Experience leads to success for Orin Larsen at Walla Walla

Coming into the last month of the season, Orin Larsen had three rodeo wins. Over the past three days, he added two more titles to the list.
 
The Manitoba bareback rider won back-to-back rodeos at the Magic Valley Stampede in Filer, Idaho, and the Walla Walla (Wash.) Frontier Days.
 
Larsen said the wins, especially Walla Walla Sept. 5, are coming at the right time of the season.
 
“Especially this time of year, it’s pretty important,” Larsen said. “Everybody, including myself, is getting worn out from the travel and getting on a lot of horses.
 
“It’s pretty crucial for me in my situation to just get as much as I can going into Vegas. So a win like Walla Walla is definitely huge to me.”
 
Larsen rode Mayhem of Big Stone Rodeo Inc. to 91 points, the highest score on that horse this season.

This wasn’t the first time Larsen and Mayhem met. The two battled at the 2019 National Finals Rodeo, where Larsen was also victorious, posting a 90-point ride.
 
Sitting 10th in the PRCA | RAM World Standings heading into the weekend, Larsen is looking to finish the season strong and end it with a ticket to Las Vegas Dec. 2-11.
 
“(My goal is to) make the NFR and nod for a gold buckle, just like every other card holder,” Larsen said. “That’s what’s on our minds and that’s what we strive for – I think just to ride to the best of our abilities and when there’s an opportunity to make sure we capitalize on it.”
 
A 2021 NFR qualification would make for Larsen’s seventh consecutive trip to the Finals.
 
Having multiple seasons and trips to the NFR under his belt is something Larsen thinks will help him at rodeos like the Pendleton (Ore.) Round-Up and the ProRodeo Tour Finale in Salinas, Calif.
 
“I think experience has definitely played a factor into really anything and anyone’s craft,” Larsen said. “To say it’s been, you know, an asset throughout my career would be correct, for sure.”
 
Larsen is headed to Ellensburg, Wash., next, where he hopes to keep the win streak alive by keeping it simple.
 
“It’s not rocket science,” Larsen said. “It’s just the basics. The basics will get you to the Finals. If you can do that consistently on the right horses, it’ll win you a lot of money.”
 
Other winners at the $190,853 rodeo were steer wrestler Kyle Irwin (8.2 seconds on two head); team ropers Kal Fuller/Cullen Teller (9.4 seconds on two head); saddle bronc rider K’s Thompson (85 points on Big Stone Rodeo Inc’s Rubels); tie-down roper Justin Smith (16.5 seconds on two head); barrel racer Jordon Briggs (17.02 seconds); steer roper J. Tom Fisher (37.3 seconds on three head); and bull rider Matt Palmer (88 points on Big Stone Rodeo Inc.’s War Cry).

Source: ProRodeo

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