Monthly Archives: August 2016

Bullfighters Only’s top-ranked man ready to battle beasts at Ellensburg Rodeo   ELLENSBURG, Wash. – Cody Webster understands his position as king of the hill may be for a limited time, but he’s enjoying the view so far. “It’s pretty neat, because we’re not talking about two or three or even four guys,” said Webster,  Continue Reading »

HEMPSTEAD, Texas – The dream is always the same, and it’s always draped in gold. For rodeo cowboys, every step of their lives and their livelihoods is guided by that dream, of winning the world championship. The vision involves riding great steads or handling untamable bulls. The brilliant visions of gold buckles include important stops  Continue Reading »

DUNCAN, Okla. – Early August is always a hot time for rodeo in the Prairie Circuit. Over the last four weeks, 11 rodeos have taken place inside the boundaries of the circuit, which encompasses Oklahoma, Kansas and Nebraska. It’s a great opportunity for cowboys and cowgirls to cash in and push their way toward qualifications  Continue Reading »

KENNEWICK, Wash. – Zach Call didn’t start the year among the top 15 men on the Bullfighters Only tour. He’s almost there, though, with strong performances during the BFO’s inaugural season. He made a solid move Friday night by posting an 80-point fight to win the championship in Kennewick in association with the Benton County  Continue Reading »

BREMERTON, Wash. – Not much separates the top men from the rest of the field in the Bullfighters Only. Schell Apple proved that Friday night during the Bullfighters Only competition held in conjunction with the Kitsap County Fair & Stampede, posting an 81-point fight to win the title. “It’s pretty cool to get that win,”  Continue Reading »

Young bullfighter to celebrate his 21st during BFO stop at Kitsap County Fair, Stampede   BREMERTON, Wash. – For many young people, a 21st birthday is cause for celebration and for an outrageous party. Schell Apple isn’t like most people his age. He plans to celebrate a few days early by standing toe-to-toe with a  Continue Reading »

KENNEWICK, Wash. – It’s been five years since Toby Inman looked into the eyes of a bull. He returns to competition this Friday for the Bullfighters Only tour event that will take place in conjunction with the Benton County Fair and Rodeo in Kennewick. “I don’t know if it’s been retirement (from bullfighting) or if  Continue Reading »

Oklahoma bullfighter suffers torn ACL, will miss remainder of 2016 season   Chuck Swisher has been fortunate much of his career to shy away from serious injuries. That stopped during the Sikeston (Mo.) Jaycee Boothill Rodeo, when Swisher suffered a torn anterior cruciate ligament while serving as a protection bullfighter. In that role, his primary  Continue Reading »

Veteran goes ‘old school’ en route to his Bullfighters Only tour victory in Gooding GOODING, Idaho – Ross Hill is a veteran bullfighter who has a few tricks up his sleeve. He earned his spot in Saturday night’s championship round of the Bullfighters Only tour event in association with the Gooding Pro Rodeo, then pulled  Continue Reading »

Packed crowd at Caldwell Night Rodeo enjoys Bullfighters Only competition   CALDWELL, Idaho – Having served as a protection bullfighter for a few years, Cody Webster knows all about the raucous crowd at the Caldwell Night Rodeo. On Tuesday during the opening night of the five-night rodeo, Webster showed that crowd his tremendous athleticism during  Continue Reading »

GOODING, Idaho – The men of Bullfighters Only take danger to a new level. It’s one thing to face danger; it’s another thing to attack it and bring it to its knees. That’s what the Bullfighters Only competition will be about Saturday during the final night of the Gooding Pro Rodeo. Five men will compete  Continue Reading »

LOVINGTON, N.M. – J.D. Struxness has had an outstanding week on the rodeo trail. He put an exclamation point on it Saturday night by earning a share of the steer wrestling title at the Lea County Fair and Rodeo. During the final performance of the 2016 exposition, Struxness wrestled his steer to the ground in  Continue Reading »

SIKESTON, Mo. – Bullfighting is more than a leap of faith for Beau Schueth, but he doesn’t mind jumping into the action. It paid off Friday night to the Bullfighter Only tour victory during the championship round in conjunction with the Sikeston Jaycee Boothill Rodeo. The O’Neill, Neb., man scored 89 points to win the  Continue Reading »

LOVINGTON, N.M. – Every dollar matters to bareback rider Kyle Brennecke at this stage of the game. He set up a nice paycheck Friday night at the Lea County Fair and Rodeo with a wet and wild 85-point ride on Pete Carr Pro Rodeo’s Painted River. That pushed him into the No. 1 spot heading  Continue Reading »

LOVINGTON, N.M. – CoBurn Bradshaw wasn’t exactly born to be a saddle bronc rider, but you can’t tell that by the way he rides. On Thursday night, he matched moves with Pete Carr Pro Rodeo’s Cowboy Cowtown for 84 points to take the lead at the Lea County Fair and Rodeo. It was a nice  Continue Reading »

Bullfighters Only will be featured on opening night of the Caldwell Night Rodeo   CALDWELL, Idaho – The life of a bullfighter is sometimes wild, sometimes exciting and all the time consumed by their passion. It takes a true love affair with the game to look a bull in the eyes and risk everything, escaping  Continue Reading »

LOVINGTON, N.M. – Success has always followed steer wrestler Dean Gorsuch to the Lea County Fair and Rodeo. “This has been a really good rodeo for me,” said Gorsuch, a two-time world champion bulldogger from Gering, a tiny community straight north of Lovington in the Nebraska Panhandle. “I like this rodeo. It’s a really long  Continue Reading »

LOVINGTON, N.M. – Just 15 minutes after his final ride of the night, Colten Jesse had already strapped his Lea County Xtreme Bulls trophy buckle on his belt. He earned the right to do that by dominating Tuesday night’s performance at the Lea County Fair and Rodeo. Jesse won both go-rounds and the average championship  Continue Reading »

Mary Burger’s hot streak went has gone into a blistering pace for the 2016 season. By earning $5,863 last week, the 2006 world champion barrel racer pushed her season earnings to $185,439, surpassing Lindsay Sears’ regular-season earnings record from 2008. She placed in a round in Dodge City, Kan., and finished second in both Sidney,  Continue Reading »

DODGE CITY, Kan. – The championship round of Dodge City Roundup Rodeo has quite a reputation and being one of the best performances in ProRodeo. It lived up to it again Sunday, especially for bareback rider Tim O’Connell. “A lot of guys get nervous when they make the short round here, because this is probably  Continue Reading »

SIDNEY, Iowa – One by one, Chuck Swisher watched the three other bullfighters go during the championship round of the Bullfighters Only stop at Sidney Iowa’s Championship Rodeo on Saturday night. He paid close attention to every move, every counter move and every score. As the last man to challenge his animal, Swisher knew exactly  Continue Reading »

DODGE CITY, Kan. – Scottie Knapp knew nothing about his bull on Saturday night, but that didn’t stop the Albuquerque cowboy. Knapp matched every move the athletic bovine threw at him and won the first-round of bull riding with a 91-point ride at Dodge City Roundup Rodeo. “He doesn’t even have a name,” Knapp said.  Continue Reading »

DODGE CITY, Kan. – The draw for rodeo cowboys is a life of independence and competing in a sport they love. The draw is also a big part of the game, as cowboys are matched with their animals by a random draw. Those that draw the best animals sometimes win the most. That was the  Continue Reading »

LOVINGTON, N.M. – As he rolls toward the final two months of his rookie season in ProRodeo, Clayton Biglow is making quite a name for himself. A month and a half ago, he finished the College National Finals Rodeo as the reserve bareback riding champion, falling just three points shy of the national titlist, Feather  Continue Reading »