NFR 2001 in retrospect

WARNING.
this crap is rated

MA14 and may not be suitable for anyone

Unless you are a rodeo person it wont make any sense and without background context it is sure to offend you.
It is sexist for sure. possibly homophobic probably racist. and is just chocked full of personal opinions
which were probably wrong. I picked-on rodeos dumb rules and policies, PRCA management (ie. Ranch
Headquarters) NFR management (the worlds largest PRISON rodeo where contestants are prisoners for
two weeks) the Central Entry System (ie. SCREWCOM) and stock contractors especially stock
contractors. Easy targets plus they deserved it.
An example of me picking on the NFR management.
In the 2001 NFR Greek Sheets you might notice a mention of a guy named Flint Rasmusson who was in the
barrel. Not a particularly handsome individual but a GREAT entertainer. The deal was that the NFR
manangement wouldnt let him get out of the barrel. In an era where PBR was kicking the PRCAs butt on
television ratings, demographics, and ticket prices, it seemed to me that cementing one of rodeos all time great
entertainers into a cylinder was ignorant stupid dumb and typical of what was wrong with rodeo in
general. You know it was the classic PRCA motto.

All for one and NONE for all

based on standard PUBLIC RODEO CLUB petty jealousy and small mindedness.
Some of the needles and jabs were apparently attempts at inside humor since the Bryan the Greek Sheets had
evolved into something less for the media but more as social commentary. Some of it may seem hurtful now
but at the time it was meant to be funny. There were just 25 copies printed each night and distributed
selectively.
The spelling is terrible. Proof reading wasnt an option no time didnt care. Also they were was probably
written at 4 in the morning and the idiot who wrote it was known to drink good bourbon in large quantities
straight out of the bottle.
In September of 2001 --

9-11 changed the world forever

even the historically insulated world of rodeo. Everyone was on edge going in. Rumors were running
rampart one of which had the National Finals Rodeo as one of the top targets for bombing.
Made perfect sense. After all if terrorists had a choice between bombing Congress or Times Square or
the Bay Bridge or the SUPER BOWLor power grids or releasing airborne agents or poisoning the
water systems. they were going to high prioritize 15,000 rodeo people (many of which would be sitting so
high up that and H Bomb wouldnt reach them) and kill a bunch of farm animals (that if truth were told in the
riding events because of the politics and friendships 1/3 of the riding event animals should have had to buy a
ticket to get in).
But anyway PRCA rodeo was worried. So much so that the NFR beefed up its security force. (They added
another guy which theoretically doubled the force).
Still in 2001 when the NFR came around --it was a different world scarier place
Add to that
The stand alone Professional Bull Riding industry had found its legs and was starting to dominate the bull riding
universe. BRO -- BULL RIDERS ONLY had paved the way but they might have not still been in business in
2001. (If anyone shouldve become zillionaires it was those BRO guys.) As I recall BRO and PBR got
crosswise over the business reality that each had a different beer sponsor. Their biggest sponsorscouldnt
survive without them.
Relations between the PRCA management and PBR were still pretty good -- evidenced by Ty Murray being a
popular part of the NFR television broadcast team. However, a big storm was brewing with the PRCA stock
contractors who had been instrumental in PBR even surviving. Linda and Big Dan Russell hauled their good
pen of bulls from one end of the country to the other for almost no pay (really low lease rates because PBR had
no money.) Same deal with Sammy Andrews. Mack Altizer and BAD COMPANY RODEO mightve been the
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MVP. They created bull ridings and let PBR sanction the ones they already had. Cotton Rosser did the same.
James Harper helped out. Don Kish said hed go anywhere within 400 miles of his house. I dont recall any
PRCA contractor turning PBR down unless they had a concurrent rodeo.
And THEN
PBR started using non PRCA bulls. Why? There werent enough good bulls available on a consistent basis.
PRCA contractors were in the Rodeo business. If they had a rodeo or rodeos that had to be their priority. Bull
riding was just part of their operation. On the other hand guys like Terry Williams had a really great pen of
bulls and bull riding was what he concentrated on. At some of the PBR venues nearly 100 high quality bulls
were required in order to provide a descent competitive opportunity for the riders. Then as PBR got established
and started paying the contractors well on a per head basis, PBR was using more and more bulls being
developed outside the PRCA by bull contractors, breeders, investors, and entrepreneurs. There were certainly
hurt feelings and they were certainly justified. The very people who went out of their way to give PBR a jump
start and in many cases lost money -- were cast to the side
Plus, beside hurt feelings, PBR was detrimentally affecting their rodeo business. How so?
1. Some PRCA rodeos were adding PBR bull riding as part of their rodeo packages. Higher ticket prices,
good merchandise, younger demographic. The problem for the resident PRCA contractor was that end
to end the PBR bulls were much better. PLUS that contractor might not have but one or two bulls that
were selected for the bull riding by PBR for a bull riding at THEIR frickin rodeo! Not only was this
hard to explain to his rodeo committees the perception that PRCA rodeo had mediocre bulls quickly
spread. Attendance figures indicated that over a period of years, people might have quit going to the
rodeo and went to the PBR bull riding instead. No big deal for the rodeo committee they were
probably making even more money (more whiskey, more colorful outfits) but for the PRCA contestants
whos added purses are determined as a percentage of rodeo ticket sales they felt like PBR was taking
money out of their pockets. Fortunately, in most cases the committees didnt replace a performance of
rodeo but rodeo participants felt like the committee should have just added another performance of
rodeo. PBR also sometimes brought in different announcers, bull fighters, barrel men and other contract
performers. Sometimes they were better than the PRCA rodeos or were thought to be. PRCA stock
contractors and contract performers survive on long term relationships with rodeo committees. Again,
right or wrong, the perception was that PRCA rodeo was second rate. PRCA jobs were being lost long
term relationships damaged. Add to that the fact that often times PRCA sponsorship dollars were being
re allocated to support PBR bull riding at those rodeos.
2. Even worse was PBR producers going into established PRCA markets and putting on independent bull
ridings detrimentally affecting the rodeos attendance and sponsorships.
3. Some PRCA contractors felt like when they actually were invited to a PBR event they were treated like
step children (not sure what that means exactly.) The very same sorry little buggers they helped get
PBR started were now perceived as big-headed little dictators. DICK-tators. Riders were allowed to
soak bulls use questionable ropes (pretty sure they could also in the PRCA at that time the pullfrom-the-opposite side ropes) and PBR riders could take loops. And, if all that affected the performance
of the PRCA bull, it often sealed his doom when it came to NFR selection. The PBR finals were even
in the same city as the National Finals Rodeo AHEAD of the National Finals Rodeo.
4. From the PRCA organizational viewpoint if for whatever reason you lose or dont get 100 bull riders
the financial impact can be crippling. Less revenue due to less permit sales, % of the prize money,
dues, insurance premiums, PROCOM fees, and fines. Someone guestimated that the loss of one bull
rider could result in the loss of $2,500 a year. Doesnt seem possible but 100 X $2,500 = $250,000.
What if over time it grew to 300 lost bull riders (those that quit rodeoing and the loss of those who
would have bought permits.)
5. Organizationally, PBR was competing with the PRCA for sponsorship dollars -- raiding existing PRCA
sponsors or finding out who were the new sponsors that the PRCA had targeted and then submitting
proposals (See SPIES) No one ever considered that they are different products rodeo versus bull
riding -- rodeos only successful stand alone event. FACT - bull riding is cooler and financially more
appealing to most sponsors.
Now refer back to #3 above. No matter what people think a few influential rodeo stock contractors run the
rodeo business. Always have. Tick them off and measures will be taken somewhere down the line. Screw
them over or disrespect them and they will respond in kind. No matter what PRCA or PBR management
thought, the future of the PRCA/PBR relationship was toast.
But before you dry your eyes weeping for the stock contractors consider that there probably wouldnt have
even been a PBR that succeeded if a few of the most influential PRCA stock contractors (in bed with COORS)
hadnt undermined the brand new long term deal one rodeo Commissioner made with Budweiser. Yeah the
very same guys who ran off another Commissioner because they feared he would move the NFR to the too-beconstructed Texas Stadium or use the possibility of a move to drive-up the price in Vegas. Yep -- the very same
people who had little SPIES keeping them apprised of every move the PRCA was planning and thereby
undermining their marketing and television.
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It is those influential stock contractors fault that the PBR succeeded. However, the PRCA itself was a big
contributor to the success of PBR. There would also have been no PBR if the PRCA hadnt turned down Allen
Reids (REIDLAND) television proposal. Reid PAID PBR and put them on TNN in great time slots. No TV
no Budweiser no PBR.
So the PRCA had it coming -But for me there were enough good bulls IN rodeo to support the PRCA business model. The real issue was
that there just werent enough good bull riders to go around. While everyone was crying about some of the best
older PRCA bull riders deciding to PBR instead of rodeoing, for me the real danger to PRCA rodeo was the loss
of young guys who mightve bought permitsthen cardsand rodeoed. Kids who had grown up in rodeo
tended to follow their heritage but there werent enough left to service 600 rodeos. This was made more critical
by circuit system riders being priced out of rodeo and instead going to well paying bull ridings all across the
United States and Canada.
PBR had been smart and locked-up young hormone-driven talent by offering no entry fees and paying them
appearance fees. For a young guy it was a pretty easy choice. Learning how to enter and get to enough rodeos
to make the NFR is tough on a new guy and can get expensive. Not getting traded, not knowing what
performances to enter for, etc. You can go broke fast.
PBR was simple. Almost no expense. No 100-150 bulls a year. No pinball traveling all over the map on
your own dime. Run by bull riders. No entering headaches. No SCREWCOM. No not getting traded. No
being up 2 places at the same time resulting in paying both entry fees and possibly turn out fines. No red tape.
No RANCH HEADQUARTERS administrative B.S. Cool venues. More depth in the bull herds. An
opportunity to see the same bulls a lot and devise a battle plan. An opportunity for even the more accomplished
riders to improve their riding skills and improve their consistency by getting on good bucking bulls regularly
rather than hit and miss drawing at rodeos all across North America and getting on bulls theyve never seen
before.
So let us pause to review the perceived advantages for a testosterone driven young bull rider with big
dreams . Fame and fortune on TV lots more girls bigger paydays lots more girls better bulls
lots more girls limited travel lots more girls limited expense lots more girls better chance to get a
sponsor lots more girls lots more girls... lots more girls. Granted they might never win anything or ever
improve. On TV costs almost nothing get lots more girls. A no brainer literally.
PBR was VIAGRA for the young!
PRCA rodeo committees (at least the ones who werent passed out in their square-dancing attire) were upset in
that they felt they were trying to market their product (with bull riding being the event with the most ticket
buyer appeal) -- faced with the public perception that PRCA bull riding was now basically minor league.
This perception was only reinforced by few contestants making qualified rides in final go rounds. Make that a
televised short go and it was sometimes a total wreck. The public, the rodeo community, sponsors, and
television believed that PRCA bull riders sucked. Statistics dont lie, they said. But there were underlying,
inherent-to-rodeo reasons for the circumstances. It all depended on whom-drew-what.

The dammed luck of the draw!

Lets explore this in depth.
First of all lets say at a BIG rodeo (say maybe it had $10,000 added money). 100 riders enter (so add
$25,000 to the pay-off via entry fees). $35,000 total purse. Pretty enticing even though the riders are putting
in two and one half times the added money. Its rodeo get over it. Its basically a jackpot sport. Money is
money.
Of those 100 bull riders that entered maybe only 25 have NFR caliber of riding ability NFR guys, top circuitsystem riders, talented young guys.
But maybe we lose 25 riders total and of those 25, 5 NFR quality guys -- due to conflicts with other rodeos.
So we are down to 75 bull riders & 20 NFR types.
Dang it. We then lose another 10 total and 2 NFR types to conflicts with stand alone bull ridings dam them.
So now weve only got 65 total and only13 of them can ride bulls that buck.
Now add the success of the Slade Longs probullstats.com bull performance data base riders looked on line
and saw that the bull they have wasnt good enough to make the short go on if they rode anything else that
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bucked or that they had a bull with a high buck-off percentage and therefore a low probability of riding they
had a choice to make. Decision time.
So Faced with the cost of gas, rental cars, plane tickets, rooms, meals, etc. say we lose another 15 guys total
and 7 of them are the NFR runners (who generally have more expense trying to get to the rodeo)
Geez maybe its the system? You think? Nah. Easier to blame that stinking PBR.
Anyway we started with 100 riders but now we are down to 50 total with only 6 NFR types left and the rodeo
hasnt even started.
Okay now lets look at the Long go at our hypothetical BIG rodeo
While the percentage of the herd that you might make the short go on has risen due to less bull riders actually
participating of the 6 remaining NFR types maybe we lose 2 due to their bull not bucking and another 2 to
getting bucked off. So 2 bucked off and 2 dudded out. Our mythical rodeo now has no chance of having a great
finals.
The Final go round.
So now weve only got 2 guys who are likely to ride bulls that buck hard and a typical short go where you have
the top bulls from 3 or 4 contractors. Bulls with 90% buck-off percentages and some that are even unridden -possibly Big Eliminators that no one is going to ride unless they have a bad day.
1 of the 2 remaining NFR quality guys draws a Big E and gets one jumped. Crap! Screw rodeo he mutters.
Call PBR. Its an 800 number.
The other NFR quality guy gets bucked off fair and square. Great 7.78 second try on a legitimate 22 point bull
but in the Committees sky box (dressed colorfully and drunk of course) they are screaming (quite possibly
screaming in a PRCA sponsors ear)

These SOBs cant ride!

Oh oh. Were out of NFR types. The lights are dim and fixing to go out
One-jump buck-offs, two-jump fall-offs. Then maybe one not-famous guy manages to cling to a runner or
stopper and takes his marking rather than a reride and one guy rides a flat spinner a weak 20 point bull that the
Pro Judges make a 21 with a 22 ride in order to get the scores up
A total of 2 bulls ridden for score of 86 and 44.

Packed house. On television.

SHY---it.
So its easy then to see why there were so many sorry short go..s.
But anyway in 2001 everyone needed good bull riders and they needed to match them against bulls they had
a chance of riding. The good bull rider pool for every production entity was diluted because the bull riders
were scattered. Most had enough bodies to operate but not enough guys who could ride bulls that bucked.
Now add to that the genetic effects of the bucking bull semen business was starting to accelerate the bull
power beyond that of the bull riding talent both in rodeo and at the stand alones. Bulls getting stronger rider
pool getting weaker as a result of the scattering of the talent. It made for a lot of sorry bull ridings and rodeos.
Back to the 2001 National Finals Rodeo.
While maybe the image being perpetuated by bull riding groups was that PRCA bull riders were second-rate,
the guys who made the 2001 NFR could all ride. Stick them indoors, on good bulls, week after week on bulls
they got to watch a lot well rested healed up all of these guys could hold their own and a few of them
might be the top dogs. On the other hand, I doubt that most PBR guys who had never rodeod or rodeod much
could successfully make the transition to rodeo.
See PRCA bull riding is a different deal all together -- tougher deal. Its about achievement. Its about get
off your butt and going and get it. Self motivators only. Push all in on yourself on a daily basis. It is a
character builder for sure. A guy must be able to buck off a good one then get in a car and drive all night and
put that memory behind him and ride the next one. Do that day after day for months. 100-150 bulls a year in
all sorts of conditions always hurt... always tired willing to drive 1000 to win a 1000 going weeks at a
time without drawing a good one investing thousands of dollars betting on the come betting on yourself
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AND THEN.
if youre lucky (or really good) you end up the first week of December at the NFR where you might not draw
bulls that fit you. It happened alot. Plus the pressure is HUGE. Over the season youve got maybe $30,000$40,000 invested in entry fees and travel, you might be even be $10,000-$20,000 down if you are also
supporting a family a family youve been away from for 250 days. One parent households. Now everyone is
at the NFR expecting big things to happen and if you get off to a bad start or get hurt early, it is a terrible
two weeks. The NFR is really for everyone BUT the contestants. Too much rides on doing well.

The NFR is the only opportunity to really BEAT the rodeo game.
And, like the casino trade the odds favor the house.
So here are a few performances of the Bryan the Greek sheets which originated at the Oklahoma City NFR
to amuse and interest a man named George Michael who at that time had the biggest sports recaps program
called the Sports Machine (on NBC). (before ESPNS Sports Center became a big deal). The biggest and
best sports show in the world.
A friend of PRCA media visionary Patricia Daly and author Kendra Santos, George began to unapologetically
include bull riding in his program right next to the biggest and the best American Sport had to offer. Bulls,
bullfighters, and bull riders were presented as great athletes!
Over the years we even began to hold the A Team and Big Eliminator pens until Monday and Tuesday
until George could get there from New York after doing his show on Sunday night.
Single-handedly George Michael introduced millions of new audience to bull riding and rodeo -- which not only
sold more rodeo tickets but also interested new Major sponsors. He even helped PBR get started.
One of Lane Frosts dear friends, George was with us in Cheyenne when Lane died. Heartbroken. Shattered.
Not sure he was ever the same.
But anyway 15 years after written the Bryan the Greek Sheets make little sense even to the writer of said
content. What they may provide however is a glimpse into what the political and business issues were back
then and let you see who the PRCA bull powers were at that time and how the event was evolving.
And perhaps they will help us to realize that while much of everything had changed in the bull riding industry
the appeal of the event was still the same

Little guy big mean bull 8 seconds death or getting maimed possible
David and Goliath eight seconds at a time