By Glen Miller/Staff Writer

SHAWNEE — Okarche High School graduate Trevor Beebe and his younger sister, Katie walked away from the Inter-national Finals Youth Rodeo with hefty paychecks in their back pockets.

This year’s event set a record for contestants at 1,025 from 30 different states, including Hawaii. The event was hampered by heavy rains that flooded all three performance arenas — leaving riders to deal with an inch and a half of mud.

Trevor, who will compete later this month at the National High School Finals Rodeo, took seventh place in the calf-roping event at the IFYR, good enough for an $816.27 payday.

Beebe turned in a time of 9.9 seconds in the first go-round, which tied him for ninth place. His second go-round time topped 13 seconds, but it was still quick enough to get him into the finals.

Contestants’ times are added together and the top 15 riders then advance to the finals. Beebe turned in a time of 9.9 in the finals, which tied him for sixth.

Beebe also competed in the team-roping event with Hammon’s Austin Orgain. The pair had a time of 14.2 seconds in the first go-round, but did not place in the top 15 for the finals.

Katie, meanwhile, sloshed her way to fifth place in the Cowgirl All-Around, which netted her a $1,732.36 check. She took ninth overall in the barrel racing, posting a time of 16.90 seconds in the first go-round and 17.943 in the second go-round. In the finals she posted a 16.464-second ride.

In the breakaway roping event, Beebe placed sixth overall. In the preliminary rounds she posted times of 3.2 and 3.6 seconds to make the finals. There she had a time penalty and finished with a 12.4-second ride and a 19.23-second total for all three rounds.

She also competed in pole bending, logging a time of 26.631 seconds in the first go-round. She was a few seconds quicker on her second ride but did not make the finals.