Former Flournoy cowboy makes a name for himself, earns $1 million
Dec. 27—A former Flournoy cowboy, RC Landingham, who started his rodeo career in Tehama County won $1 million during the Dec. 17 World Champions Rodeo Alliance (WCRA) Triple Crown Rodeo in Fort Worth, Texas.
Having competed in the Wrangler National Finals Rodeo the first week of December, Landingham, 32, now of Hat Creek is the third athlete to be in the contention for the Triple Crown of Rodeo, but the first victor of the $1 million bonus.
Landingham is a Professional Rodeo Cowboy Association bareback bronc rider who currently ranks fifth in the world standings with earnings of nearly $247,000 in 2022 — that was before his big $1 million win.
The Triple Crown of Rodeo is an annual bonus that will pay $1 million to any one professional rodeo athlete who wins first place in any three consecutive WCRA major rodeos.
Landingham went into the event with two wins under his belt, only needing to win one more event to earn the bonus.
"It has taken me more than a decade to earn a near $1 million," said Landingham. "Thanks to this organization (WCRA), it only took me three rodeos. This award has done nothing but raise the rodeo bar, and I hope it opens the eyes of others because they are truly making million-dollar opportunities over here."
Landingham is the son of Ty and Wendy Skiver, formerly of Flournoy. He is married to his wife, Bliss, and the couple have a son, Wynn. His mother, who was well known in the Corning area, passed away in February 2017.
He has qualified and competed in the PRCA National Finals Rodeo five times, which in-and-of-itself says a lot about the tenacity and toughness of this roughstock rider whose road to success has been met at every corner with extreme obstacles.
His rodeo life started at the age of 5 when he started riding calves. Landingham won his first title at age 10 in Northern California Junior Rodeo Association competition.
In 2006 he won the California High School Rodeo Association Bareback Riding title, when he was a District 1 member from Flournoy.
Landingham went into his PRCA rookie year of 2010 riding both bareback horses and bulls, that was until disaster struck in Houston while riding a bull in the third go-round that same year.
Landingham suffered broken ribs, fractured his back and shoulder on top of a lacerated liver and a collapsed lung.
After recovering from his injuries sustained in Houston, he was dealt another sucker punch when he was involved in a gruesome car wreck in May 2011. The car was crushed, and Landingham shattered his left leg and broke two bones in his riding hand. The shattered glass from the accident also wreaked havoc on his musculature requiring a large portion of his triceps muscle to be removed after they were shredded. He didn't awaken for two days after being transported to a Portland, Ore., hospital. Rehab took more than 18 months.
Then in 2017, Landingham lost his mother to ovarian cancer.
Shortly after her death, the bronc rider was thrown another curveball with a wreck in the arena when a horse fell over and dislocated his left shoulder. Much of his rodeo career was delayed until 2021 due to complications associated with the dislocated shoulder.
Landingham returned to riding again in February of 2021 and hit new heights in his comeback, which has included two trips to the NFR and competing in WCRA Triple Crown of Rodeo events.
"I have made more money this month (December) than I have in my whole career. The money won't change me as a person. My family is very blessed and thankful," Landingham said.
