Rodeo stars set for national ride

     By Todd Dewey
     View staff writer
      It's not quite the National Finals Rodeo, but the National Finals High School Rodeo will probably feel like the big time to the handful of area students competing this week in Springfield, Ill.
      Dawn Olafson, Kristen Brown, Zoee Gaertner and Dustin Mania of Centennial High School all advanced to the national event -- which, with more than 1,500 prep cowboys and cowgirls, is the largest rodeo in the world.
      Kari Kruse of Advanced Technologies Academy and Justin Richards, a home-school student, will also represent Nevada at the rodeo, which started July 23 and runs through Sunday.
      "It's awesome," Olafson said. "It's a big privilege because out of all the kids we compete against, we're in the top four of all of them (in the state)."
      Olafson, who will be a senior at Centennial, will compete in barrel racing, pole bending and goat tying at nationals.
      Olafson finished first in barrel racing, third in pole bending and fourth in goats in the regular season before placing second in the state in barrel racing and third in pole bending and goat tying.
      Brown, an incoming sophomore, will compete in barrel racing and pole bending. She went from second to first place in barrels at state and placed second in poles.
      Gaertner, who will be a junior, finished fourth in the state in cutting to qualify for nationals.
      Mania, who will be a senior, teamed with Richards, a junior, to finish fourth in the state in team roping. The duo had been in ninth place heading into the state finals.
      Kruse, an incoming senior, tied for second in the state in goat tying. She placed 20th in the nation in goat tying last year.
      The top four finishers in each event at state advanced to the national high school rodeo, which will feature cowboys and cowgirls from more than 40 states, as well as several provinces from Canada.
      Each athlete competes in two go-rounds at nationals. Their scores are then averaged, with the top 15 finishers in each event advancing to a short go-round.
      Olafson, who went to nationals last year but didn't place, has her sights set on the short go-round.
      "I just want to make it to the short go," she said. "If I can put together two good runs, (my chances are) good."
      Olafson said the national event can be nerve-wracking.
      "It's really tough, because you don't know anyone and it's such a big event," she said. "I've got to think of it as just another big rodeo instead of nationals."
      While most high schools around the state feature rodeo clubs, the Las Vegas High School rodeo club is comprised of more than 30 students from several different area schools, including Centennial, Cheyenne, Eldorado and Durango.
      Kruse and Brown competed for the Las Vegas club during the regular season, which ran throughout the school year, while Olafson, Mania and Richards competed for the Pahrump Valley High School rodeo club.
      Pahrump's Robbie Griffith also qualified for nationals. He placed third in the state in steer wrestling.
      Bryce Barnes of Douglas County earned top all-around cowboy honors at the national rodeo last year and will return to defend his crown this season.