BELLE FOURCHE - Cowboys Cole "Thunder" Boomer, of Bennett County, and Hot Springs' Jobie Dryden have dominated the high school bull riding scene recently.

Their performances Friday morning at the South Dakota State High School Finals Rodeo was no exception. Boomer jumped out to an early lead with a 68-point ride that appeared almost effortless, only to have Dryden come out late with a 70-point effort to grab the lead in Friday morning's first go.

A bitter rivalry perhaps or a budding feud? Not hardly, since the two southwestern South Dakota area cowboys are actually good friends.

"Me and 'Thunder' are really the best of buds," said Dryden, who finished second to Boomer in the Sturgis Regional Rodeo, and followed up that performance with a winning effort in the Crazy Horse Pro Rodeo last weekend. "'Thunder' is just so sticky you can't buck him off for anything, so I like watching him ride. We have always been really good friends and I enjoy watching him do well. Today, I was kind of lucky. Four or five seconds into the ride, the bull jerked the rope out of my hand, and I only had a hold of him with two fingers, but he kind of slowed down and it worked out OK."

Dryden will be attending South Dakota State to continue his rodeo career where the friendly rivalry will carry over to the college circuit.

"Yeah, Jobie and I are pretty tight," said Boomer, who will be joining the rodeo program at Mitchell Technical Institute in the fall. "When he rides well it makes me a little more confident and I want to ride better, too. We kind of feed off each other, I guess."

"Bull riding is all about confidence," Dryden said. "It's like a snowball, you just get your confidence and it just keeps getting bigger and bigger. It's nice to have a friend who knows what that experience is like."