at the world’s largest junior high rodeo.
He and his team will travel to Huron, South Dakota, June 24-30 to compete in the 14th annual National Junior High Finals Rodeo in the Tie Down Roping competition.
Owens and his team will compete with around 1,000 contestants from 43 states and five Canadian provinces, Australia and Mexico.
To qualify on the Texas team, Owens was in the top four for his event.
“I have been in rodeo for three years, and what I like most about rodeo is the tough competition and how you have to work hard to be successful,” Owens said. “I also like making friends with people who share the same passion. The biggest challenge is handling the pressure and overcoming doubt. I have been blessed and not had any major injuries, there is pain from hours of practice, but you have to push past that if you want to be a champion. I know I will be successful if I keep my mind right and continue to work hard.”
Besides competing for more than $80K in prizes, the contestants will also vie for more than $200,000 in college scholarships and a chance to be named National Junior High Finals Rodeo World Champion.
To earn this title, contestants must finish in the top 20 based on their combined times and scores in the first two rounds to advance to Saturday evening's final round.
World champions will then be determined based on their three round combined times/scores.
“It is a big deal just to make it to Nationals, and I have to have faith in God and trust in his plan that hard work will pay off,” Owens said.
Saturday championship will be televised nationally as part of the Cinch High School Rodeo Tour telecast series on RFD-TV. Live broadcasts will air on www.ridepass.com. Performance times are 7 p.m. June 24, 9 a.m. and 7 p.m. each day after.
