Alva Review-Courier -

NWOSU Sports

LAS VEGAS – Coleman Proctor has a way of finding the bright spots on cloudy days.

His attitude toward his job as one of the elite headers in ProRodeo has served him well, and it was magnified over the first nine nights of this National Finals Rodeo. He and his heeler, New Mexican Logan Medlin, have suffered four no-times, but they’ve still earned more than $92,000 so far.

“We’ve been making our run all week, but we’ve just had some bobbles here and there,” said Proctor, a seven-time NFR qualifier from Pryor, Oklahoma. “We’ve had four no-times, so that’s the killer. I’ve missed two; Logan has missed two. Other than that, every time we’ve come together tight, we’ve won a lot of money.”

They stopped the clock in 3.5 seconds to tie for Friday’s ninth-round win, pocketing $24,167. It was their second go-round win of the week, and it marked a first for Proctor.

“That is the first non-fifth round buckle to win,” he said with a laugh, noting that he’d won the fifth round in 2014-15 and earlier at this year’s championship.

That’s the reality of rodeo. It’s a roller coaster of emotions and outcomes. He scrambled at the end of the regular season to earn a spot in the field, and he and Medlin have made an impact. Proctor has increased his annual earnings to $155,271 and sits seventh in the world standings.

“I’ve come out here and struggled (before),” Proctor said. “I’ve come out here and not won that much money. You get to searching for answers throughout the week. It’s a long stretch out here; we are out here for two weeks. You start trying things you’ve never tried in your life.

“At the end of the day it’s proven on paper that what we do is fast enough, especially in this building.”

It’s because of that reality that he has remained confident. He looks for the good things in life, and he smiles through every bobble and every gem.

“I’ve had a lot of confidence all week,” he said. “My horse has been working great. Logan is an amazing heeler; he has the heel horse of the year. We’ve got a lot more things going for us than we do against us. Honestly, it’s been good fortune for everybody else that it has been this rocky for us.”

They have one more shot to collect more Las Vegas money during Saturday’s 10th round. They’ll battle until the last loop is thrown.

“I’m looking forward to the opportunity (Saturday) night to right that ship,” Proctor said.