Franks wraps another solid NFR

By Ted Harbin, TwisTed Rodeo

LAS VEGAS – It’s been a whirlwind 365 days for bareback rider Cole Franks. He left Nevada last December with more than $155,000 in earnings and a plan to be back.

He set out on a plan to do that, but there were other aspects to his life that were also a priority. Franks was married in May to the former Dustie Warr, then set off on the rodeo trail that kept him on the road for much of the summer. He kept winning, and the result was a fourth qualification to the National Finals Rodeo.

He and his bride are also expecting their first child in February, so he arrived in Las Vegas two weeks ago with gold on his mind and a goal of buying diapers and baby food for months to come. This is the world’s richest rodeo, where a disappointing 10 nights still resulted in a payday of $107,781.

“It’s still a good payday, but it’s definitely not what I wanted to get done or anywhere close to what I had envisioned,” said Franks, 24, of Clarendon. “Nothing felt right the last four rounds. I don’t know necessarily if it was equipment or my body. A lot of stuff is hurting right now, my hips, my neck, everything.”

The business of bareback riding is brutal on one’s body. Cowboys wear specially designed gloves with binds on the ring and pinky fingers to lock their hands into the riggings, which are strapped tightly to the horse’s back. They then try to spur from the front of the animal’s shoulders back to the rigging before surging the feet back to the front before the bronc’s front feet hit the ground again.

All the while, 1,200 pounds of bucking dynamite is exploding beneath them.

It’s time.

“I finally committed to just saying getting my hip,” said Franks, the 2021 intercollegiate champion at Clarendon College in both the all-around, bareback riding and as part of the men’s title team. “I’ve got a torn labrum and bone spurs growing in my hip. I feel like it’s probably the best time to do it, get it done before the new year and come back in mid-April.

“That’ll give me two months at home with a new baby. I won’t have to worry about being gone and missing the baby or missing him being born because his due date is in the heat of winter rodeo.”

Rodeo is how Cole Franks makes a living, and it’s a pretty good one. He finished the year with $308,143 riding bucking horses, and his consistency at the NFR came through despite his ailments. He rode 10 broncs for a cumulative score of 846 points, placing fourth in the aggregate, which was worth $44,356.

It’s time to get things fixed and heal so he can continue to support his growing family. That’s the priority, after all.