Unexpectedly stepping in, Zane Kilgus brings seasoned skills and family-trained horsepower to the CTEC stage for a shot at the championship.
As the Cinch Timed Event Championships kick off today at the Lazy E Arena in Guthrie, there’s a new man entering who wasn’t on the original roster. Due to an injury, K.C. Jones is not able to compete, and Zane Kilgus will be competing in his spot.
Zane Kilgus may have had less than two days' notice that he was going to be competing, but he is all in. The Pennsylvania-born cowboy now resides in Stephenville, Texas, alongside his horse training siblings.
Zane is no stranger to success in the arena. When he was only 22 years old, he had already won seven year-end titles for the First Frontier Circuit. While in college, Zane was on the Northeastern Oklahoma A&M College’s rodeo team and competed in the College National Finals Rodeo (CNFR) in both the team roping and the tie-down roping.
He’s now 24, and roping as sharp as ever, although calf roping still seems to be his main superpower. To help with the team roping, he chose champion roper Jake Long to help him with his run at the Cinch Timed Event Championship. Zane isn’t as experienced in steer roping, but with a rodeo family behind him and his versatile skills, he is still going to be a tough competitor.
Zane’s parents both competed in rodeo in the breakaway and calf roping, and his father, Ned, is a well-known horse trainer. His brother Zach also competes in the team roping. In fact, the horse that Zane will be riding is one that Zane and his dad trained together, named Gus. Gus is his main pro rodeo horse and will share this event with his first family.
Zane’s career earnings in the Professional Rodeo Cowboys Association (PRCA) exceed $81,071. In 2024, he won the team roping at the Big V Feeds Pro Rodeo in McAlester, Oklahoma, and the Santa Rosa Roundup in Vernon, Texas. He also won the tie-down roping at the First Frontier Circuit Finals Rodeo in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, and then the Southern Miss Coca-Cola Rodeo in Hattiesburg, Mississippi. During his 2025 season, he won the Desert Rodeo in Thermal, California. He kicked off 2026 winning at the Dixie National Rodeo.
Zane has previously said his favorite rodeo was the Cheyenne Frontier Days, but it may soon become the Cinch Timed Event Championship if he finds himself the winner of the $100,000 promised to the champion.
With a field stacked with 25 champion competitors, it could be anyone's game to win it. These cowboys are at the top of their game and join a legacy of previous famous cowboys who came to show the world why their name deserved to be on one of those blue ceiling banners. Their skills will be deeply tested as they head, heel, calf rope, steer wrestle, and steer rope. The physical performance has to be paired with a strong mental focus and top horsepower to make all aspects of each run come together. Stay tuned to see who comes out on top!