Search for bull riding champion begins

BY RHYS THOMAS

THE first round of the 2023 Great Northern Bullriding Series proved to be a spectacle in front of a big crowd at the Mareeba Rodeo Grounds on Saturday night who witnessed nearly 40 riders from across the region fight it out in the ring against each other and some nasty big bulls.

Due to its close proximity to Anzac Day, the first round was dubbed the Anzac Round, with funds raised from the weekend’s event going to the Mareeba RSL Sub-branch.

People from across Queensland lined the arena of the rodeo grounds for the first round of a new and improved Great Northern Bullriding Series.

The series has undergone exponential growth recently and this year is offering just shy of $50,000 in prize money including $10,000 to this year’s champion.

Great Northern Bullriding Series director Peter Brown said it was amazing to kick off the series once again in Mareeba in front of an energised crowd.

“The first round is always good, new year, new challenges and new opportunities for the cowboys and cowgirls,” he said.

“It is good to see some of the bulls perform, they are always fresh in round one.

“It was a tough night with some injuries but that is the game we play.”

Townsville based rider Braydon Wellby was the pick of the riders on the night and had a first good ride that put him ahead of his competition.

Hot on his tail was last year’s champion Wyatt Milgate followed closely by Travis Koolatah who made his open bull ride debut.

The Mareeba-based rider got his first taste of the open bull ride and made it known he is here to compete this year after a great first ride that shot him up into the top three.

While he may not have taken home the trophy for first place in the open bull ride, Travis managed to secure first place in the novice division.

Most riders managed to ride for time in the first round but it was a different story for the second and championship rounds as not one of the riders managed to hold on for the entire eight seconds.

Wyatt was just one second short of completing his second ride which could have shot him up into first place.

In the end, Wellby managed to hold on to his position and ended up claiming the first round of the open bull ride this year.

The competition is far from over as the Great Northern Bullriding Series heads to Gordonvale on 13 May.