Bulls in the Windy City

The bulls blew in to the Windy City this past weekend and took the town by storm......snot storm, that is! 

Smackdown marked a special milestone with his 75th career out in Chicago.   He did it in grand style!  Not only did he produce the event winning ride but tied with Rango for the high bull score of the event, 45.75 points, out of 50.  Smackdown was the # 3 bull in the PBR last year, and he showed no signs of slowing down!

I took this picture of Smackdown last year in Las Vegas.  He is such a great bull, and has been for a long time!

This is a photo I took in October of 2010.  Smackdown (l) with his buddy Yellow Jacket Jr.  Both of these bulls have been around for years, and are still bucking great!  Yellow Jacket Jr scored 44.25 pts and a buck-off Sunday in Chicago.

On Saturday night, the PBR aired it's new broadcast format "Pure PBR", which gave TV viewers a new look at the sport of bull riding.  Hosts Brandon Bates and JW Hart were behind the scenes, on the back of the chutes and took us in to the locker room and sports medicine.  I found the broadcast very entertaining, and I liked different announcers, in a different format.  Bull fighter, Shorty Gorham, was also involved and gave us more information from the dirt.  There were a few glitches in the broadcast but since it was the first time, I expect they will be fixed and improved upon.  One issue was too much background noise, that made it hard to hear some of the interviews, and graphics were not always given...especially not announcing the bull and stock contractor...something that NEVER should be forgotten!

One segment I really enjoyed was JW Hart's explination of the flank strap.  Evidently, lots of folks at the NYC event were asking questions about the flank.  I am happy a clear answer was given to people who think the flank endangers or hurts the bull.  JW was even flanking the bull, Prom Night, to show us viewers how and why the flank is necessary.  And like someone told me a long time ago, would the bull really be out there jumping around and kicking if his "jewels" were tied up???  Think about it!

One bull who really caught my attention this year is Happy Feet, from K-C Bucking Bulls.  He is a great bucker, and new to the K-C family.  Happy Feet was scored a 43 on Saturday night and a 42.5 on Sunday.  I think he looks a bit like King Lopez and bucks like him too!

Shorty mentioned that the dirt was not the best in Chicago, a bit loose.  Bulls planting their feet was a problem.  The dirt is always a point of contention.  It all depends on the weather, in the area of the event, the week before.  Shorty talked about this at the Posse Luncheon I attended in NYC.  He said if there is rainy weather and the ground is soaked, it is very difficult for the arena crew to set down a solid foundation.  Sometimes sand and other materials are brought in to firm up the dirt.  Hopefully, there were no injuries to any of the bulls.

Lightmaker's Rango was tied with Smackdown for high bull score of the event with a 45.75 point score.  Rango had big vertical kick as he bucked off Nathan Schaper.  Rango is the son of legendary bull, Playboy.

Rock N Roll was outstanding in the Championship round.  His 44 point score was too low, in my opinion, as he bucked great with big kick!

Was happy to see King Lopez get some additional TV air time as the event went to commercial!  The King looked great and deserved every bit of his 45 point score as he bucked off Robson Palermo.  And after his "mud bath" the week prior, King Lopez was nice and white again!

The harsh side of the sport we love reared its ugly head Sunday as Jeff Robinson's bull, Pawnbroker, broke his leg in a freak accident, in the chute.  I did not see it, and will not watch it!  I worry for these great animal athletes every time they buck!  Fortunately, I have good news to report from a Facebook post earlier Thursday, Robinson Bulls said that Pawnbroker "is up and making good progress.  He's moving around and has a great appetite".  Thank God!

A bull that was interesting to watch in the chute was Buckwild, from C'N Stars Bull Company.  He wears a horse halter, that is kept on him all the time.  A rope is thread through the halter and under the chin of the bull.  This keeps Buckwild from getting his chin down and then rearing up in the chute.  He is extremely difficult to get out on cleanly but he is an amazing bucking bull.  The halter, as it was explained on TV, was the last effort by Buckwild's owners to keep him at PBR events.  If he didn't get better standing in the chute, he'd not be invited back.  On Sunday, he wasn't perfect in the chutes but was good enough and he produced a huge ride for Silvano Alves - 92.5 points! Wow!

The Chicago event was exciting, scary, stressful and we witnessed amazing bovine power.....just another weekend of the PBR!! 






All photographs by Susan Hanrahan