Garrett Smith, Rexburg, Idaho returns to the NFR for the third time in four years
Time to Shine
If it's one thing the bull riding contestants have in common this year, it's their resumes. Over half of the 15 headed to Las Vegas to ride bulls are multi-event cowboy athletes at rodeos with tales of injuries and epic comebacks. Idaho cowboy Garrett Smith is no different.
“I finally got healthy the last month of this year,” said Smith.
“You’ve got to learn to ride when you’re not healthy, but it makes a huge difference on how you ride when you’re healthy. It helped to have a good last month, and it was a lot more fun.
Smith, a 3-time NFR qualifier from Rexburg, joins the National Finals Rodeo bull riding roster in the number seven slot. Like No. 8 Trey Benton, he is familiar with both ends of the rodeo arena. The 3-time National High School Rodeo Association all-around cowboy concentrates on bull riding now while in Vegas but can rope and wrestle with his trio of rodeo contending brothers.
Smith competed in 79 rodeos this year, earning money in 43 or 54% and stockpiled $123,974.56 in the regular-season money kitty. He begins the final shuffle known as the last ten days of the 2019 PRCA World Standings with total PRCA career earnings of $605,029.00 since 2014.
This year Garrett won ten event bull riding titles at rodeo and was perched at 12th before his final West coast rides, where he won three titles and $10,591, solidifying him at number seven on the NFR bull riding roster.
Smith was one of 16 bull riders to have earned more than $105,000 through the regular season, the first time in ProRodeo history that has happened.
Garrett’s Ride
Garrett began his quest for a gold buckle and bull riding career in 2014 when he won a handful of rodeos and finished third behind Sage Kimzey in the PRCA Resistol bull riding rookie standings and 43rd in the PRCA World Standings.
In 2015 Garrett’s won 8 rodeos, $51,026, and was 22nd in the PRCA.
2016 was his rookie NFR qualification and he finished fifth at the NFR and in the world standings with $171,698 and nine rodeo titles wins.
But 2017 was stellar as he finished second in regular-season with 14 rodeo event titles and high hopes of a shot at the Gold Buckle. He found his mojo early winning Round 2, but disaster would find him at the Thomas and Mack arena, and after suffering much during the competition, knee surgery was inevitable following Las Vegas. He managed to place in two rounds and finished eighth in the average with 252.5 points on three head and ranked fifth in the world with $260,143.
2018 rolled around and recovery by the summer run was hopeful - until a fractured pelvis in August derailed the season.
“This NFR probably means more to me because I came through so many injuries to come back for it,” said Smith, who credits much of his success to his sponsors, Idaho Project Filter, CINCH, Resistol, Rodeo Vegas, Rodeo Tax, Rodeo Graphics, Truth Bucking Stock and Streamline Sports Chiropractic & Physical Therapy.
“I’d just like to finish it healthy once; that would be nice,” added Smith.
Garrett’s proud to be part of Idaho’s Project Filter, where he visits schools and organizations as a mentor and to encourage kids to decide to stay away from drugs and tobacco products.