Horses the stars as Days of '47 opens

WEST VALLEY CITY — Painted Salley reared up and shot out of the gate sending Casey Sisk to the dirt in less than three seconds. Bar Hop threw Ben Campbell over his head and then barely missed stepping on him as he continued kicking and jumping.

And then there was Dream with Me, who changed directions so quickly, Shank Stephens left his boot in the stirrup as he crashed to the ground on his back.

Morgan Forbes watched guys fly off of horses and into the dirt, but he didn't let it dampen his enthusiasm for the rank horse he'd drawn in the opening night of the Days of '47 Rodeo Monday night at the E Center.

"Tonight's round goes to the horses," said Forbes, from Kaycee, Wyo., who managed to make it to the whistle atop Wrangler Rivets, a horse that's been to the National Finals Rodeo. "This is one of the better pens of horses I've seen all year. We don't get paid unless we win, and we don't win unless we draw a great horse."

Forbes said he actually prefers to win on a night when the cowboys get the best of the bucking horses.

"I don't like to see guys get bucked off," he said. "I'd rather everybody ride well. It doesn't bother me a bit, it's just about me and my horse. I knew I had a great horse."

And Forbes needed a great horse to help him return to former glory.

"This year has been a humbling year," he said after recovering from two serious injuries, including shoulder surgery. "It felt good. I thought I could have rode better, but I just want to get back to basics and ride this year."

Forbes is the son of a five-time National Finals qualifier in saddle bronc riding, and the 26-year-old qualified for the NFR in 2005. He came close last year, and then he struggled to stay healthy.

"I've been working 90 rodeos a year since I was 18," he said of his schedule, which heats up right now with rodeos in Cheyenne, Ogden, Deadwood and Spanish Fork, just to name a few. "It's what we do. It's our job. We get used to it."

The best bull ride of the night came from Ted Bert, Calif., who managed to stay on The Liberator for eight seconds and earn 80 points for the ride. Only three men managed to make the whistle — Bert; Cole Hermanson, 79 points; and Kenneth Callaway, 75 points.