Down But Not Out
by Dave Poulsen
T he year was 2019. Clay Elliott was a two-time Canadian Champion saddle bronc rider and three-time National Finals Rodeo qualifier. He was on top of his game and on top of the world. “I was traveling the world getting on bucking horses. It was awesome. I loved it.” And then in the blink of an eye, everything changed. A serious rodeo injury at Guymon, Oklahoma brought that phase of Elliot’s life to a sudden and crushing conclusion. But if you thought you’d seen the last of
Clay Elliott in rodeo arenas, you really don’t know this second-generation cowboy very well. “I’d rode bucking horses and roped all through high school and college (Panhandle State in Oklahoma). That was where I got to decipher what I was good at and what I enjoyed the most. I had a student visa and got an education, most of it was paid for, and had a chance to figure some things out while in the midst of rodeos; it was a time in my life when I was able to think about what I wanted to be.”
Clay Elliott – 2024 Falkland Stampede photo by Gralyn Boyd
Canadian Rodeo News – May, 2024 – 8
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