
Tanner Keith of Austinville, Virginia, and Joel Lesh of Stillwater, Oklahoma, delivered a high-pressure, high-performance run to win the Open Sort at the 2025 Cinch RSNC World Finals in Fort Worth. The duo sorted 30 head of cattle in 153.94 seconds across three rounds to take the championship and $7,484 in prize money.
The Open Sort is a no-handicap, elite division with a minimum “#5 floor” rider rating. The class began with more than 190 teams in Round 1 and cut down to 40 for the second round. The championship round then featured the very elite of the elite.
“You got to have 10 to get out of the first go and you got to be fast, too,” Keith explained. “You can’t be long.”
Both riders entered the finals as #9-rated competitors—part of the sport’s most accomplished tier.
In the short go, Keith and Lesh drew up as team No. 4. It proved to be a favorable position, offering a glimpse of the cattle’s behavior without overused stock.
“Right in the middle of the pack is probably one of the better spots to draw on a herd,” said Lesh, who rode his 2020 mare Hot Baloo (Lil Catbaloo x Hotstuff An Then Sum) to the winners circle. “You get to see it go a few times, but they haven’t got all the air run out of ’em yet.”

Their run was a clinic in adaptability, communication, and high-speed decision-making. EQN Sports Desk host Amy Wheatley called the action with guest commentator and professional sorter Kody Ward.
“These guys, they’re probably the two best in the world right now,” Ward said. “And they’re riding together.”
The run started fast, but not without challenge.
“Joel took a peek and looked and saw Tanner had ‘em lined up,” Ward noted, as the No. 1 cow rolled back from the gate. “Oh, he didn’t go. No. 1 didn’t go.”
“That cost them a little time,” added Wheatley. “No big deal. Joel got the next cow lined out for him.”
As Keith moved to get the white No. 5, the team encountered another sticky cow.
“The 5’s drug Tanner around the pen a little bit,” Ward said.
While Keith wrestled with the No. 5, Lesh stayed ahead of the action.
“Joel rolled his own trash. He got the next cow set up,” Ward observed. “That’s kind of what it’s going to take to win this Open class—some extraordinary moves.”
The duo’s ability to recover and keep the cattle flowing earned them their third clean run on 10 head and the win. Behind that performance, though, was sharp awareness of cow behavior and the ability to read and react in real time.
“You can learn so much on another man’s mistakes if you sat there and you pay attention,” said Keith.
“These guys right here, some of the best in the world,” said Wheatley. “And they just showed us why.”



This article appears in the Summer 2025 issue of The Ranch Sorter, featuring World Champion stories, event recaps, regional results, and more.
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