A NEW DUNN CHASES BULL RIDE CROWN

PROSERPINE cowboy Roy Dunn is the early season leader in Australian Professional Rodeo Association bull ride standings.

Dunn is on top of the standings from Carl Green, of Walcha, NSW.

Jackson Gill from the famous Gill rodeo family at Upper Horton, New South Wales, is in third place.

Dunn has the chance to increase his lead in the standings when he competes in rodeos at Richmond, Cloncurry and Mt Isa on successive weekends as part of the Northern Run.

He is one of 16 bull riders in the field for the Richmond Rodeo on Saturday (July 26).

Dysart rider Sonny Schafferius will be one of the favourites at Richmond after finishing second overall in the National Finals Rodeo at Caboolture in May.

Title winner Kurt Shephard, of Atherton, was the only rider to make time on four bulls at the finals, and Schafferius was next best recording a score on two bulls. None of the remaining 13 cowboys in the NFR made time on more than one bull.

There are 170 nominations for Richmond, including 43 in team roping.

Former Hughenden and now Emerald cowboy Clancy Middleton will be one of the cowboys to beat in timed events.

Emerald rider Shane Kenny is the most successful cowboy in APRA history and always performs well on the Northern Run so will be the toughest opposition to Middleton.

Many of the best competitors in the nation will spend the weekend between the Cloncurry and Mt Isa rodeos in north-west Queensland which boosts numbers for both rodeos.

While nominations haven’t closed, there are already 382 nominations for Cloncurry for August 1-2 and 410 for Mt Isa on August 8-10. These rodeos rate with Warwick in October and the National Finals Rodeo as the four biggest in the APRA.

Bull riding might be the toughest event in rodeo but there are plenty of young riders keen to try their luck against the best bucking bulls in the nation.

With more nominations expected, there are already 91 nominations in the three bull rides at Mt Isa.

Rodeo Program: July 26 Richmond; August 1-2 Cloncurry; August 8-10 Mt Isa; August 16 Katherine (NT); August 23 Darwin (NT); August 30 Mataranka (NT).

More information from APRA on 07 4661 8183

STANDINGS LEADERS (After first two months of season):

All around Shane Kenny (Emerald)

Saddle bronc Jason Crawford (Dingo)

Bull ride Roy Dunn (Proserpine)

Bareback Jamie Howlett (Roma)

Rope and tie Shane Kenny (Emerald)

Steer wrestling Kacey Kenny (Emerald)

Team roping header Jordan Austin-Iker (Alton Downs)

Team roping heeler Brenton Bell (Gracemere)

All around cowgirl Jill Lyons (Gracemere)

Barrel racing Jill Lyons (Gracemere)

Breakaway roping Tamara Knox (Ebenezer)