By Rich Winter

605 Sports

BUFFALO — If last weekend’s performances at the Wall PRCA rodeo are any indication, Buffalo’s Grey Gilbert is ready to take the big stage in Gillette, Wyoming. 

Gilbert had the top high school time in the steer wrestling (7.6) and the tie-down roping (12.3) in his final tuneup before the National High School Finals Rodeo begins on Sunday in Gillette.

“It felt good to get a couple of wins,” Grey Gilbert said.

Having qualified for the Junior High National Finals Rodeo three times, and now qualifying for the National High School Finals Rodeo for a second time, Gilbert knows he needs to tighten things up in Gillette.

“The runs I made in Wall weren’t super crisp,” he said. “I know what I need to improve this week for a shot at a national title.”

One thing Gilbert has going for him is being a terrific athlete. The 6-foot-1, 225-pound senior has been a stalwart on the Harding County football team for the last few years playing multiple positions. 

“I’m kinda everywhere,” Gilbert said. “I play defensive end, defensive tackle, center, right and left guard and some fullback.” 

He’s also a multi-time state qualifier in wrestling, having been at the same 220-pound weight class since seventh grade. He placed fifth in the 2021 Class B state wrestling tournament and seventh in the 2022 state tournament. 

Gilbert finished second in the steer wrestling competition at the 2022 South Dakota High School Finals Rodeo. His 74 points trailed only that of Long Valley’s Denton Good who scored 78 points. 

The Gilbert family lives six miles southwest of Buffalo and runs a commercial black angus ranch with 1,200 cow/calf pairs. All that ranch provides some solid practice ground where Gilbert works on his craft. 

“I ride a horse called “Pac Man” but I have a practice horse at home and we jump three to four steers two or three nights a week,” he said. “Just about every night we run steers on foot, just throw them down.” 

Gilbert also qualified for the National High School Finals Rodeo this season in tie-down roping. 

“I ride a horse called “Big Enough” for tie-down roping,” he said. “We bought him and I’ve been roping on him for about 10 years.” 

Gilbert feels like the experience of going to the National High School Finals for a second consecutive year gives him a bit of extra calm and confidence, and a chance to represent his hometown. 

“Buffalo has always been known as a rodeo town,” Gilbert said. “My little town has given me a lot and so it’s a pretty cool honor to get known for it.”