Wilson nearly repeats Saddle Bronc title in Vegas

Red Oak’s Coy Wilson, who took first place in the Junior National Finals Rodeo Saddle Broc competition in Las Vegas in 2023 came very close to repeating that title as a returning champion earlier in December.
Wilson said things started off strong for him at this year’s competition before he was faced with some setbacks.
“I was hoping I could go out there and win again. I went out there in the first round and I did really good. I was really confident because I knew what horse I was getting on. And then the second round,  I knew I was going to do either really, really good or it was not going to be very well. There just wasn’t really any getting by the horse,” Wilson explained. “Then the third round, I thought I should be able to get it with the horse I was on. Well, they loaded my horse on the wrong side of the chutes and it messed the horse up.”
Wilson qualified for the competition in the summer, participating in qualifying rides in Winterset. He came close to winning the series there as well.
“It was all right. I would have won on my first score, but I took a re-ride and I got bucked off of it. If I hadn’t taken the re-ride I would have won in the points,” Wilson said.
Having taken part in the competition last year, Wilson said the experience was a little easier.
“I at least kind of knew the rules and what I could do as far as putting on the saddle. I knew where everything was and stuff, the weather was great too, I’d like to go back. It was about 60 to 70 degrees. The first day, I got the Yeti high point ride. I had the highest point of the whole week,”stated Wilson.
Going into the second round, Wilson said he was around 15 points ahead. The horse Wilson rode for the second round was also ridden once by the eventual winner of the competition, and Wilson said he got bucked off right at the buzzer.
Wilson ended up finishing third overall, and enjoyed the prizes and the experience.
“I got money for winning a round and for getting third, and then I got a vest with a top three patch on it and a Yeti Junior World Finals patch. Even though I didn’t get first, I still had a lot of fun. This year they gave out a prize for winning the round, so the prizes were a lot better this year. The winner got a lot of money and a big suitcase and custom boots,” commented Wilson.
“Last year, there were not very many people there. But this year, the stands were full, I would say. It didn’t bother me though. You don’t even realize it, honestly. You just go in there and think it’s just another rodeo. It’s the best way to do it. I get nervous for a little bit in the beginning, and then instinct kind of takes over,” Wilson said.
While there were a number of Iowa kids competing, Wilson said the competition drew from a worldwide field.
“There were kids from Australia, Mexico, Canada. There was one kid that actually was from Thailand. He used to ride Water Buffalo, he lives in Texas now, and he actually won the world championship in bulls. He didn’t do very good in Saddle Bronc, but he won in bull riding,” Wilson stated.
While he competed only in Saddle Bronc, Wilson said he also qualified to compete in bullriding, but decided to focus on Saddle Bronc. In junior high rodeo, Wilson rides bareback, saddle bronc, and bulls.
Wilson’s father, Scott, admitted that when Wilson was first interested in riding, he wasn’t quite on board, but has quickly changed his mind.
“I wasn’t sure at the beginning. I was like, this isn’t wrestling and this isn’t football. But I know for him it’s a blast. It’s also a lot of running. I mean, I’m going to say we travel 800 to 1,200 miles a weekend sometimes,” Scott advised. “We’ve been to Nebraska, Missouri, and Nevada is the farthest we’ve gone so far.”
Wilson said on days where there are two rodeos at different times, he’ll ride in the morning and a lot of times go to another one that night. Now that this year’s competition is completed, Wilson said he’s training for next year.
“I’ll get on high school horses so they’ll be really big horses. I’m also going to ride some new horses I’ve never been on. Just to get on some different stock. I also have a bucking machine. A lot of people have, it’s called a spur board. You can practice your spurring, which is what helps with your points. You practice that and try to get it down really good. That’ll help with your points, but a lot of times it comes down to you and the animal. Half the points for the animal, half the points for the rider,” advised Wilson. A lot of kids don’t spur, in my division, and about the next one up, they don’t. But the ones that do are my biggest competition. There’s three of us, and we’re all pretty good at spurning.”
Wilson said he enjoys being able to do something fun, and enjoys the rush of competition.  Scott said he couldn’t be prouder of his son’s achievements.
“Who wouldn’t be? Like I said, at first, I was against it, but I know now it’s the most fun thing he’s ever done. If they’re doing it and being successful, even at this level of success, it makes it that much more fun. And the people, it’s a different kind of people. None of the kids are running around playing PlayStation games. They’re outside, and it’s just different people. You’re all one big family,” stated Scott.
Wilson agreed with the family aspect of the sport, and the camaraderie he feels.
“We’ve got Cowboy Church. A lot of times we’ll have a bunch of families, we’ll bring a bunch of food to the trailer and everybody will eat. It’s just fun. It is a different kind of fun,” Wilson explained.
Wilson also said he’s taking the necessary steps to prep for a return to the Junior National Finals Rodeo in 2025.
“I’ll just keep working. And next year I’ll be on bigger horses. The kids I competed with this year, one of them’s been rodeoing seven years and another one’s been rodeoing nine. The one that’s been rodeoing nine, he’s got fourth the last two years, and he’s won the Saddle Bronco once. The kid that’s been at it seven years, he’s got three world titles. But he’s seven years into it. For me, I’ve only been doing it for two years,” Wilson advised.
Wilson also had a special message to the people of Red Oak and the surrounding area who cheered him on.
“I’d like to thank all my sponsors and everybody who supported me and my mom and dad and Green Tree,” said Wilson. “Thank you for everybody that bought signs, too.”
Scott offered his own praise to Brad Baker, who came up with the idea for the signs.
“I was up at the cemetery looking at trees for Brad, and I’m good friends with Brad anyway, and the schools do not recognize rodeo as a sport. Brad tells me he’s going to do something, if I didn’t care. And I said it was okay. He told me he was going to have some signs made that we could use to fundraise for Coy for Vegas. Well, he did just that, which was really nice of Brad. He paid for them out of his pocket, and then they went around and what people called and bought them, and Coy got the money out of it. So, you know, that money buys his gear. Most of it he buys gear with his saddles. It’s more expensive than people would think. The helmet’s almost $1,000. The saddle’s $3,000, it adds up,” Scott stated.
In closing, Wilson said he hopes his success will help spur interest in the competition, as the costs involved make it difficult to participate in.
“To get someone started, it costs a lot. And a lot of people won’t let people borrow their stuff anymore because people don’t know what they’re doing, and they’ll go trash it and bring it back and say they didn’t know this or whatever and stuff. I have let a lot of people use my stuff, though, because we need a lot. We need a lot more people. If someone is interested in joining, have a talk with your parents,” Wilson said.