I’ve been to the rodeo a time or two. My girls actually love
the rodeo. A lot of my friends have been to Cheyenne Frontier Days. At least one of my friends has worked the rodeo circuit.
I’d heard from friends about rodeo legend “Tuff” Hedeman, so
when I heard that his eponymous company was teaming up with Matt and Julia
Noble’s Next Level Professional Bull Riding to kick off Hedeman’s Midwest tour
right here, I bought tickets for myself, our family, and a few friends.
Then my editor asked if anyone wanted to cover the rodeo for the paper, so I jumped at the chance -- after all, I already had my tickets. Over the past few years I’ve written
about veterans, active-duty military, motorcycles, horses, a Country Music
Television producer and the president of the World Armwrestling League. I was
more than willing to take a stab at bull riding. You can read The Woodstock Independent
article here.
I spent the next 36 hours cramming for a 45-minute interview
with one of the biggest names in bull riding history. Going in, I knew about
his four world champion titles, his legendary 95-point ride on Bodacious, that
other infamous ride on the same bull that broke almost every bone in his face,
his friend Lane Frost, and some other talking points provided by his public
relations director who scheduled my interview.
I didn’t have any preconceived notions walking into that
conversation, but I walked out feeling as though I had spoken with a friend.
Richard Neale “Tuff” Hedeman sat down with Matt Noble and
commentator Chris Rankin and spoke to me unassumingly about his sport – and his
history. He casually mentioned his bull riding success, but I knew.
He was extraordinarily candid and we laughed quite a bit. He talked about the differences between what it was like riding when
he was riding versus what it was like riding today.
As luck would have it, I had asked my expert rodeo friend to
explain bull-riding scoring to me – and he delivered. I walked into this conversation with a good grasp on the
fact that there were fifty points possible to be earned by the rider in the
aesthetics of riding and fifty points possible to be earned by the bull based
on level of riding difficulty. To qualify for a score, you need to hold on for
8 seconds. So when Hedeman talked about how far bulls had come in the way of
athleticism, I had an idea of why that was important.
He explained that nearly all the bulls today are bred to be
the best of the best. They are athletic and challenging and earn high scores,
whereas when he was riding, if you pulled a bull that didn’t do much, you
couldn’t achieve a high score.
Hedeman talked about friendship and determination, which I
think was one of the most fascinating parts of our interview.
He talked about loving the life of a bull rider – all
aspects of it. He traveled with and supported and encouraged his friends Lane Frost and James
Sharp. One of them claimed the title of champion each year from 1986 to 1991. But though the competition was steep, the bond among friends was greater.
“I think we all understood that we were each competing against
the animal. … I don’t know what jealousy means. If I didn’t win, it was because
I wasn’t good enough – and that pushed me to do better,” Hedeman said.
He told me that, "In anything
you do, if you want to be the best at bull riding, or sports writing, or
whatever it is you do, you aren’t going to do anything else. That is all you
are going to do. That is what makes a champion – in any area."
He looked at me when he said, “sports writing,” which leads
me to think he thought I was a sports writer, which I thought was kind of funny.
But I loved that he talked about not being upset if he lost.
In a time when everyone seems to be rewarded, Hedeman is such a powerful
example of using loss as an inspiration and remaining friends despite defeat.
One of his friends, Lane Frost, died in the arena in
Cheyenne. While bull riding is entertaining and also provides an adrenaline rush, it is a very dangerous sport.
But while bull riding is not for the faint of heart, neither is
bullfighting.
On Thursday night, bullfighter and lifesaver cowboy Josh Jacobs and
his partner Caleb Osternryk worked to distract the bulls after they bucked off
a rider.
As Jacobs was putting on his gear, I looked at him and asked
him how he even thought about this as a job opportunity. I said I thought it
looked like the worst job ever.
He looked down at his wrist as he was wrapping it up and
said, “Nah. This here is the best job.”
Jacobs said bull-riding was in his blood. His father did it and so did his grandfather. But when he was 18, a bullfighter got hurt and he filled in. He jokingly said he stayed because, "when you ride, you only get paid
if you win. When you bullfight, you get paid every time you work.”
Barrel man Ryan Mead from Nebraska spent the night
entertaining the crowd with his back-and-forth banter with play-by-play commentator
Chris Rankin as well as with his jokes. Mead also said he loved his job in the
arena and that someone had told him he was funny, so he gave it a try. And he’s
never looked back.
Julia Noble owner of Next Level Professional Bull Riding
helped with ladies barrel racing that night as well as with Mutton Busting earlier in the evening.
Hedeman was there for the bulls, but he also said he wanted
to put on a good show. “My goal is to entertain people who know nothing about
bull riding and have a good bull riding competition. … I’ve been doing this a
long time. To bring non-stop action, you need to pay attention to details.
Details are what we do best,” he said.
Thanks to Rankin, everyone knew what was going on – even if
they were bull-riding novices.
LouLou Splendoria, a 2018 McHenry County Princess, came out
on top winning the mutton busting competition and taking home a trophy that was
nearly as big as she was.
Natasha Napp won barrels with an impressive time of 13.049.
And, as Hedeman watched the 32 men take their turn on the
Woodstock dirt, only one man managed to eke out two 8-second rides. That man
was Cristiano Figueredo of Oklahoma. The 29-year-old rode Smoke This for 89.5
points and Cruel Intentions for 90 points, earning a total of 179.5 points and
snagging $3,851.12, a buckle and the title of the Tuff Hedeman McHenry County
Fair Bull Bash champion.
For those who stuck around until the lights went dim,
Hedeman came out to sign autographs. He had told me he'd visit after the event, so I waited with a group of
veterans who had their sights set on meeting the bull-riding icon.
Hedeman wandered the
fairgrounds almost without notice. He judged the mother/daughter and father/son
lookalike contests and indulged reporters. And, when we chatted after the
rodeo, he remembered that I had asked for an autograph for my friend. I gave in
and asked for an autograph for me … and a picture. And, in what I now know to be true Tuff Hedeman fashion, he acquiesced.
